immigration
growth projections for operations in Canada. HR and mobility
professionals should be aware that the ESDC analyst can use any
information received during the call in addition to the informa-tion
provided in the GTS LMIA application to draft the LMBP
for review and signature by the employer. Therefore, it is critical
to ensure that any information provided is accurate and can be
achieved if used as a commitment in the LMBP. At the end of the
call, the analyst will establish an agreed date with the employer to
receive any additional information, along with the proposed date
for a final decision.
From an operational perspective, ESDC officers are committed
to meeting the 10-business-day service standard and will manage
the timelines accordingly. Where an employer is unable to provide
required information in a timely fashion, ESDC can transfer the
application to the regular LMIA process, which results in longer
processing times for the LMIA. Once issued however, the LMIA
will be annexed under the global talent stream and hence still eli-gible
for 10-day work permit processing if filed outside of Canada.
From a user perspective, the interaction with ESDC representa-tives
under the global talent stream is much more collaborative in
comparison to the regular LMIA processing stream, which is of-ten
rigid in process and, at times, adversarial in tone.
ADVICE FOR HR PROFESSIONALS
The key to successfully navigating the global talent stream largely
involves advanced preparation by the employer to respond quickly
and appropriately throughout the LMIA application process and
upon future reviews of the LMBP. Particular time and attention
must be paid to preparing the LMBP to ensure it meets ESDC’s
requirements, while making sure that a process is developed inter-nally
to review the proposed plan to confirm it can be achieved,
measured and reported. ESDC will review employer undertakings
provided in the LMBP roughly six months after issuance of the
LMIA and in the future to ensure compliance with the submit-ted
plan. Failure to make best efforts to meet the obligations in the
LMBP can result in removal from the pilot. Moreover, there may
be circumstances where the GTS may not represent the most ad-vantageous
approach to facilitating the entry of foreign workers
and consideration should also involve reviewing eligibility under
the international mobility program. n
Naumaan Hameed is a partner, Canadian Practice Leader at
KPMG Law LLP.
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