In January 2020, a new immigration program called the Yukon Community Pilot (YCP) was announced and is now accepting applications for a period of 3 years. The program offers direct access to permanent residence in Canada as well as a 2 year open work permit where the employment location will be the community in which the applicant was nominated but the employer section will be open meaning that the principal applicant can work for multiple employers including changing employers. The processing time for these applications is 12-14 weeks until a nomination can be issued and then the applicant becomes eligible to extend for the 2 year open work permit. Both international applicants and foreign nationals inside Canada with valid immigration status are eligible, see "candidate criteria" below.
The participating communities are
Carcross
Carmacks
Dawson City
Haines Junction
Watson Lake
Whitehorse
Candidate Criteria
valid temporary work permit in Canada or a student visa with the course of study completed. Or international applicant who is not currently living in Canada but does meet the remaining criteria. Refugee claimants and visitors are not eligible to apply
Proof of a minimum of six months directly related work experience inside or outside Canada for the position being nominated for a Critical Impact Worker (Skill Level C or D) or one year of directly related work experience for the position being nominated for a Skilled Worker (Skill Level 0, A, or B)
Proof of education/ credentials - the applicant must submit their high school certificate or its equivalent in order to meet the minimum education requirement. If higher education is required for the position/NOC, please submit educational diplomas, certificates, degrees, etc
Language proficiency results on IELTS (general), CELPIP (general) or TEF not older then 2 years. The minimum language levels depend on the skill level of the job offers from employers in the eligible communities of Yukon. Generally speaking, you must have 6 bands on IELTS for jobs in the skill level 0 or A. 5 bands for skill level B jobs and 4 bands for skill level C or D jobs. The minimum must be met in every category (Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking)
spouses and dependents are also eligible to accompany the principal applicant and obtain status for the same length as the principal applicant
valid written job offer from 2 or 3 employers in Yukon. LMIA is not required and the recruitment duration is 1/3 the length of LMIA eligibility requirements! The candidate may work for multiple employers in order to meet the full time (35-40 hours/week) requirement
Employer Criteria
To be eligible to make an application under the YNP, an employer must meet the following criteria:
the employer must be a permanent resident of Canada;
the employer must have been operating in Yukon as:
a registered Yukon business with an office in Yukon for at least one year prior to the application to the YNP; or
an industry association with an office in Yukon for at least one year prior to the application to the YNP; or
a municipal, First Nation or territorial government for at least one year prior to the application to the YNP; or
a non-profit organization for a minimum of three years, with funding secured for at least one year following the application to the YNP; and
the employer must have current and valid required licenses in accordance with all applicable federal, territorial, and municipal requirements. Employers must have been registered and operating the business for which the application has been submitted for, in the Yukon, a minimum of one year, on a full-time basis
they must first advertise and offer the job to Canadians or permanent residents of Canada. The minimum duration of advertisement before applying to this program is only 4 consecutive weeks for the employers and they should continue advertising until a decision is made by an immigration officer (12-14 weeks on average)
For further information regarding the Yukon Immigration Community Pilot program, contact us.