The most recent Immigration Levels Plan sets the International Mobility Program goal at 170,000 admissions and cuts the Temporary Foreign Worker Program down to just 60,000.
Compared to last year’s goals this means that LMIA-exempt permits will go up by 32% and LMIA-based permits will go down by 27%. These were set for 2026 in the immigration levels plan 2025-2027.
There has also been a big change in how these numbers are figured out, which is part of the reason for this apparent drop this year.
This change affects everything about how you should apply if you want to work in Canada.
On March 15, 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) also released new instructions for officers about reciprocal employment work permits. These included brand new rules for how applications should be entered into the Global Case Management System (GCMS).
These changes have an effect on multinational companies, cultural exchange programs, and anyone who needs the C20 exemption code.
This full breakdown goes over all the changes to LMIA-exempt work permits in 2026. It talks about the new admission targets, what the numbers really mean, the new rules for reciprocal employment rules, the new GCMS documentation requirements, and the public policies that are about to expire that could affect your work permit application.
Understanding the Numbers for 2026 Work Permit Admission Targets
The Immigration Levels Plan for 2026–2028 shows big changes to how temporary workers can enter the country.
You need to look at three sets of numbers to get a clear picture of what’s going on: the goals for 2025, the goals for 2026 in the old immigration plan, and the goals for 2026 in the new immigration plan.
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What the Old Plan Said (Plan for Immigration Levels from 2025 to 2027)
| Goal for 2025 | Goal for 2026 |
|---|---|
| International Mobility Program: 285,750 | 128,700 |
| Temporary Foreign Worker Program: 82,000 | 128,700 |
| Total number of workers: 367,750 | 210,700 |
Important point The old plan already had the IMP target set to drop a lot between 2025 and 2026, which shows that the government wanted to lower the number of temporary residents.
The New Plan Says (2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan)
| Program | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Mobility Program | 170,000 | 170,000 | 170,000 |
| Temporary Foreign Worker Program | 60,000 | 50,000 | 50,000 |
| Total number of workers | 230,000 | 220,000 | 220,000 |
The new 2026 IMP goal of 170,000 is 32% higher than the old Immigration Levels Plan’s goal of 128,700.
The TFWP target on the other hand went down from 82,000 to 60,000, which is a 27% drop overall.
Why the drop from last year to this year might not be what it seems
It looks like a huge 40% cut when you compare the IMP target for 2025 (285,750) to the target for 2026 (170,000). But there is an important change in accounting: Post-Graduation Work Permits (PGWPs) are no longer part of IMP admission targets.
The new Immigration Levels Plan says that IRCC now sees PGWPs as extensions or changes of status, not new arrivals.
Because graduates are already in Canada as students, getting a work permit doesn’t mean they are getting a new temporary resident admission.
This change in method is a big reason for the apparent drop explained.
In short, Canada is putting LMIA-exempt pathways ahead of LMIA-based permits.
In 2026, there will be almost three IMP spots for every TFWP spot. If you can get into an IMP category you don’t have to go through the Labour Market Impact Assessment. This saves your employer thousands of dollars and months of processing time.
What Does It Mean to Be LMIA-Exempt?
A Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) is a paper that Canadian companies usually need to hire a foreign worker.
It shows that there isn’t a Canadian worker who can do the job. The process costs a lot of money ($1,000 for the application fee), takes a long time processing (10–20 weeks for standard applications), and needs a lot of advertising and recruitment paperwork.
This whole process is not necessary for LMIA-exempt work permits.
The International Mobility Program lets some types of foreign workers get work permits without their employer having to go through the LMIA application process. But just because something is LMIA-exempt work permit doesn’t mean there are no rules.
Officers still check to see if the job is real, if the pay and duties are appropriate for the position, and if you meet the requirements for the exemption category.
Even though the number of LMIA-exempt applications is going up, the 2026 policy changes make them more closely watched.
