The Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (CCoFTA) was signed on November 21, 2008 and entered into force on August 15, 2011.

This agreement is an integral part of the Comprehensive Commerce Strategy (CCS) put in place by Canadian authorities to promote international trade and attract more investors to the country. Like most FTAs, the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement has economic advantages, particularly with respect to trade flows.

It also facilitates the hiring of Colombian workers as temporary foreign workers (TFW). This advantage is a way to find talent from this emerging country with an education system that places particular emphasis on technical, technological and vocational training.

In this sense, there are exemption codes for professionals and technicians, intra-company transferees, workers’ spouses. The list of professionals and technicians who can benefit from the facilities of the Canada-Colombia Agreement.

To benefit from these facilities, rules are established both for the approach to be adopted by the Canadian employer and for the foreign worker to be brought from Colombia. The general conditions are that the candidate must be a citizen of Colombia and possess the skills and experience necessary for the exercise of the positions or functions he intends to occupy in Canada.

1. Professionals

A professional is not required to obtain a LMIA but must have a work permit.

A professional is defined as a Colombian national who practices a specialized profession that requires:

(a) the theoretical and practical application of a body of specialized knowledge, and the appropriate certificate/license to practice; and

(b) the obtention of a post-secondary diploma in a specialty whose practice requires at least four years of study;

In Canada, professionals who can be recruited in one of these countries must meet the following requirements, among other conditions:

• possess Colombian citizenship;
• practice one of the specialized occupations such as those in levels O and A of the National Occupational Classification (NOC). However, the following professions are not subject to it.
• possess the qualifications required to practise the profession (diploma or certificate from a related program of study);
• have arranged employment with a Canadian employer;
• provide professional-level services in the field in which the person concerned has qualifications, as indicated in the appendix;
• comply with existing immigration requirements governing temporary entry.

2. Technicians      

A technician is not required to obtain a LMIA, but must have a work permit.

A technician is defined as a Colombian national who exercises a  specialized technical  profession that requires:

(a) the theoretical and practical application of a body of specialized knowledge, and the appropriate certificate/license to practice; and

(b) obtaining a post-secondary diploma or a technical diploma in a program of at least two years’ duration.

In Canada, skilled technical occupations are those that fall under Level B of the National Occupational Classification (NOC).  The following technical occupations are subject.

In short, whether for professionals or technicians, immigration officers must be assured that the employment is still “temporary” in nature and that the applicant is not using the CCoFTA to avoid the usual immigration formalities.

How long is a work permit valid for a professional or technician? Can it be extended?

A first work permit issued upon entry into Canada may be valid for up to three years. Extensions of up to three years may be granted, provided that the person concerned always meets the requirements applicable to traders. There is no limit to the number of extensions.

It should be noted that the spouses of professionals and technicians admitted to temporary residence can also benefit under well-defined conditions from an open work permit covering the period of the conjugal partner’s work permit.

3. People in transfer within a company

Intra-company transferees are employees of a Colombian company who hold an executive or managerial position or a position that requires specialized knowledge and who are transferred to perform functions of the same nature in the Canadian company or in a parent, branch,

subsidiary or affiliate in Canada.

An intra-company transferee is not required to obtain an LMIA, but must have a work permit. This exemption benefits companies that arelocated in one of the other two countries quite well.

The following requirements apply:

• possess Colombian citizenship;
• hold an executive or managerial job or a job that requires “specialized knowledge”;
• be transferred to a business that has an eligible relationship with the business in which they currently work;
• the Canadian company must have a relationship with the Colombian company (parent, branch, subsidiary or affiliate);
• have held continuous employment in a position of the same nature outside Canada for at least six months (full-time) in the three years preceding the date of the initial application; and
• comply with existing immigration requirements governing temporary entry.

How long is a work permit valid for intra-company transferees? Can it be extended?

The validity period of a work permit issued upon entry into Canada can be up to three years. However, persons authorized to enter Canada to establish an office or work in a new office should be issued an initial work permit for up to one year.

Extensions may be granted for periods of up to two years, provided that the person concerned always meets the requirements applicable to intra-company transferees.

It should be noted that the spouses of professionals and technicians admitted to temporary residence can also benefit under well-defined conditions from an open work permit covering the period of the conjugal partner’s work permit.

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