Total work-permit holders
1,405,175
2015–2026
Temporary Foreign Worker Program
All provinces and territories
All programs · 2015–2026
At a glance
Work-permit-holder summary
Change over selected period
+24,290
2015–2026
Percentage change
+32.2%
2015–2026
Largest program
Agricultural Workers
690,280
Trend analysis
Annual work-permit-holder trend
Annual totals for the selected destination, program category, and year range.
Geographic comparison
Work-permit holders by province or territory
Program distribution
Work-permit holders by program category
LMIA means Labour Market Impact Assessment. A Labour Market Impact Assessment is a government assessment that many employers must obtain before hiring a temporary foreign worker. It helps determine whether hiring the worker is expected to have a positive or neutral impact on the Canadian labour market.
Key insights
What the data shows
Highlights calculated from the selected destination, program category, and year range.
Overall movement
Work-permit-holder totals increased
32.2% from 2015 to 2026
Latest annual total
99,755
2026 published total
Leading province or territory
Ontario
Highest total for the selected filters
Largest program category
Agricultural Workers
690,280 work-permit holders
Ranking
Top provinces and territories
- Ontario 450,635
- Quebec 370,645
- British Columbia 298,980
- Alberta 143,155
- Nova Scotia 31,255
- New Brunswick 30,685
- Manitoba 21,425
- Saskatchewan 16,860
- Province/territory not stated 14,215
- Prince Edward Island 13,105
Ranking
Program categories
- Agricultural Workers 690,280
- Other Temporary Foreign Workers with LMIA 655,515
- Live-In Caregivers 45,640
- Caregivers 13,740
Detailed records
Annual totals
Annual work-permit-holder totals for the selected filters.
| Year | Work-permit holders | Annual change | Annual percentage change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 75,465 | — | — |
| 2016 | 81,590 | +6,125 | +8.1% |
| 2017 | 79,920 | -1,670 | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 85,660 | +5,740 | +7.2% |
| 2019 | 99,925 | +14,265 | +16.7% |
| 2020 | 86,685 | -13,240 | -13.2% |
| 2021 | 106,090 | +19,405 | +22.4% |
| 2022 | 138,195 | +32,105 | +30.3% |
| 2023 | 187,805 | +49,610 | +35.9% |
| 2024 | 194,695 | +6,890 | +3.7% |
| 2025 | 169,390 | -25,305 | -13.0% |
| 2026 | 99,755 | -69,635 | -41.1% |
Data source
About this dataset
These records measure Temporary Foreign Worker Program work-permit holders by province or territory of intended destination, published program category, and the year in which permits became effective.