International Mobility Program: Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement
This section contains policy, procedures and guidance used by IRCC staff. It is posted on the department’s website as a courtesy to stakeholders.
Important: The LMIA exemption code associated with this work permit category has changed.
Please see Labour market impact assessment (LMIA) exemption codes – International Mobility Program for the correct codes
Background
The Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed in November 2008 and became effective August 15, 2011. The coverage of Chapter 12 of the Canada-Colombia FTA is almost identical to Chapter 12 of the Canada-Peru FTA, but includes a section allowing the issuance of open work permits to spouses of Traders and Investors, Intra-company Transferees or Professionals and Technicians. This is also different from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which did not cover spouses as noted in Section 1.5 of NAFTA.
Coding for the spousal provision [T25]
As this is an exemption under a FTA, it is to be treated differently from the C41 and C42 (spouses of skilled-workers or students respectively) exemptions. Therefore, exemption code T25 is to be entered into the system for open work permit applications from spouses of workers coming in under the Canada-Colombia FTA.
Professionals and Technicians
Please refer to the list of Professionals and Technicians in the Canada-Peru FTA section above, as the Canada-Colombia FTA contains the identical list, and, like the Canada-Peru FTA, contains a list of professionals not covered followed by a list of technicians that are covered.
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