The Agri-Food Pilot was created to address the labour needs of the Canadian agri-food sector. The pilot provides eligible temporary foreign workers in the sector with a pathway to Canadian permanent residence. The pilot will continue until May 2023 and accept 2,750 applications each year.

To apply to the Agri-Food Pilot, you need to

• have eligible work experience in an eligible industry and eligible occupation, and
• have a job offer for full-time, non-seasonal work in an eligible industry and occupation in Canada (outside of Quebec)

Eligible industries

Eligible industries under the pilot are:

• meat product manufacturing
• greenhouse, nursery and floriculture production, including mushroom production
• animal production, excluding aquaculture
  • cattle ranching and farming
  • hog and pig farming
  • poultry and egg production
  • sheep and goat farming
  • other animal production

Eligible occupations

Eligible occupations under the pilot include:

• NOC 6331 - retail butchers
• NOC 9462 - industrial butcher
• NOC 9617 - food processing labourer
• NOC 8431 - general farm workers
• NOC 8611 - harvesting labourers
• NOC 8252 - farm supervisors and specialized livestock workers

Eligibility Requirements

Candidates must meet the following requirements to be eligible under the Agri-Food Pilot:

• 1-year non-seasonal, full-time Canadian work experience in one of the eligible occupations
• job offer for full-time, non-seasonal work in Canada, at or above the prevailing wage.
• a Canadian Language Benchmark level 4 in English or French
• a Canadian high school diploma or the foreign equivalent
• have valid temporary resident status, if already in Canada