How to Apply for NOC C & D (Low Skill Agriculture)


Procedures for Barbados

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For more information please contact

James Inniss, Consul/Chief Liaison Officer
Bus: (416) 214-9825
Fax: (416) 214-9826

Shirley Wall-Mayers, Assistant Liaison Officer

Address: Suite 1010, 105 Adelaide Street West,
Toronto, Ontario M5H 1P9

 


Procedures for Eastern Caribbean Countries

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For more information please contact

Bernard E. John, Consul/Liaison Officer
Charmaine Williams, Liaison Officer
Bus: (416) 222-1988
Fax: (416) 222-3830

Address: 200 Consumers Road, Suite 409,Toronto,Ontario M2H 4R4
E-mail: ecls@oecs.org


Procedures for Jamaica

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For more information please contact

Larkland W. Stone, Chief Liaison Officer
Bus: 416-733-4359
Fax: 416-733-0023
Home: 905-457-0299

Click Here for the Jamaican Liaison Service website.


Procedures for Guatemala

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1. 1. F.A.R.M.S. requires Low Skill Appointment of Representative form to be completed and returned to our office.

 
2.

Place order with Service Canada In Ontario please contact Service Canada Simcoe at:
Tel: 1-866-431-7297
For all other provinces contact your local Service Canada office.
3.

Once completed, please forward the employment contract (PLEASE ENSURE it is completed and signed) via fax to F.A.R.M.S. - 905-568-4307 via e-mail at paula@farms-canag.com
4.

F.A.R.M.S. will send the request to Guatemala for recruitment purposes and to obtain names of workers.
F.A.R.M.S. administration fee is $43.00 + H.S.T. per worker arrival
5.

Guatemala will recruit workers and send F.A.R.M.S. the names
6.

F.A.R.M.S. will provide the employer the names of the workers
7.

Employer must submit the names of the workers to Service Canada to obtain a final Labour Market Opinion (LMO) Number.
8.

Once employer receives the LMO employer must fax or e-mail F.A.R.M.S. F.A.R.M.S. sends Guatemala the final LMO with a requested travel date.
9.

Guatemala will provide F.A.R.M.S. with the travel date as well as a signed contract for each worker. F.A.R.M.S. will forward the contracts to the employer.
10.

Once travel date has been confirmed, CanAg Travel will contact the employer to arrange ground transportation. Fees for this service vary depending on where employer is.
11.

CanAg meets worker at the airport and facilitates worker movement through Customs and Immigration and gets them through Pearson Airport onwards to bus connections or local pick-up.
12.

If worker has any issues, please contact the Guatemalan Consulate office in Montreal 

Mr. Jacques Geleyn 514-397-2381
13. If a worker disappears off the farm or doesn’t showup for work, please contact the Consulate officeas well as the F.A.R.M.S. office so worker can be declared AWOL with the authorities.

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Application for Temporary Foreign Worker Program

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Click Here  
The application is available as a PDF document. Click Here to download the file.

SAWP vs NOC C & D (Low Skill Agriculture) Comparison

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Simcoe Service Canada Centre
Administers the temporary foreign worker programs of SAWP and NOC C&D (Agriculture Low Skill)
General Information Line: 1-866-431-7297

 
 
Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP)
Low Skill or NOC C & D (Agriculture Low Skill) Occupations Requiring Lower Levels of Formal Training
1 Who can Apply? Any employer who is part of an approved agricultural commodity sector can apply for temporary foreign workers. Each application is assessed individually by Human Resources and Skill Development Canada (HRSDC). Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has final authority.
2 What countries participate? Prescribed countries only: Barbados, Eastern Caribbean, Jamaica, Mexico, and Trinidad & Tobago. Employers can apply to any country.
3 Employment Contracts Agreements are standard and outline agreed upon responsibilities of the employer / employee. The Source Country Government, employer, temporary foreign workers and the Canadian Government are parties to the agreement. Agreement is not standard. Each employer is responsible for the agreement according to program guidelines. The agreement is between the employer the temporary foreign worker and approved by HRSDC.
4 Who is responsible to recruit workers? Source countries are responsible to recruit temporary foreign workers and station a Government Agent in Canada. Employer is responsible for the recruitment and selection of temporary foreign workers.
5 Who sets the wage rates? Wage Rates are set annually by HRSDC based on Labour Market Information for persons performing the same job. Employers must satisfy HRSDC that wages are at the prevailing rate for persons performing the same job.
6 Where do the names come from? Employers can request named or unnamed temporary foreign workers. Source Country has final decision. Employers select temporary foreign workers and provide the worker name, birthdate, residence, and citizenship.
7 What is the period of employment? Temporary foreign workers work a maximum of 8 months between January 1 and December 15. Employer may be allowed to hire a temporary foreign worker, upon approval for the initial labour market opinion, for up to a maximum of 24 months.
8 Housing Requirements? Inspected and Ministry of Health approved accommodations are provided by employers with no cost to the temporary foreign workers. Employers are not required to provide accommodations however they must demonstrate that suitable (Ministry of Health approved) and affordable accommodation is available.
Accommodations provided by employers must be approved by the Ministry of Health. The cost is recoverable based on guidelines.
9 Recoverable costs for 2011? Caribbean deduction up to 50% of the airfare to a maximum of $505.00. Caribbean other recoverable cost deduction of $2.16 per worker per working day. Mexico deduction 10% of gross earnings to a maximum of $632.00 There is no provision for a recovery of airfare costs.
Housing recovery based on guidelines as approved by HRSDC.
10 Medical Coverage Medical coverage provided through provincial health schemes and private coverage taken out by source country.
Workers are covered from first day.		 Employers are required to purchase comparable health coverage until employees are eligible for provincial health coverage
(3 month waiting period).
11 Temporary Foreign Worker Taxes Standard deductions - Tax guide for SAWP workers in place. Government agents provide tax filing. Standard deductions – temporary foreign workers are responsible for their own tax filing.
12 Contract Compliance? Applicable Ministry of Labour standards apply.
Government agent monitors contract compliance. Employer or Government agent can refer problematic cases to HRSDC program manager.		 Appropriate Ministry of Labour standards apply. Problems must be worked out between the employer and employee.
13 Breach of Contract? Temporary foreign worker repatriation is possible according to agreement – replacement workers can be requested. If temporary foreign worker returns to source country, goes AWOL or is not suitable, employer is responsible for cost of return airfare and must apply to HRSDC with a new labour market opinion application for another temporary foreign worker.
14 When can I get my temporary foreign worker? Temporary foreign workers arrive within 3 – 4 weeks.
Emergency requests within 48 hours.		 Processing of temporary foreign worker application will vary and is dependant upon meeting the confirmation requirements of HRSDC and processing standards of a Canadian Visa Office / CIC.
15 Who pays the Immigration Visa Fee? Immigration visa fee paid by the employer and recovered as per Employment Agreement. Immigration Visa fee is paid by the temporary foreign worker.
16 Can I transfer my temporary foreign worker to another farm? Worker transfer requires approval of Foreign Government Liaison Officer, both sending and receiving employers, HRSDC, and the temporary foreign worker. A temporary foreign worker can work for a new employer provided the worker agrees. The employer applies and receives a positive labour market opinion from HRSDC. The temporary foreign worker must then apply for a work permit specific to the new employer. All of the preceding steps must be filled prior to a temporary foreign worker beginning employment with a new employer.
17 What is the employer responsible for? Employer must receive a social insurance number for the temporary foreign worker. Employer is responsible to ensure the temporary foreign worker receives OHIP coverage, receives proper medical attention, arrangements to meet or have agent meet the temporary foreign worker at place of arrival and upon completion of employment, transport worker to place of departure at no cost to worker as per the Employment Agreement. Employer responsibilities include assisting the temporary foreign worker to obtain a Social Insurance Number, purchase comparable health coverage until employees are eligible for provincial health coverage, receives proper medical attention, arrangements to meet the temporary foreign worker at place of arrival and upon completion of employment to transport the temporary foreign worker to place of departure at no cost to the temporary foreign worker.
18 Administrative Function? Foreign Agricultural Resource Management Services (F.A.R.M.S.) a not for profit organization facilitates and coordinates processing of orders. Funded by a user fee of $35.00 per worker, paid by the employer and is not recoverable from the temporary foreign worker. HRSDC administers this program. The program was designed to allow the employer to manage the administration themselves. Temporary foreign worker requests from Guatemala and Honduras are administered by F.A.R.M.S.
19 Air Travel F.A.R.M.S. appoints CanAg Travel as the agent for the SAWP. Airfare is paid up front by the employer and a portion can be recovered from employee as per the Employment Agreement Employer arranges. Employer is responsible for roundtrip airfare regardless of reason or time of departure. There is no provision for recovery of costs.