IRCC Employer Compliance Review for Canada Job Offers: How the Inspection Works

IRCC checks employers who submitted a job offer for work permit applications in two ways — a document request or an on-site inspection — and if it finds violations, it can list the employer publicly as non-compliant and impose penalties.

In short

• IRCC updated its job offer guidance for IMP employers — rely on the current version, not the previous page text.
• Submitting a job offer through the Employer Portal costs $230 and commits the employer to IRCC compliance reviews.
• The review happens in two stages: first a document request, then an on-site inspection if needed.
• If non-compliance is found, the employer is added to a public list and the fine amount is published on the IRCC website.
• Records for each worker must be kept from the time the job offer is submitted until 6 years after employment ends.

What changed: IRCC updated its job offer guidance

IRCC updated two guidance pages covering job offer submissions — a number of procedural details changed. The update affects employers who submit a job offer under the International Mobility Program (IMP), whether through LMIA-exempt applications on the Employer Portal or through LMIA-supported offers. For applicants and employers, this means that when preparing a job offer, it’s worth relying on the current version of IRCC’s guidance rather than the previous page text.

LMIA-exempt vs. LMIA-supported job offers: who applies and how

A job offer in Canada comes in two forms: LMIA-exempt — an offer exempt from a labour market impact assessment — and LMIA-supported — an offer backed by such an assessment. The difference determines which agency oversees the employer.

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) conducts the LMIA assessment. Employers whose offers are LMIA-exempt are overseen directly by IRCC, Canada’s immigration authority. It’s these exempt offers that most often go through IRCC compliance reviews.

Exempt categories fall under the International Mobility Program (IMP), which covers job offers under regular exemption codes, including intra-company transfers and codes C11, C10, and C51. An employer submitting such an offer deals directly with IRCC, bypassing the ESDC labour market assessment.

LMIA-exempt vs. LMIA-supported job offers

Criterion	LMIA-exempt	LMIA-supported
Who oversees it	IRCC	ESDC assesses, IRCC oversees the hire
Program	International Mobility Program (IMP)	Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP)
Labour market assessment	Not required	Required (LMIA)
Example codes	Intra-company transfers, C11, C10, C51	—
Who most often undergoes IRCC compliance reviews	Yes, most often	Reviewed separately under LMIA rules

Based on the description given in the article.

Submitting a job offer through the Employer Portal

The employer signs and submits the job offer through the Employer Portal, and IRCC charges a $230 fee for this (c10, c11). The portal form requires the offer details, and the employer signs a series of disclaimers and consents (c12).

These are precisely the provisions that give IRCC the authority to conduct reviews: provisions of the IRPR grant the department the power to carry out compliance inspections, and the signature on the portal is effectively an agreement to that arrangement (c13).

By submitting a job offer, an employer in Canada takes on specific obligations to the worker: wages, hours of work, and other conditions set out in the offer (c14, c15). After submission, the employer must comply with the exact standards stated in the job offer — not general guidelines, but the terms of that specific document (c16).

After submission, the employer must comply with the exact standards stated in the job offer — not general guidelines, but the terms of that specific document (c16).

Two review methods: document requests and on-site inspections

IRCC verifies job offer compliance in two ways. The first is a document request: the department requires the employer to provide certain paperwork, which the employer is obligated to submit. The second is an on-site inspection at the workplace.

An on-site inspection is ordered when the employer fails to meet the required standards or does not respond to notification letters or other IRCC requests. In that case, inspectors come directly to the business premises.

This procedure differs from an LMIA review, which is conducted by ESDC (Employment and Social Development Canada). A job offer review follows the rules under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, while LMIA is governed by separate labour market rules — the focus there is specifically on the job offer and the conditions set out under those rules.

The employer is responsible for both forms of review — administrative and on-site: for violating employment standards or record-keeping requirements, IRCC can impose administrative or financial penalties.

How the inspection unfolds: from questionnaire to non-compliance report

The conditions of the inspection are imposed on the employer under Regulation 209 — this is what gives IRCC the authority to require answers and documents from the employer (c34).

1. The IRAB unit sends the employer a letter announcing the start of a compliance review (c34).
2. The employer may be sent a questionnaire with a set of questions — this is the first and mildest stage (c35).
3. IRCC may request documents for review; the employer has a limited time to respond (c36).
4. If the employer does not respond to the request or fails to meet requirements, the case moves to an on-site inspection (c37).
5. Depending on the severity of the situation, IRCC may skip the questionnaire and document request and move straight to an on-site inspection (c38).

Employers are notified of an on-site inspection in advance and are expected to reasonably cooperate with inspectors (c39). This cooperation includes providing access to copiers and printers for RAEB staff, who may need to make copies of documents (c40). Inspectors are entitled to take photographs, record video, and make audio recordings of the entire process — including of employees, but only with their consent (c41). On site, they may examine anything and request any documents (c42, c50).

Inspectors are entitled to take photographs, record video, and make audio recordings of the entire process — including of employees, but only with their consent (c41).

If the inspection finds non-compliance or the employer refuses to cooperate with inspectors, a non-compliance report is drawn up — it sets further proceedings in motion (c43, c45).

What an employer should do during an on-site inspection

• Respond to the IRAB letter announcing the reviewrequiredThe first step of the process
• Fill out the questionnaire, if one is sentThe mildest stage of the review
• Provide the requested documents within the deadlinerequiredThe deadline is limited
• Provide access to copiers and printersrequiredFor RAEB staff
• Obtain employees’ consent for photo and video recordingEmployees may only be filmed with their consent
• Keep records and documentation for each workerrequiredFrom the time the job offer is submitted until 6 years after employment ends

Consequences of non-compliance: fines, the public list, an IMP ban

If information gathered during a review indicates a violation, IRCC can determine that the employer failed to meet the job offer standards or the terms of the offer. The same determination is made if the employer refused to cooperate with inspectors or did not provide access to documents and staff.

Several penalties can then follow at once:

• the employer is added to the public list of non-compliant employers on the IRCC website;
• the same website publishes details of the violation and the amount of any financial penalty;
• any previously filed complaints are reviewed, and administrative or other penalties may follow;
• the employer may be barred from the International Mobility Program (IMP) and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) for up to 2 years — this is not an automatic consequence of a review, but a penalty IRCC applies once a violation has been established.

Responsibility for going through reviews — whether administrative or on-site — rests entirely with the employer, not with the foreign worker hired. A separate requirement applies regardless of the outcome of any review: records for each worker must be kept from the time the job offer is submitted until 6 years after that worker’s employment ends.

What triggers a review and how often it happens across programs

A number of circumstances can trigger an inspection, and some of them have nothing to do with actual violations by the employer (c29). One trigger is past instances of non-compliance already on record, or issues flagged in earlier compliance reports (c30). Another is random selection: IRCC may pick an employer from a particular group simply because it’s time for a scheduled review, with no wrongdoing on the company’s part at all.

A number of circumstances can trigger an inspection, and some of them have nothing to do with actual violations by the employer (c29).

For job offers submitted under LMIA-exempt codes, a review can also be prompted by a complaint or a tip from an outside source — for example, a report from the foreign worker themselves, who may be seeking an open work permit for vulnerable workers, or a request from a union, an NGO, or through diplomatic or parliamentary channels.

The Global Talent Stream (GTS) has its own separate rule: a compliance review is mandatory there, and it isn’t based on random selection — it’s conducted on a set schedule, every two years (c33). That fixed standard applies specifically to GTS and isn’t a general requirement for all job offers.

Frequently asked questions

What happens to a foreign worker already hired if the employer is found non-compliant?

Responsibility for going through reviews and meeting job offer standards rests with the employer, not the foreign worker who was hired. Penalties — listing on the non-compliant employers list, fines, and an IMP/TFWP ban of up to 2 years — apply to the employer and don’t automatically cancel the worker’s own status.

Can a foreign worker file a complaint against an employer and trigger a review?

Yes — for job offers under LMIA-exempt codes, a review can be prompted by a complaint or a tip from an outside source, including a report from the foreign worker themselves, who may be seeking an open work permit for vulnerable workers, as well as a request from a union, an NGO, or through diplomatic or parliamentary channels.

Is an employer always notified of an on-site inspection in advance?

Yes, employers are notified of an on-site inspection in advance and are expected to reasonably cooperate with inspectors — including providing access to copiers and printers for RAEB staff. But if the situation is serious enough, IRCC can skip the questionnaire and document request stage and move straight to an on-site inspection.

Can inspectors be refused permission to take photos or video during a review?

Inspectors can film the inspection process and the premises themselves without needing the employer’s specific consent, but they may only photograph, video, or audio-record employees personally with those employees’ own consent.

If an LMIA review has already happened, does that exempt the employer from an IRCC job offer review?

No, these are two separate procedures with separate legal grounds: an LMIA review is conducted by ESDC under labour market rules, while a job offer review is conducted by IRCC under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Going through one review does not replace or cancel the other.