Manitoba MPs Announce Work Permit Extensions for 2,700 Provincial Nominee Candidates Until End of 2027
About 2,700 workers in Manitoba will have the opportunity to obtain work permit extensions, according to statements made by two Winnipeg members of Parliament.
The extensions are being offered to workers pursuing permanent residence through the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP), according to Kevin Lamoureux, federal MP for Winnipeg North. He announced the extensions on July 6.
The extensions will last until the end of 2027 and provide workers authorization to continue working while their provincial applications are being processed, according to a July 7 post by Terry Duguid, federal MP for Winnipeg South.
As of the time of writing, the government has provided no details on how work permit holders are to apply for these extensions. Nor has it said which requirements must be met to qualify, or when the measures will come into effect.
According to an image of what appears to be a draft federal government news release posted by Lamoureux, the announced extension measure is to be named the "Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge" (MWTB), and has been positioned as a follow-on initiative to a temporary public policy from 2024.
The earlier policy enabled the issuance of open work permits to provincial nominee candidates for up to two years. It was put in place on August 11, 2024 and set to expire on December 31, 2024. The policy expired without having been renewed but appears to have been quietly extended through the end of 2025.
According to the MWTB news release draft, over 1,600 workers who had been issued work permits through the 2024 policy have since become permanent residents. A further 2,700 are still awaiting provincial nominations, with the province expecting it will be unable to meet the December 31, 2026 deadline for issuing nominations.
The MWTB draft reads: "The proposal is currently before the Province of Manitoba for consideration. The measure could only be implemented following provincial acceptance."
This proposal follows two years of federal government cuts to Manitoba's quota of provincial nominations. The annual quota stood at 9,500 for the years 2023 and 2024, dropped to 6,400 for 2025, and fell further to 6,239 for 2026.
PNP requires first receiving a nomination from the province, then applying to the federal government for permanent residence. The full process can take two or three years, leaving workers at risk of losing work authorization.
In June 2026, the federal government announced a new measure expanding work permit eligibility to provincial nominees between PR application submission and acknowledgement of receipt. The Manitoba extension appears to be a separate, complementary measure.
IRCC has not responded to requests for clarification on details of the measures announced by Lamoureux and Duguid.
The extensions are being offered to workers pursuing permanent residence through the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP), according to Kevin Lamoureux, federal MP for Winnipeg North. He announced the extensions on July 6.
The extensions will last until the end of 2027 and provide workers authorization to continue working while their provincial applications are being processed, according to a July 7 post by Terry Duguid, federal MP for Winnipeg South.
As of the time of writing, the government has provided no details on how work permit holders are to apply for these extensions. Nor has it said which requirements must be met to qualify, or when the measures will come into effect.
According to an image of what appears to be a draft federal government news release posted by Lamoureux, the announced extension measure is to be named the "Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge" (MWTB), and has been positioned as a follow-on initiative to a temporary public policy from 2024.
The earlier policy enabled the issuance of open work permits to provincial nominee candidates for up to two years. It was put in place on August 11, 2024 and set to expire on December 31, 2024. The policy expired without having been renewed but appears to have been quietly extended through the end of 2025.
According to the MWTB news release draft, over 1,600 workers who had been issued work permits through the 2024 policy have since become permanent residents. A further 2,700 are still awaiting provincial nominations, with the province expecting it will be unable to meet the December 31, 2026 deadline for issuing nominations.
The MWTB draft reads: "The proposal is currently before the Province of Manitoba for consideration. The measure could only be implemented following provincial acceptance."
This proposal follows two years of federal government cuts to Manitoba's quota of provincial nominations. The annual quota stood at 9,500 for the years 2023 and 2024, dropped to 6,400 for 2025, and fell further to 6,239 for 2026.
PNP requires first receiving a nomination from the province, then applying to the federal government for permanent residence. The full process can take two or three years, leaving workers at risk of losing work authorization.
In June 2026, the federal government announced a new measure expanding work permit eligibility to provincial nominees between PR application submission and acknowledgement of receipt. The Manitoba extension appears to be a separate, complementary measure.
IRCC has not responded to requests for clarification on details of the measures announced by Lamoureux and Duguid.
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