On This Page, You Will Find:
- What the SCLPC open work permit is
- Who qualifies for the spousal open work permit in 2026
- Applicants without valid temporary resident status
- How to apply for the SCLPC open work permit: step by step
- Fees and processing times
- How the SCLPC permit differs from a bridging open work permit
- Why the January 2025 spousal open work permit restrictions do not apply
- Extending the open work permit
- Frequently asked questions
Spouses and partners being sponsored for Canadian permanent residence from inside Canada can apply for an open work permit that lets them work for almost any employer while their permanent residence application is processed. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) runs the measure as a standing public policy, and the department last updated its instructions in April 2026.
The rules have changed substantially since the measure launched. It is no longer a time-limited pilot, applications are no longer mailed to case processing centres in Mississauga or Edmonton, and the timing of the work permit application is now tied to a specific document. Anyone relying on older guidance risks submitting an application that IRCC will not process.
What the SCLPC open work permit is
The Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada (SCLPC) class covers foreign nationals who are living in Canada with a Canadian citizen or permanent resident sponsor and applying for permanent residence without leaving the country. Because permanent residence processing takes many months, IRCC allows those applicants to hold an open work permit in the interim.
An open work permit is not tied to a named employer and does not require a Labour Market Impact Assessment. Holders must still comply with federal, provincial and territorial labour laws, and certain occupations involving health-care or child-care settings can carry a medical examination requirement.
Two points about terminology matter. IRCC no longer describes this as an « open work permit pilot, » and the old references to a one-step application submitted alongside a paper permanent residence package no longer reflect current practice. The permanent residence application and the work permit application are two separate submissions in two different IRCC systems.
Who qualifies for the spousal open work permit in 2026
IRCC states that you can apply for this open work permit if you are either a spouse, common-law partner or conjugal partner living in Canada who is being sponsored for permanent residence, or an accompanying dependent child of that principal applicant.
Principal applicants must also meet all of the following:
- be in a genuine relationship with the sponsor
- be included in a permanent residence application and hold an acknowledgement of receipt (AOR) letter confirming that the application is being processed
- be living in Canada with the sponsor
The AOR is the letter the sponsor receives from IRCC once an officer confirms the application package is complete. It carries an application number beginning with the letter F. That letter, not the act of submitting the package, is the trigger for the work permit application.
An accompanying dependent child qualifies where the principal applicant meets the three conditions above and the child is living with the principal applicant and the sponsor. Provincial minimum working-age rules apply before a child can take a job.
Two groups are excluded outright. You cannot apply under this public policy if your permanent residence application has been refused, withdrawn or returned, and you cannot apply for this work permit at a port of entry.
Applicants without valid temporary resident status
The application route depends on whether you hold valid temporary resident status. IRCC treats you as having valid status if you hold a valid temporary resident permit, visitor record, work permit or study permit, if you have maintained your status by applying to extend before expiry, or if you have applied for and are eligible for restoration as a visitor, worker or student.
Applicants who fall outside those categories are still covered by the public policy that allows out-of-status spouses and partners to be sponsored from inside Canada, but the work permit timing is different. If your permanent residence application is being processed under the spousal public policy and you are out of status, you must wait until you receive your approval in principle letter before you become eligible for the open work permit. You cannot use any other public policy or pilot to get a work permit in the meantime.
Once the approval in principle letter arrives, out-of-status applicants apply on paper rather than online. The package must include a letter explaining that you cannot apply online because you are out of status, together with a copy of the approval in principle letter.
How to apply for the SCLPC open work permit: step by step
The sequence below reflects IRCC’s current instructions for applicants who hold valid temporary resident status.
- Step 1 – Submit the sponsorship and permanent residence applications. The principal applicant submits both applications together online through the Permanent Residence (PR) Portal. Paper packages are available only as an accommodation, on request, in braille, large print or paper format.
- Step 2 – Wait for the acknowledgement of receipt. IRCC issues the AOR to the sponsor once the package passes the completeness check. This is the document that unlocks the work permit application.
- Step 3 – Open an IRCC secure account. The open work permit is applied for online in the IRCC secure account, not the PR Portal. Authorized paid representatives submit through the Authorized Paid Representatives (APR) Portal instead.
- Step 4 – Answer the eligibility questions to generate a document checklist. Where asked whether one of a list of situations applies to you, select « I am applying for an open work permit under an active public policy or pilot program announced by IRCC. »
- Step 5 – Complete the form with the required codes. Under « Details of intended work in Canada, » select « Open Work Permit » as the permit type, enter « SCLPC FC OWP » as the job title, and enter « SCLPC FC applicant in Canada public policy » in the brief description of duties.
- Step 6 – Upload the supporting documents. In addition to the personalised checklist, upload your AOR under « Client information, » plus proof that you and any children hold valid temporary resident status. Under the family information section, upload form IMM 5707, your marriage certificate or the statutory declaration of common-law union (IMM 5409), and the birth certificates of dependent children showing both parents’ names.
- Step 7 – Pay the fees and submit. Biometrics may be required. Do not start working until the permit is approved, unless you already hold a work permit and have maintained your status as a worker.
There is one narrow exception to the AOR requirement. You may apply for the work permit without an AOR only if your work permit, study permit or temporary resident status will expire in two weeks or less, and you have applied for permanent residence under the SCLPC class or the family class as a spouse, common-law or conjugal partner. In that case you upload a copy of your existing permit or record together with proof that the permanent residence application was submitted.
Fees and processing times
Open work permit applicants pay two federal fees: the work permit processing fee of CAD $155 and the open work permit holder fee of CAD $100, for a combined CAD $255. Biometrics, where required, cost CAD $85 per person or CAD $170 for a family of two or more applying at the same time. If the work permit is refused, IRCC refunds the open work permit holder fee but not the processing fee.
The permanent residence side is priced separately. Sponsoring a spouse or partner from inside Canada costs CAD $1,260 including the right of permanent residence fee, or CAD $660 without it, plus CAD $180 for each dependent child included.
IRCC does not publish a separate service standard for this open work permit, and any figure quoted elsewhere should be checked against the department’s live processing times tool. On the permanent residence side, IRCC reported to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration in March 2026 that in-Canada spousal applications outside Quebec were running at roughly 14 months as of January 31, 2026, with Quebec-destined in-Canada applications closer to 25 months. See our guide to family sponsorship processing times and Canadian immigration processing times generally.
How the SCLPC permit differs from a bridging open work permit
The bridging open work permit (BOWP) serves a similar purpose but a different population. A BOWP lets a permanent residence applicant keep working while a decision is pending, and eligibility is limited to economic-class programs: Express Entry through the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Canadian Experience Class and Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Provincial Nominee Program, Quebec skilled workers and Quebec investors, the closed caregiver pilots and the Agri-Food Pilot.
Three differences matter in practice. A BOWP applicant must be the principal applicant on the permanent residence application. A BOWP applicant must already hold a work permit, have maintained status as a worker, or be eligible for restoration. And family-class sponsorship is not a BOWP-eligible program at all. Sponsored spouses and partners use the SCLPC public policy instead, which is open to applicants holding visitor or student status, not only workers. General work permit application guidance covers the common requirements that apply to both.
Why the January 2025 spousal open work permit restrictions do not apply
On January 14, 2025, IRCC announced that, effective January 21, 2025, family open work permits would be restricted. Those changes limited family open work permits to spouses of international students enrolled in master’s programs of 16 months or longer, doctoral programs or select professional programs, and to spouses of foreign workers employed in TEER 0 or 1 occupations or select TEER 2 and 3 occupations in priority sectors. The foreign worker must also have at least 16 months remaining on their work permit. Dependent children of foreign workers lost eligibility.
These restrictions govern a separate measure – open work permits for family members of temporary residents – and they do not govern the SCLPC class. IRCC’s own notice stated that spouses of workers covered by free trade agreements and those transitioning to permanent residence were not affected. A person being sponsored by a Canadian citizen or permanent resident qualifies through the sponsorship public policy, not through a partner’s study or work permit, so the TEER lists and the 16-month rule are irrelevant to that application.
Extending the open work permit
IRCC allows an extension of two further years under this public policy where you have received the AOR for your permanent residence application and no decision has yet been made on it. Apply before the current permit expires so that you can continue working under maintained status. For background on the wider process, see our overviews of spousal and partner sponsorship and family sponsorship immigration.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I apply for the open work permit at the same time as the permanent residence application?
In most cases, no. IRCC’s current instructions require you to wait for the acknowledgement of receipt letter before applying for the open work permit online. The only exception is where your work permit, study permit or temporary resident status will expire within two weeks and you have already submitted a permanent residence application under the SCLPC class or the family class as a spouse, common-law or conjugal partner.
Is the spousal open work permit still a pilot program?
No. IRCC now administers the measure as a standing public policy rather than a time-limited pilot, and its published instructions carry no expiry date. Older articles referring to a pilot that had to be periodically extended, or to mailing applications to case processing centres in Mississauga or Edmonton, are out of date.
What if I have lost my temporary resident status?
You may still be sponsored from inside Canada under the spousal public policy, but you cannot apply for the open work permit until you receive an approval in principle letter on your permanent residence application. At that point you apply on paper, enclosing a letter explaining why you cannot apply online and a copy of the approval in principle letter. You cannot use any other public policy or pilot to obtain a work permit in the meantime.
How much does the spousal open work permit cost?
The work permit processing fee is CAD $155 and the open work permit holder fee is CAD $100, a combined CAD $255. Biometrics, where required, add CAD $85 per person or CAD $170 for a family of two or more applying together. If the application is refused, only the open work permit holder fee is refunded.
Do the January 2025 spousal open work permit restrictions affect sponsored spouses?
No. Those restrictions apply to open work permits for family members of international students and temporary foreign workers, and IRCC confirmed that spouses transitioning to permanent residence were not affected. A spouse or partner being sponsored by a Canadian citizen or permanent resident qualifies under the separate SCLPC public policy, which has no TEER occupation list and no 16-month requirement.
