The Global Talent Stream (GTS) is part of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and is delivered under the Global Skills Strategy. It is built to help designated and innovative employers hire highly skilled foreign workers faster than the usual process. The most important thing to understand up front is that the GTS is employer-driven: it is the Canadian employer who applies for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) and commits to a Labour Market Benefits Plan, while the worker applies for the work permit afterward. There are two ways in. Category A is for employers referred to the GTS by a designated partner because they need unique and specialized talent, and Category B is for employers hiring in an occupation on the Global Talent Occupations List, which is dominated by technology and STEM roles. The headline benefit is speed: under the Global Skills Strategy, both the LMIA and the work permit have a 2-week priority service standard. Because processing times, fees, and the occupations list can change, confirm current details on canada.ca before relying on them.
What the Global Talent Stream is (and how it is different)
The Global Talent Stream is a specialized part of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, managed by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), and offered together with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) under the Global Skills Strategy. It exists to help Canadian employers who are growing and innovating bring in skilled foreign workers when they cannot readily find the talent at home. What sets it apart from a regular LMIA-based hire is the priority service: the GTS is designed to move much faster than standard Temporary Foreign Worker streams.
It is essential to understand the roles. The GTS is employer-driven, which means the process starts with the employer, not the worker. The employer applies to ESDC for a Labour Market Impact Assessment and makes commitments through a Labour Market Benefits Plan. Only after the LMIA is positive does the foreign worker apply to IRCC for the actual work permit. If you are a worker exploring this route, your realistic first step is finding an employer who is willing and eligible to hire through the GTS.
There are two categories, A and B, and they have different entry requirements. The right one depends on whether the employer has been referred by a designated partner (Category A) or is hiring in an occupation that appears on the Global Talent Occupations List (Category B). The next two sections explain each.
Category A vs Category B
Category A is for employers who have been referred to the Global Talent Stream by one of ESDC's designated referral partners. These partners are organizations that work with high-growth and innovative companies, and they refer an employer when the employer needs a worker with unique and specialized talent that is difficult to find. In practice this category is built around individual, hard-to-source expertise rather than a fixed list of jobs, and the referral partner first assesses that the employer and the role qualify.
Category B is for employers seeking to hire workers in an occupation that appears on the Global Talent Occupations List. This list is published by the Government of Canada and is heavily weighted toward technology and STEM positions, such as software engineers and designers, computer and information systems professionals, data scientists and analysts, and certain engineering and digital roles. Category B does not require a referral from a designated partner; instead, eligibility turns on whether the specific occupation is on the list at the time of application.
What this means for you: if you are an employer with a niche, one-of-a-kind hire, Category A may fit, but you will need a designated referral partner. If you are hiring for a recognized in-demand tech occupation, Category B is usually the more direct route. The Global Talent Occupations List and the set of designated partners are updated from time to time, so confirm current details on canada.ca before assuming a particular occupation or partner qualifies.
The Labour Market Benefits Plan and the LMIA
Every employer hiring through the Global Talent Stream must submit a Labour Market Benefits Plan as part of its LMIA application to ESDC. This plan is a commitment to take actions that create lasting, positive effects for the Canadian labour market, such as creating jobs for Canadian citizens and permanent residents, investing in skills and training, or transferring knowledge to Canadian workers. It is not a one-time formality: the employer agrees to specific activities and is expected to follow through and report on its progress.
The Labour Market Benefits Plan is a distinguishing feature of the GTS. In other Temporary Foreign Worker streams, employers complete different requirements, but GTS employers make these benefit commitments instead. ESDC reviews the plan and the rest of the LMIA application together. A positive LMIA is what allows the worker to then apply for a work permit, so the employer's plan and application are the foundation of the whole route.
There is a government processing fee for the LMIA application, generally $1,000 per position requested. Because fees can change, confirm the current amount on canada.ca before you apply. Note that the employer pays the LMIA processing fee, and there are rules about which costs an employer may or may not pass on to a worker, so it is worth reviewing the official employer requirements directly.
The 2-week service standard and how the steps fit together
The signature feature of the Global Skills Strategy is speed. ESDC aims to process Global Talent Stream LMIA applications under a 2-week service standard, and IRCC aims to process the related work permit applications under a matching 2-week standard for eligible applicants. These are service standards, which means a target that is met a certain percentage of the time, not a guarantee for every single application. Confirm current processing times on canada.ca, because service standards and actual processing can shift.
Here is how the steps generally fit together. First, the employer determines whether it qualifies under Category A (with a designated referral) or Category B (an occupation on the Global Talent Occupations List). Second, the employer prepares a Labour Market Benefits Plan and submits the LMIA application, with the processing fee, to ESDC. Third, once the employer has a positive LMIA, the worker applies to IRCC for a work permit, where the 2-week priority processing can apply. The worker still has to meet the usual requirements to be admissible to Canada.
A few realistic expectations help. The 2-week standard applies to the processing time once a complete application is in the system; it does not include the time the employer spends getting a referral, preparing the benefits plan, or the worker gathering documents. Incomplete applications, the need for biometrics, or complex cases can take longer. None of this is legal advice; for your specific situation, consider speaking with a licensed Canadian immigration lawyer or a consultant regulated by the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC).
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Global Talent Stream?
The Global Talent Stream is part of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, delivered under the Global Skills Strategy, that helps designated and innovative employers hire highly skilled foreign workers quickly. It offers priority processing of the Labour Market Impact Assessment and the related work permit. It is employer-driven, so the employer applies first.
What is the difference between Category A and Category B?
Category A is for employers referred to the stream by a designated referral partner because they need unique and specialized talent. Category B is for employers hiring in an occupation on the Global Talent Occupations List, which is mostly technology and STEM roles, and does not require a referral. Confirm current details on canada.ca.
Is the Global Talent Stream the same as the 2-week work permit?
They are connected but not identical. The Global Skills Strategy sets a 2-week priority service standard for both the LMIA processed by ESDC and the work permit processed by IRCC for eligible Global Talent Stream applicants. A service standard is a target met a certain percentage of the time, not a guarantee. Confirm current processing times on canada.ca.
Who applies, the employer or the worker?
Both, in sequence. The Global Talent Stream is employer-driven: the Canadian employer applies to ESDC for the LMIA and submits a Labour Market Benefits Plan. Only after a positive LMIA does the foreign worker apply to IRCC for the work permit. A worker's realistic first step is finding an eligible employer.
What is the Labour Market Benefits Plan?
It is a commitment every Global Talent Stream employer must submit with its LMIA application. The employer agrees to actions that benefit the Canadian labour market, such as creating jobs for Canadians and permanent residents, investing in training, or transferring knowledge to Canadian workers, and is expected to follow through and report on progress.
How much does the Global Talent Stream LMIA cost?
There is a government processing fee for the LMIA, generally $1,000 per position requested, which the employer pays. Fees can change, so confirm the current amount on canada.ca. There are also rules about which costs an employer may or may not pass on to a worker, so review the official employer requirements.
Which jobs qualify under Category B?
Category B covers occupations on the Global Talent Occupations List, which is heavily weighted toward technology and STEM roles such as software engineers and designers, computer and information systems professionals, data scientists, and certain digital and engineering roles. The list is updated from time to time, so confirm whether a specific occupation is on it on canada.ca.
Does the Global Talent Stream lead to permanent residence?
The Global Talent Stream itself provides a temporary work permit, not permanent residence. However, Canadian work experience gained on a GTS work permit can support later permanent residence applications, for example through Express Entry programs. Each program has its own criteria, and an officer decides every application, so verify the requirements before relying on them.
Guides
Official sources
This page is based on law and policy published by the Government of Canada.