Canada’s labour-market tightness has made the federal Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) system a pain point for global-mobility planners. New figures released by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) for September 2026, however, show meaningful relief. The average wait for the permanent-resident LMIA stream has dropped from 156 business days in August to just 79 – the first time this year the wait has fallen below the three-month mark. The Global Talent Stream (GTS) – already the poster child for speed – improved marginally to an average of nine business days, again beating the 10-day service standard. Agricultural and low-wage streams also nudged downward or held steady, while the high-wage stream was the lone outlier, inching up to 98 business days. ESDC cautions that numbers are historical averages of files finalized that month, but the downward trend reverses a summer of steady increases. For employers sponsoring foreign workers for permanent residence, the shorter PR-LMIA timeline can save three or more months on a pathway that ultimately grants employees open work authorization and stability. In practice that can be the difference between retaining a critical hire and losing them to a faster jurisdiction. Relocation teams should still budget advertising compliance time – two to eight weeks depending on stream – which is not included in ESDC’s figures. Industry groups welcomed the improvement but warned it is fragile. A seasonal surge in holiday retail and hospitality applications typically hits in November, and large infrastructure projects in Ontario and British Columbia could push high-wage demand higher. Companies are advised to file as early as possible, double-check prevailing-wage calculations and consider GTS where occupations qualify. The government credits additional staffing, workflow digitalisation and triage of low-complexity files for the gains. Whether those gains hold through the fourth quarter will be a key metric for Canada’s attractiveness compared with the United States, whose H-1B replacement pilot opens in January.
Source: IRCC.com
