Work Permit Extension Lawyer · Toronto

Who this is for

This page is for foreign workers and graduates in Canada whose work permit is ending or has expired, and for workers changing employer, occupation or location on an employer-specific permit.

Before your permit expires: maintained status

Under sections 181 and 201 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR), you can apply to extend your stay and renew your work permit if you apply before it expires and have complied with your conditions. If IRCC has not decided by the expiry date, subsection 183(5) extends your status until it does. IRCC calls this maintained status (formerly “implied status”).

Your application must arrive before midnight UTC on your expiry date, which is early evening in Toronto. IRCC recommends applying at least 30 days ahead. We prefer more.

While you wait, paragraph 186(u) lets you keep working under your expired permit’s conditions if you applied to renew it and stay in Canada. Applying for a visitor record or study permit instead means you stop working at expiry.

Maintained status ends when you leave Canada, even briefly, and when your application is refused or withdrawn. An incomplete application returned after your expiry date leaves you out of status.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

IRCC revised its maintained status instructions on May 28, 2025, and its paragraph 186(u) instructions on April 27, 2026. The key rule is that a backup application protects you only if you file it before your permit expires. Otherwise, a refusal of the first application ends your status and your right to work. Our article on the updated maintained status rules gives examples.

Expiry and invalidity are different

Your stay ends when your permit becomes invalid (paragraph 183(4)(b)), which is not always the printed expiry date. A work permit becomes invalid when it expires or is cancelled (section 209); a study permit, on the earliest of several dates, including 90 days after you complete your studies (section 222). Some work authorizations turn on expiry instead, so we read these rules together before choosing a filing date.

If your permit has expired: restoration

If you missed the deadline or your extension was refused, section 182 gives you 90 days from losing status (after a refusal, from the refusal date) to apply for restoration. You must meet the requirements for the stay you now want, have complied with your other conditions, and stay in Canada while IRCC decides. Apart from a narrow Manitoba policy, the 90 days are firm.

You cannot work while restoration is pending, and unauthorized work makes you ineligible. See our guide to restoration of status.

Choosing the right permit

Bridging open work permit

A bridging open work permit (BOWP) lets you keep working while IRCC processes your permanent residence application. You must be in Canada as the principal applicant under Express Entry, a provincial nomination without employment restrictions, the Quebec skilled worker or investor classes, or a few older pilots. Your application must have passed IRCC’s completeness check (Express Entry and Quebec skilled workers) or, for other programs, a positive eligibility assessment; a profile in the Express Entry pool is not enough. You must also hold a valid work permit, be on maintained status as a worker, or be eligible to restore that status. If your permit could expire before then, extend it first.

Post-graduation work permit

For a post-graduation work permit (PGWP), apply within 180 days of written confirmation that you completed an eligible program, with a study permit valid at some point in that period. Applications since November 1, 2024 need language results less than two years old: CLB 7 in all four skills for a bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree or another university program, and CLB 5 for other college and non-university programs. If you applied for your study permit on or after November 1, 2024, programs other than those degrees must also be in an eligible field of study. You get one PGWP in your lifetime and cannot apply for it at the border. If your study permit will expire before your final marks arrive, IRCC suggests a visitor record or applying from outside Canada.

Changing employer or conditions

An employer-specific permit ties you to one employer, occupation and location, and changing any of them needs a new permit. Your new employer acts first (for most International Mobility Program permits, an Employer Portal offer and the compliance fee), then you apply. You can then ask IRCC, by web form, to start early under its public policy for workers changing employment, but wait for its email first. Workers facing abuse, or the risk of it, may qualify for an open work permit for vulnerable workers.

Another category may fit better: C10 or C11 if your work or business brings a significant benefit to Canada, or an open work permit if your spouse or partner is sponsoring you in Canada.

Common reasons for refusal, and how we build against them

• Applying late: missing the UTC deadline means restoration, not maintained status. We diarize your dates and file early.

• The wrong permit: a category you no longer meet, a visitor record that stops your work, or a second PGWP request. We confirm eligibility before filing.

• Missing documents: incomplete applications come back as if never filed. We work from IRCC’s current checklist and check that your employer’s offer matches your application, down to your passport number.

• An unexplained status history: gaps, refusals or employer changes raise questions, because renewal requires compliance with your conditions. We set out your history in a documented timeline.

• Dual intent handled badly: planning for permanent residence is allowed under section 22(2) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act if the officer is satisfied you will leave when your stay ends. We address your plans openly (see our guide to temporary intent).

After a refusal, we assess reconsideration and restoration together, since the 90 days run from the refusal date.

How the process works with us

It starts with an online consultation, booked at cal.com/blacksyimmigration. If we take the file, you complete a secure online intake, we open a shared document folder, and we build a checklist for your file. You deal directly with our lawyer, Ahmet Faruk Ocak. There are no middlemen. We communicate by email, so every instruction and decision is documented. The work is fully virtual, in English or Turkish.

We map your dates, choose the permit, prepare the application and handle IRCC’s correspondence.

Our fee is a flat fee agreed in writing before you hire us. You can pay it in full or in two instalments. It is held in trust and earned at set milestones. Government fees are separate, and HST applies to clients resident in Canada.

What happens next

If your permit expires in the coming weeks, or expired in the last 90 days, book a consultation at cal.com/blacksyimmigration and have your permits, passport, IRCC letters and, if you studied here, your completion letter ready. If more than 90 days have passed, your options usually start outside Canada.

Frequently asked questions

When should I apply to extend my work permit?

Before it expires, and ideally well before. IRCC recommends at least 30 days ahead. The deadline is your expiry date, and IRCC measures it in UTC: the application must arrive before midnight UTC on that date, which is 8 p.m. in Toronto during daylight saving time and 7 p.m. otherwise. If you want a backup application, such as a second permit type, file it before the expiry date too. Under IRCC’s current instructions, a backup filed after expiry does not keep you in status if your first application is refused.

Can I keep working while IRCC processes my extension?

Yes, if you applied to renew your work permit before it expired, you remain in Canada, and you keep to the conditions of your expired permit. On an employer-specific permit, that means the same employer, occupation and location. IRCC usually sends a letter confirming that you may keep working. The letter shows a validity of 365 days, but IRCC’s instructions say you can keep working past that date until a decision, as long as you still meet the conditions. If you applied for a visitor record or a study permit instead, you must stop working when your permit expires.

Can I travel outside Canada while my application is in process?

You can, but your maintained status ends when you leave. You may be allowed back in as a visitor if you have the right travel document, such as a valid visa or an electronic travel authorization, but you cannot work until your new permit is approved. Since December 2024, most people in Canada can no longer apply for a work permit at the border, so a short trip to the United States no longer gets you a permit faster. If you cannot afford a break from work, wait for the decision before you travel.

My extension was refused. What are my options?

If your permit is still valid, you keep your status until it expires. If it had already expired while you waited, your status and your authorization to work end on the refusal date, so stop working right away. From that date you have 90 days to apply for restoration, if you still meet the requirements for the stay you want and have complied with your other conditions. You cannot work while restoration is pending, and you must stay in Canada. If the refusal looks wrong, reconsideration may also be possible, but it does not pause the 90 days. We review the refusal and your dates first.

My PGWP is ending. Can I get another one or extend it?

No. You can hold only one post-graduation work permit in your lifetime, and IRCC extends a PGWP only when your passport’s expiry limited its original length. The next step depends on your plans: a bridging open work permit once your permanent residence application has passed the completeness check (or, for a nomination outside Express Entry, the eligibility assessment); an employer-specific permit based on a job offer; a C10 or C11 permit if your work or business brings a significant benefit; or an open work permit as a sponsored spouse or partner. Apply before the PGWP expires, so you keep maintained status while IRCC decides.