CICC Licence R709592 · MAK Canadian Immigration Services
Last reviewed: August 2026
Low-Wage LMIA Cap: 10 Percent, 20 Percent, and the Temporary Measure That Expires March 31, 2027
ESDC’s low-wage cap limits the proportion of temporary foreign workers an employer can hire in low-wage positions at a specific work location, with different caps for specified sectors and temporary measures. Because these rules can change, the applicable cap must be checked against the current ESDC instructions for the work location and filing date rather than treated as a permanent percentage.
Most employers discover the cap on low-wage temporary foreign workers at the worst possible moment, which is after the recruitment is finished and the application is being filled in. It is a proportion limit, it is calculated per work location, and for businesses under ten staff it collapses into a single number that surprises almost everybody.
This guide sets out the cap as Employment and Social Development Canada publishes it today: the 10% baseline, the four sectors that get 20%, the small employer rule, the positions that are not counted at all, and the time-limited measure for employers outside census metropolitan areas that ESDC has scheduled to end on March 31, 2027. Every figure below was read off the live ESDC pages on August 15, 2026.
What the cap actually limits
The cap is a proportion, not a headcount ceiling. ESDC states that there is a 10% cap on the proportion of temporary foreign workers you can hire in low-wage positions at a specific work location.
Per work location, not per company
The cap attaches to a work location. A business with four locations does not get one cap covering the group. It gets four separate calculations, each based on the workforce at that location.
That cuts in both directions. A large employer cannot pool national headcount in order to concentrate temporary foreign workers at one busy site, and an employer with one stretched location and three quiet ones cannot borrow capacity from the quiet ones.
The requested TFW positions must be full-time
ESDC requires the employment requested through this low-wage stream to be full-time, meaning at least 30 hours per week. That requirement does not, by itself, publish the denominator for every mixed-workforce cap calculation. For the cap percentage, ESDC directs employers to complete the current “Cap for low-wage positions” section of the LMIA application and may require payroll records to support the figures.
The 20 percent sectors
ESDC raises the cap from 10% to 20% for positions in four sectors identified by North American Industry Classification System code, and for certain in-home caregiver occupations identified by National Occupational Classification code.
| Code | As described by ESDC | Cap |
|---|---|---|
| NAICS 23 | Positions in construction | 20% |
| NAICS 311 | Positions in food manufacturing | 20% |
| NAICS 622 | Positions in hospitals | 20% |
| NAICS 623 | Positions in nursing and residential care facilities | 20% |
| NOC 31301 | Registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse, in-home caregiver position | 20% |
| NOC 32101 | Licensed practical nurse, in-home caregiver position | 20% |
| NOC 44100 | Home childcare providers, in-home caregiver position | 20% |
| NOC 44101 | Attendant for persons with disabilities, home support worker, live-in caregiver, personal care attendant | 20% |
| Everything else | All other low-wage positions | 10% |
These are the same four NAICS codes that ESDC lists as still eligible under the separate refusal to process measure. That overlap is not a coincidence and it is also not the same rule. The distinction is set out below.
The small employer rule
This rule applies to a large number of small businesses and is easy to miss.
Who it applies to
ESDC states that employers, including private household employers, with a total workforce size of fewer than 10 across all worksites in Canada must complete the “Cap for low-wage positions” section of the LMIA application form.
Note the geography carefully. The cap itself is measured per work location. The small employer test is measured across all worksites in Canada.
Who you have to count
ESDC states that this total workforce size includes the vacant positions requested on the application and temporary foreign workers on previously approved LMIAs who have yet to start their employment.
ESDC expressly says this national workforce-size test includes vacant positions requested on the LMIA application and temporary foreign workers on previously approved LMIAs who have not yet started employment. Employers should include those categories when determining whether the fewer-than-10 rule applies.
What you are limited to
Employers caught by this rule are limited to 1 temporary foreign worker where the industry has a 10% cap, or 2 temporary foreign workers where the industry has a 20% cap.
For employers covered by this fewer-than-10 national workforce rule, the current published limit is 1 temporary foreign worker in a 10% cap industry or 2 in a 20% cap industry.
Positions that are not subject to the cap
ESDC lists categories of position that are not subject to the cap at all.
| Category as published by ESDC | Codes and limits |
|---|---|
| On-farm primary agriculture positions such as labourers, workers, managers and supervisors in farming, livestock, harvesting, nurseries and greenhouses | NOC 80020, 80021, 82030, 82031, 84120, 85100, 85101, 85103 |
| Caregiving positions for healthcare institutions | NAICS 62, in NOC 31301, 32101 and 33102 |
| Positions in support of permanent residency only, with no application for a work permit | No day limit stated |
| Short-duration positions generally of 120 calendar days or less that are truly temporary or highly mobile | 120 calendar days, generally |
| Low-wage positions in seasonal industries that do not go beyond 270 calendar days | 270 calendar days, one exemption per year per work location |
The in-home versus institutional caregiver split
Read the caregiving lines against each other. An in-home caregiver position in a private household under NOC 31301, 32101, 44100 or 44101 gets a 20% cap. A caregiving position for a healthcare institution under NAICS 62 in NOC 31301, 32101 or 33102 is not subject to the cap at all. Overlapping occupations, two different treatments, decided by where the work happens.
The two conditions on the seasonal exemption
ESDC defines seasonal as where both the industry and the occupation experience significant fluctuations in labour demand between peak and off-peak periods, usually occurring on or around the same dates every year.
It then attaches two conditions that are easy to breach. The exemption can only be used once per year in which the work is expected to begin, per work location. And where you want to use that one-time per year exemption for multiple applications, ESDC states you must submit them all at the same time.
The temporary measure for employers outside census metropolitan areas
On March 13, 2026, ESDC announced a time-limited set of measures for employers located in rural areas outside census metropolitan areas, in provinces and territories that request them. ESDC publishes the duration as running from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027.
This is a temporary measure with a published end date. Treat it that way in any hiring plan. Nothing on canada.ca states what happens on April 1, 2027, and this article does not assume an extension.
What the measure does
There are two distinct measures, and a province or territory can request one or both.
Under the retention measure, ESDC states that eligible employers will be able to retain their current proportion of low-wage positions filled by temporary foreign workers at a given worksite, above the cap.
Under the elevated cap measure, ESDC states that eligible employers will benefit from a 15% cap instead of the usual 10% cap on the proportion of temporary foreign workers in low-wage positions.
Who is eligible
The employer has to be located in a rural area outside a census metropolitan area, in a participating province or territory. ESDC states that all Temporary Foreign Worker Program requirements continue to apply, including demonstrating efforts to first hire Canadians and permanent residents, and that the employer must submit a new LMIA application during the effective period of the measures in their province or territory. Applications submitted before that date do not benefit.
Which provinces and territories have opted in
The participation list is live data, not news. ESDC maintains it on the temporary measures page and states that the page will be updated as more provinces and territories respond. The table below is a snapshot taken on August 15, 2026 from the page as last modified on July 27, 2026. Open the live page before you rely on any line of it.
| Province or territory | Measures in place | Implementation date |
|---|---|---|
| Manitoba | Retention and 15% cap | April 14, 2026 |
| Nova Scotia | Retention and 15% cap | April 14, 2026 |
| New Brunswick | Retention and 15% cap | April 23, 2026 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | Retention and 15% cap | June 11, 2026 |
| Northwest Territories | Retention and 15% cap | June 16, 2026 |
| Quebec | Retention only | April 1, 2026 |
| British Columbia | Retention only | May 4, 2026 |
| Alberta | Not participating | Not applicable |
| Ontario | Not participating | Not applicable |
| Nunavut | Not participating | Not applicable |
| Prince Edward Island | To be determined by the province | Not applicable |
| Saskatchewan | To be determined by the province | Not applicable |
| Yukon | To be determined by the territory | Not applicable |
Checked on August 15, 2026, ESDC lists Alberta, Ontario and Nunavut as not participating, while Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan and Yukon remain to be determined by their province or territory. Participation can change, so employers outside a census metropolitan area should check the live ESDC page for the jurisdiction and submission date before relying on the temporary measure.
The date trap
Three dates govern this measure and confusing them is the most common error we see.
- March 13, 2026 is the announcement date. It has no effect on an individual application.
- Your province or territory’s implementation date is the date from which applications there can benefit. In Newfoundland and Labrador that is June 11, 2026, so an application submitted on June 1 would not have qualified.
- March 31, 2027 is the published end of the measures.
If your cap arithmetic decides whether a role can be filled at all, it is worth having a licensed consultant check the count, the classification and the dates before the application is filed.
The cap is not the refusal to process measure
These are two separate instruments and clearing one tells you nothing about the other.
The cap asks how many. It limits the proportion of the workforce at a work location that can be temporary foreign workers in low-wage positions. It applies across Canada, inside and outside census metropolitan areas.
The refusal to process measure asks where. ESDC states that certain LMIA applications submitted as of September 26, 2024 will not be processed where the wage is below the provincial or territorial wage threshold and the work location is in a census metropolitan area with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher. Where that applies, the application is not assessed at all, and your cap position never comes into it.
The geography of the two runs in opposite directions, which is why people get lost. The refusal measure targets work locations inside census metropolitan areas. The temporary cap relief targets work locations outside them. An employer in downtown Toronto is exposed to the refusal measure and gets no cap relief. An employer outside a census metropolitan area in Manitoba faces no unemployment rate screen and may access the 15% cap. An employer outside a census metropolitan area in Ontario faces no unemployment rate screen and, as at the snapshot date above, got no cap relief either. MAK covers the refusal to process measure and the 6% rule in a separate guide.
How to work out your own number
Do these in order, for each work location.
- Complete the current “Cap for low-wage positions” section for that work location using the workforce information the LMIA form requires. ESDC may ask for payroll records to support the figures.
- Separately, count your total workforce across all worksites in Canada. Include the vacant positions requested on this application and any temporary foreign workers on previously approved LMIAs who have not yet started. If that total is fewer than 10, the small employer rule applies, your answer is 1 or 2, and the rest of the calculation does not change it.
- Identify your NAICS code. If it is 23, 311, 622 or 623, the cap is 20%. Otherwise it is 10%.
- Check whether the positions you need fall into an uncapped category, which takes them out of the calculation.
- If the work location is outside a census metropolitan area, open the live ESDC temporary measures page for your province or territory and compare the implementation date against your intended submission date.
- Then, separately, run the refusal to process check. The cap calculation does not tell you whether the application will be processed at all.
For how long an LMIA application of your type is currently taking, check the ESDC processing times table rather than a figure quoted in an article.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cap on low-wage temporary foreign workers?
ESDC applies a 10% cap on the proportion of temporary foreign workers you can hire in low-wage positions at a specific work location, calculated on full-time positions of a minimum of 30 hours of work per week.
Which industries get the 20 percent cap?
NAICS 23 construction, NAICS 311 food manufacturing, NAICS 622 hospitals and NAICS 623 nursing and residential care facilities, together with in-home caregiver positions in NOC 31301, 32101, 44100 and 44101.
I have 8 employees. How many temporary foreign workers can I hire?
Under the small employer rule the limit is 1 in a 10% cap industry and 2 in a 20% cap industry. Before you settle on eight, remember that ESDC’s total includes the vacant positions requested on the application and any temporary foreign workers on previously approved LMIAs who have yet to start. This is general information and not an assessment of your business.
Does the cap count part-time staff?
ESDC requires the TFW position requested through the low-wage stream to be full-time, at least 30 hours per week. Its current public requirements page does not provide a worked mixed-workforce denominator example. Employers should complete the current “Cap for low-wage positions” section of the LMIA application using the workforce information required by the form and confirm an unclear mixed-workforce calculation with Service Canada or an authorized representative.
Is Ontario participating in the 15 percent measure?
On the ESDC temporary measures page as last modified July 27, 2026 and checked on August 15, 2026, Ontario was listed as not participating, along with Alberta and Nunavut. ESDC states it updates that page as provinces and territories respond, so check it before you rely on this.
When does the temporary measure end?
ESDC publishes the measures as running from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027. Each participating jurisdiction has its own implementation date, which is the date from which applications there can benefit. No canada.ca page states what happens after March 31, 2027.
Are seasonal positions exempt from the cap?
ESDC lists low-wage positions in seasonal industries that do not go beyond 270 calendar days among the positions not subject to the cap. The exemption can only be used once per year in which the work is expected to begin, per work location, and where several positions are needed the applications must all be submitted at the same time.
Does clearing the cap mean my LMIA will be processed?
No. The cap and the refusal to process measure are separate instruments. A low-wage application for a work location in a census metropolitan area with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher is not processed regardless of your cap position, unless a published exemption applies.
Official sources reviewed
- Employment and Social Development Canada, Program requirements for low-wage positions. Date modified 2026-07-24. canada.ca
- Employment and Social Development Canada, Temporary measures under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. Date modified 2026-07-27. canada.ca
- Employment and Social Development Canada, Government of Canada taking action to support rural employers under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, news release dated March 13, 2026. canada.ca
- Employment and Social Development Canada, Refusal to process a Labour Market Impact Assessment application. Date modified 2026-07-10. canada.ca
- Employment and Social Development Canada, Hourly wage threshold by province and territory. Thresholds for LMIAs received as of July 17, 2026. canada.ca
- Employment and Social Development Canada, Labour Market Impact Assessment application processing times, table updated monthly. Date modified 2026-08-07. canada.ca
Official sources last checked: August 15, 2026.
This article is general information about Canadian immigration law and policy. It is not legal advice and it does not create a consultant and client relationship. Immigration rules change without notice. Confirm your own situation with a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant or a lawyer before you act.
