About 2,700 workers in Manitoba may be offered work permit extensions while they pursue permanent residence through the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program. The measure was announced by two Winnipeg members of Parliament, but key details, including eligibility rules, application steps, and implementation timing, have not yet been provided.
Kevin Lamoureux, federal MP for Winnipeg North, announced the extensions on July 6, 2026. Terry Duguid, federal MP for Winnipeg South, stated on July 7 that the extensions would run “till the end of 2027” and would allow affected workers to continue working while their provincial applications are processed.
As of the time of publication, the government had not clarified:
- How work permit holders can apply
- Which requirements applicants must meet
- When the measure will come into effect
- Whether the measure has been formally approved
An image posted by Lamoureux, appearing to show an undated draft federal government news release, identifies the measure as the Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge. The draft describes it as a follow-on initiative to the 2024 temporary public policy for prospective Provincial Nominee Program candidates.
Background: the 2024 PNP work permit policy
The earlier measure, called the Temporary public policy to facilitate work permits for prospective Provincial Nominee Program candidates, allowed open work permits to be issued to provincial nominee candidates for up to two years.
That policy was put in place on August 11, 2024, and was scheduled to expire on December 31, 2024. It expired at the end of 2024 without being renewed and without a replacement policy being formally announced.
However, a federal government summary page later appeared to show the policy, or a comparable replacement, as open until December 31, 2025. The page is titled Open work permit for prospective Provincial Nominee Program candidates with a support letter from Manitoba or Yukon and lists the work permit status as “Open until December 31, 2025,” with a last modified date of March 5, 2026.
According to the draft Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge release posted by Lamoureux, more than 1,600 workers who received work permits under the 2024 policy have since become permanent residents.
A further 2,700 workers are still awaiting provincial nominations. The draft states that Manitoba currently expects it will be unable to meet the December 31, 2026 deadline for issuing nominations to that group of work permit holders.
Provincial approval still unclear
The draft release states that the Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge proposal is currently before the Province of Manitoba for consideration and could only be implemented after provincial acceptance.
This means the measure does not appear to be fully confirmed based on the information available in the article.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada had not responded to a request for clarification by the time of publication.
Manitoba nomination cuts
The proposed extension measure follows two years of federal government reductions to Manitoba’s provincial nomination allocation.
Manitoba’s nomination quota was:
- 9,500 annually in 2023 and 2024
- 6,400 in 2025
- 6,239 in 2026
These reductions are relevant because foreign workers pursuing permanent residence through a provincial nominee program can risk losing work authorization while waiting for a provincial nomination or permanent residence processing.
The full pathway from entering consideration under a PNP to receiving permanent residence can often take two or three years.
Why work permit extensions matter
Many international student graduates work in Canada under a post-graduation work permit. The PGWP is generally issued only once and can last up to three years. It usually cannot be extended except in exceptional circumstances.
This creates a gap for some workers whose work authorization expires before their provincial nomination or permanent residence process is complete.
In June 2026, the federal government announced another measure expanding work permit eligibility for provincial nominees who risked losing authorization between submitting their permanent residence application and receiving an acknowledgement of receipt from the immigration department.
The Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge appears intended to address a related issue for Manitoba workers still waiting for provincial nominations, but the exact rules remain unclear.
Source article: www.cicnews.com
