Q: Does it have to be a huge multinational company? What types of applicants usually fit this type of permit?

A: The bigger, the better – simple as that. If I have a large global company with a thousand employees and branch offices in multiple countries, and they have a well-established branch in Canada, that is a slam dunk. That’s a pretty easy argument to make on a number of levels. The smaller the company, the more difficult it is. The lower the annual revenues, the more difficult it is. There is no real minimum threshold in terms of how big a foreign entity needs to be, but when it comes to Intra-Company Transfer, the smaller the entity, the more difficult it is to make that case. 

Q: Why has ICT become more popular recently versus other business immigration options?

A: Basically, people are trying to find ways that don’t require an LMIA. Well, in the true sense of advertising, all of the International Mobility Work Permits are fair game. And the Intra-Company Transfer is the next best option that’s available to assist people that are looking to establish a presence in Canada, invest in Canada, and potentially immigrate to Canada. With the competitiveness within Express Entry and the inability of some people who are older, who have more business acumen, who have more work experience.

Well, their human capital is just so low that it’s unlikely they’re gonna be able to qualify through Express Entry. They need to have that Canadian experience and an Intra-Company Transfer Work Permit can provide an opportunity, eventually, for extra comprehensive ranking system points to bump them up in the rankings.

Q: Can you share with us the possible challenges of working with international employees?

A: Everybody wants a software engineer or software developer. And then what happens if they’re not? When I’m going through the process, the most difficult part is that IRCC does not scrutinize the NOC codes as tightly for these types of work permits as they do for Express Entry. 

Someone will have gotten a work permit as a 2172 or whatever it is, and then I’ll go through and I’ll look at the job description, I’ll realize they’re actually 2173, but they’ve had a work permit for that other NOC code. Therefore, their work experience in Canada which we need is under one NOC and it’s not correct. And I’ve seen IRCC refuse Express Entry applications because of the wrong NOC when the Intra-Company Transfer was issued under a separate NOC.

You need to be really careful and actually do the due diligence to make sure you’re selecting the proper NOC code and not just doing the same thing that you’ve always done for the company because everybody is getting approvals with this. That’s one issue where I see problems arise. But generally speaking, the challenges arise because you have not done a good enough job. And the onus is on you as the representative to make sure that you’re confirming and establishing the corporate entity and the corporate relationship.

Q: Do we have the possibility of knowing what the success rate is for ICT applications in general?

A: It’s actually fairly higher than you would imagine. At least the statistics tell us–that I managed to track down, and this by no means is official, this is just an anecdotal kind of experience. In my experience, the approval rates have been above 80%. Ports of entry, for example, I have never had one refused at a port of entry. I’d like to think it’s because I do a good job and, having worked as an officer, I know what they’re looking for. But ports of entry, if I have all the elements there and I present it–let’s face it, I also do not submit applications that I know are not gonna get approved, but ports of entry, the rates of approval are really, really high if you’ve done things properly.