FAQ Categories: Canada Working Holiday Program

• Repeat Participation:
  As a RO, GO International is able to offer two more nominations to participants from YMA countries who have already held a Working Holiday visa and exhausted their other options.
• Secure your Invitation to Apply (ITA):
  GO International is able to put forward your name with the Canadian Government for a direct nomination. You will be able to skip the line and the wait time until you receive an invitation. This is especially of interest to citizens from countries, for which the demand exceeds the number of visas offered.
• Age limit requirement:
  For inbound youth participation facilitated through a RO like GO International, the age of participation range is set at 18-35 (inclusive), unless otherwise specified in the MOU between IEC and the RO. This means that you will be able to receive your invitation to apply until the day before your 36^th birthday

• Go International is a designated recognized organization (RO) of the Government of Canada’s International Experience Canada program. As an RO, Go International is able to offer guaranteed nominations to YMA citizens to apply for first and repeat Working Holiday visas. Participants from YMA countries are able to do repeat participations through Go International, according to the conditions of the YMA limits.

• Make use of Go International’s helpful services included in the Working Holiday package, such as access to Go International’s expert job support including resume structuring and cover letter writing, interview tips, assistance with sourcing long-term accommodation, and more!

• As part of Go International’s Working Holiday program, all participants are encouraged to take part in the monthly activities offered by our parent company ILAC in Vancouver and Toronto. This means fun trips such as snowboarding in Whistler or a pub crawl in downtown Toronto. This is a quick and easy way to meet other international people and develop your Canadian tribe!

• Having your first Canadian working holiday through a recognized organization like us provides you with a variety of support services throughout the entire duration of your visa. It’s your safety net away from home to ensure you have a smooth and successful experience abroad.

• Is the program open at the moment?
  You can check the status through the rounds of invitations.

• I am already over 30 years old. Am I still eligible to receive a Working Holiday visa?
  For inbound youth participation facilitated through an RO like Go International, the age of participation range is set at 18-35 (before your 36th birthday), unless otherwise specified in the MOU between IEC and the RO.

• What is the maximum visa duration I will be granted?
  This depends on the duration stated in the agreement between your country and Canada. Usually this is 12 months, and 24 for some countries.

• My country is not listed as an YMA country. Am I still eligible to receive a Working Holiday visa?
  Unfortunately, no. If you are a US citizen, there may be other ROs that can assist.

• I have used all my IEC participations available to my country. Am I still able to receive another Working Holiday visa?
  Depends. As a citizen from an YMA country, you may be eligible for additional IEC participations through a Recognized Organization like GO International, as long as you still remain eligible for the IEC program.

• Will GO International be able to sponsor me for a Young Professional visa?
  Go International does not offer any assistance with Young Professional visas. However, you could be able to apply for a working holiday visa (open work permit) for an additional participation – if we have RO-sponsored spots available. This means, you will not need a job offer from your employer and you are free to change your job on this visa.

• I’m already in Canada and I don’t need the orientation and the extra services. Do I have to pay for these?
  Go International is a Canadian company that operates its own working holiday and volunteer programs in Canada and works with partner organizations around the world to deliver highly recognized work and travel, teach abroad and volunteer abroad programs. We are a travel service organization and as such, do not offer visa only packages.

• I’m already in Canada. Do I have to participate in the orientation?
  No, the orientation is not mandatory. However, it is highly recommended to newcomers to Canada.

• Biometrics: When applying for a temporary visa, you will have to give biometrics (picture and fingerprints). These will be valid for 10 years, though not transferable if you apply for Permanent Residence. You will have to travel to a Visa Application Centre (outside Canada) or Service Canada Centre (inside Canada) to give your biometrics. You will receive a Biometrics Instruction Letter after you have submitted your online application and be prompted to give your biometrics.
• Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC): IRCC used to be known as Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). However, the name CIC may continue to be used for some time by some stakeholders, such as Canadian provincial and territorial governments and refers to the same department.
• GCKey: This is your secure IRCC online account, where you can create a profile, work on your application and submit it to the IRCC to process.
• IEC Pools: The IEC Program is a lottery that randomly draws profiles from the pools to receive an invitation to apply. You will have to submit your profile to the pools in order to be invited for the program.
• International Experience Canada (IEC):  IEC is a Government of Canada program. Through IEC, Canada has formal Youth Mobility Arrangements with more than 30 countries and territories that allow Canadian youth, between ages 18-35, to work while they travel in partner countries. As a reciprocal program, young citizens from these countries and territories (and sometimes other countries) are also able to come to Canada.
• Invitation to Apply (ITA): If you’re invited to apply, you’ll get a message in your account. The message will list your category and your next steps. You’ll have 10 days to decide if you’ll accept the invitation to apply.
• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC): Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is the department of the Government of Canada with responsibility for matters dealing with immigration to Canada, refugees, and Canadian citizenship.
• Open Work Permit: An open work permit is a type of work permit that allows you to work for any employer in Canada. Check your work permit for exceptions.
• POE Letter: A POE Letter is the confirmation you will receive in your profile when your visa application has been approved. You will have to print your POE Letter and bring it with you when you want to activate your work permit. This could also be called a Letter of Introduction. The POE Letter is not your work permit! This will be a separate document.
• Port of Entry (POE): In general, a port of entry (POE) is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. You will have to travel to a POE to activate your work permit – either at your arrival airport (or layover airport if it’s in Canada) or a land border.
• Recognized Organization (RO): (IEC) designates a number of organizations that provide support and facilitate travel and work-abroad services between Canada and other countries. The organizations may provide these services, for a fee, to both Canadians going abroad and foreign nationals coming to Canada. When applying through a RO, you have certain benefits (see “Advantages of a Recognized Organization”).
• Rounds of Invitations: During each season, IEC will do regular rounds of invitations (usually weekly) to invite eligible candidates from the IEC Pools to apply for their work permit.
• RO Support Letter: When you apply through a Recognized Organization like GO International, you will receive a RO Support Letter, which confirms your participation in a RO program. You will not need a RO Support Letter if you are applying directly with the IEC.
• Service Canada: Service Canada provides Canadians with a single point of access to a wide range of government services and benefits. You will have to visit a Service Canada Centre to give your biometrics when applying from within Canada and you can apply for your Social Insurance Number (SIN) there as well.
• Social Insurance Number (SIN): The SIN is a 9 digit number that you need to work in Canada or to have access to government programs and benefits. You can apply for your SIN online, by mail and at a Service Canada Centre. When you have received a second Working Holiday, you will have to request an extension of your SIN deadline by submitting your new work permit to Service Canada.
• Unique Client Identifier Number (UCI): A Unique Client Identifier Number (UCI) can be found on any official document issued by an Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada office, Case Processing Centre or a Canadian visa office outside Canada. A Client ID consists of four numbers, a hyphen (-) and four (4) more numbers (example: 0000-0000).
• Visa Application Centre (VAC): Visa application centres (VACs) are private companies that have formal contracts with the Government of Canada. Depending on your country of citizenship, they might accept your visa application and passport. You will also have to travel to a VAC to give your biometrics if you are applying from outside Canada.
• Work Application Number (W Number): Upon creation of your profile, you are given a ‘W’ number which once you are invited to apply to a work permit, becomes your work permit application number.
• Working Holiday (WH): The Working Holiday is a category of the IEC Program, which enables Canadian and foreign youth to travel to another country and to work there legally for a certain amount of time. The Working Holiday visa is an open work permit and allows you to work for any employer. Each country must have an IEC agreement with Canada in order to facilitate work permits.
• YMA countries: These are the countries that have Youth Mobility arrangements with Canada and are therefore eligible to participate in the IEC Program.
• Young Professional Visa (YP): The Young Professional is a category of the IEC Program, which enables Canadian and foreign youth to travel to another country and to work there legally for a certain amount of time. The Young Professional category requires you to have a valid full-time job offer for a skilled position. It is an employer-specific work permit and therefore, you are only allowed to work for the same employer.
• Youth Mobility Arrangement (YMA): This is the reciprocal agreement between two countries to facilitate an exchange program, such as the IEC.

• Can I apply to the IEC program right now?
  You can create your IEC profile and put your profile in the pool only when the season is open. You can check the status through the rounds of invitations. To join the Go International Canada Working Holiday Program Non-Sponsored, you can book the program anytime before your planned arrival to receive assistance from us. We can accept applications for RO-Sponsored only if we have availability.

• When will the next pool draw take place?
  The rounds of invitation usually take place every week. Check the rounds of invitation schedule.

• What does the typical RO application process with Go International look like?

1. Please fill out our application form and return it including a copy of your passport.
2. If we have a spot for you, we will issue your invoice.
3. Create an IEC and send us your Welcome to the Pool Letter.
4. As soon as we have received your payment in full and Pool Letter, we will put forward your name during the next round of nominations.
5. After your nomination, you will receive your RO Support Letter. You will need our RO Support Letter to complete your visa application.
6. When your application has been processed and approved, you will receive your POE Letter (application approval). From the date of your POE Letter, you will have one year to activate your work permit.
7. You will have to travel to a Port of Entry (e.g. arrival at airport) to activate your visa. Depending on your circumstance, you may be able to receive your new work permit by mail. Your work permit will be issued as a separate document.

• How much time do I have to submit my visa online application?
  You will have 10 days to accept your invitation to apply (ITA) and 20 days to submit your application.

• I’m still missing documents to submit my application, but my application deadline is approaching soon. What should I do?
  The most common issue is that you have not received your police certificate yet. Instead, you can upload a confirmation that you have applied for your police certificate. IRCC should then grant you a deadline extension.

• How long does it take until my application has been approved?
  This depends on how long you take to submit your visa application and IRCC processing time. The standard processing time is 5 weeks. We cannot guarantee an exact start date since processing times are impacted by factors we cannot influence.

• How much time do I have to activate my work permit?
  You will have one year from the date of your POE letter to activate your work permit – the exact expiry date is written on your POE letter.

• When is the best time to apply for the program?
  The IEC Program is offered each year over a specific period (season). Usually, the season starts Dec-Jan and ends around October. However, IRCC decides the exact time frame every season. Our RO-Sponsored program is usually sold out very quickly since we only receive a very limited amount of spots. Therefore, we recommend to check in with us at the beginning of each season.

• What happens if my visa application is rejected?
  Please make sure that you submit a complete and correct application before the deadline mentioned in your profile. We won’t be refunding your program fees if your work permit application is rejected due to your own negligence or due to fraudulent reasons.

• I’m having difficulties logging into my GCKey profile. What should I do?
  Unfortunately, there are some common errors and issues that IEC participants are experiencing when trying to log into their profile to complete their application (e.g., looping you back to the login page). IRCC frequently updates their system and therefore, recommends to clear your browser cache if an error occurs. Other tips include using the private or incognito mode of your browser or trying another browser or device altogether. If you consistently experience issues and complete your application, please send a message to IRCC through the web form.

• What is the best month to arrive in Canada?
  Participants can arrive at any time of the year. Work is available in any of the bigger cities like Toronto and Vancouver any time of the year. Jobs in the resort areas are usually available for summer and winter seasons only.

• Where can I work?
  Job opportunities depend on a number of factors including your education, work experience, English level, attitude, motivation, and interview skills as well as your arrival date. Seasonal placements are oftentimes found in vacation destinations, such as Whistler, BC and Banff, AB. Bigger cities like Vancouver, Toronto, Calgary and Ottawa offer lots of different job fields and positions. Most job connections we have are based in BC and AB. However, you are free to live and work in any location throughout Canada.

• What is the average wage for a Working Holiday participant?
  Most jobs pay around CA$15 to CA$17.95 per hour, and many service jobs include tips/gratuity on top of your salary. This obviously depends on your work experience, education and job field.

• What are typical jobs available for Working Holiday participants?
  • Hospitality (restaurants, bars, cafes, hotels, hostels)
  • Retail (retail clerk, cashier, inventory & stock)
  • General Labour (farm work, construction, landscaping)
  • Tourism (hotel, hostel, ski resorts, tourist attractions, tour guide, guest services)
  • Seasonal Jobs (ski resorts, farm work, summer camps)
  • Childcare (au pair, nanny, tutoring, teaching)
  • Office Administration (admin assistant, front desk, marketing)

• Which jobs can I do?
  The Working Holiday visa is an open work permit and therefore, you are able to apply for any jobs you are interested in and qualified for. However, you will have to get a medical exam if you plan on applying for a job in:
  • the health field
  • primary or secondary education
  • child care or
  • elderly care

  Some employers might be reluctant to hire Working Holiday participants since you only have a limited amount of time on your work permit. But you can tell your potential employer that there are no obligations for them. The IEC program is LMIA exempt.