CUSMA / USMCA Work Permit Guide 2026

1. What a CUSMA Work Permit Is in 2026

The Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) replaced NAFTA and provides several temporary-entry pathways for qualifying business persons from the United States and Mexico. For workers who actually enter the Canadian labour market, CUSMA is generally an LMIA-exempt route under the international-agreement framework. The principal work-permit categories are: - CUSMA Professionals - CUSMA Intra-Company Transferees - CUSMA Traders - CUSMA Investors CUSMA also contains a business visitor category, but that category is fundamentally different. A qualifying business visitor can perform permitted business activities without a work permit under IRPR 186(a). A professional, ICT, trader or investor who will perform employment or business activities requiring work authorization generally requires a work permit. For the CUSMA Professional route, the current administrative exemption code is T36. The current codes for CUSMA intra-company transferees are T37 for executives/senior managers and T38 for specialized-knowledge workers. The CUSMA routes do not apply merely because a person is a permanent resident of the United States or Mexico. The applicant must be a citizen of a CUSMA country where the relevant category requires CUSMA citizenship. Permanent residents are not covered by the CUSMA temporary-entry provisions. CUSMA does not eliminate the ordinary immigration requirements. Applicants remain subject to admissibility, identity, health, security, passport and temporary-entry requirements. Professional applicants must also satisfy any licensing or certification requirements necessary to practise the occupation in Canada. CUSMA provides a temporary-entry mechanism. It does not itself provide permanent residence and should not be presented as a PR program.

2. CUSMA Professional Work Permit — T36 Eligibility

The CUSMA Professional category is one of the most commonly used CUSMA work-permit routes. The current administrative exemption code is T36. The applicant must be a citizen of the United States or Mexico and must come to Canada to provide services in a profession listed in the CUSMA professional occupation list. The agreement contains more than 60 designated professional occupations, commonly described as 60+ or 63 professions depending on how the list is counted and presented. The applicant also needs a pre-arranged professional service arrangement. This can be through a Canadian enterprise, a contract between the professional and Canadian employer, or the qualifying contractual arrangement contemplated by CUSMA. The Canadian job must be in the listed profession. It is not enough that the applicant holds a degree in one field while the proposed Canadian job is in an unrelated occupation. Credential requirements are occupation-specific. Some professions require a degree in a relevant field; some require licensing, registration or other credentials; and a small number contain alternative experience standards. For example, the Management Consultant category has a specialized credential/experience test rather than a simple “any bachelor's degree” rule. Regulated professions such as engineers, accountants, nurses, pharmacists and lawyers may also require Canadian licensing or authorization to practise even when the immigration category itself is satisfied. Professionals should therefore separate: 1. CUSMA immigration eligibility; 2. educational/experience evidence; and 3. provincial or territorial professional licensing. The CUSMA professional work permit is normally employer-specific, not an open work permit. The permit authorizes the professional to perform the approved work for the employer or contractual arrangement described in the application.

3. CUSMA Professionals: Occupation List and Credential Examples

CUSMA's professional list is not a generic high-skilled occupation list. The occupation must fall within one of the professions specifically listed by the agreement. Examples include professions in engineering, science, medicine, accounting, economics, architecture, law, education, nursing, pharmacy, technical writing and other designated fields. The exact wording of the CUSMA list should be used when assessing eligibility. The National Occupational Classification (NOC) can help describe the actual Canadian job, but NOC matching alone does not replace the treaty's professional list. Examples illustrate why occupation-by-occupation review matters: Computer Systems Analyst: must satisfy the CUSMA professional qualification requirements associated with the listed profession and perform work corresponding to that profession. Engineers: the immigration category recognizes engineering professionals, but the person may still need provincial engineering registration or authorization depending on the actual practice of engineering. Accountants: professional credential and degree requirements must be examined against the CUSMA list. Management Consultants: the treaty contains a specific alternative qualification structure. It is not accurate to summarize this occupation simply as “any relevant degree.” Physicians: CUSMA's physician category is restricted to specific teaching or research activities and does not operate as a universal route for ordinary clinical practice. Lawyers: academic credentials alone are not a substitute for any Canadian authorization required to practise law. Registered Nurses and Pharmacists: Canadian licensing requirements remain relevant before practising in regulated roles. Applicants should therefore build the evidence package around the exact listed profession rather than relying on a broad professional title. A Canadian employer should also ensure that the employment offer, duties and compensation correspond to the professional category claimed.

4. CUSMA Intra-Company Transferees — T37 and T38

CUSMA also facilitates the temporary transfer of qualifying employees from a U.S. or Mexican enterprise to a related Canadian enterprise. The current administrative codes are: - T37 — Executive or Senior Manager - T38 — Specialized Knowledge The applicant must normally have been employed by the qualifying enterprise outside Canada for at least one continuous year during the three years immediately preceding the application, subject to the specific CUSMA rules and any applicable qualifying corporate relationship. The Canadian and foreign businesses must have the required relationship, such as parent, branch, subsidiary or affiliate status. The transferee must be coming to Canada to perform the corresponding qualifying role. A routine employee transfer is not automatically a CUSMA ICT. For executives and senior managers, the position must satisfy the treaty's executive or senior-manager definition. For specialized knowledge, the applicant must possess the required level of specialized knowledge of the company's products, services, research, equipment, techniques or management and satisfy the applicable experience criteria. A CUSMA ICT work permit is employer-specific. The worker is authorized to work for the Canadian enterprise identified in the application. The permit is also temporary. CUSMA does not provide a permanent residence pathway merely because an employee has been transferred to Canada. An ICT can later pursue permanent residence through another qualifying program, but that is a separate immigration analysis.

5. CUSMA Traders and Investors — T34 and T35

CUSMA contains separate LMIA-exempt categories for traders and investors. The current administrative codes are T34 for Traders and T35 for Investors. A CUSMA trader must be coming to Canada to carry on substantial trade in goods or services between Canada and the United States or Mexico. The trade must meet the treaty's substantial-trade test and must be principally between Canada and the qualifying CUSMA country. The trader must also occupy an executive or supervisory position, or possess essential skills, depending on the treaty rules. A CUSMA investor must be coming to Canada to develop and direct the operations of an enterprise in which the applicant or the applicant's enterprise has made, or is actively in the process of making, a substantial investment. The investment must be genuinely committed and sufficient to demonstrate the commercial reality of the Canadian enterprise. The applicant should also occupy a qualifying executive, supervisory or essential-skills position. These categories involve substantially more than simply owning a Canadian corporation or making a small investment. Officers assess the enterprise, investment, source of funds, commercial activity and temporary-entry requirements. The trader/investor routes are also temporary. A successful CUSMA permit does not itself establish permanent residence. The applicant should prepare evidence showing the actual commercial relationship with Canada, the nationality of the enterprise, trade flows or investment commitments, ownership/control, financial statements and the role the applicant will perform in Canada.

6. Application Location, Employer Portal, Fees and Documents

CUSMA application location depends on citizenship and the applicant's current status in Canada. U.S. citizens may in qualifying circumstances apply directly at a Canadian Port of Entry, including professional and intra-company transferee categories. They may also use the online application route. Mexican citizens generally need to follow the applicable visa-office/online process when applying from outside Canada. However, a Mexican citizen who has already been admitted to Canada as a visitor may be eligible to apply from inside Canada under any CUSMA category, subject to the requirements. IRCC's current in-Canada instructions specifically identify CUSMA traders, investors, intra-company transferees and professionals as applicants who can qualify to apply from within Canada under the relevant conditions. For an employer-specific LMIA-exempt offer, the employer generally submits the job offer through the Employer Portal and pays the $230 employer-compliance fee unless the applicable exemption applies. The employer then provides the worker with the seven-digit A-number generated by the portal. The work-permit processing fee is generally $155 CAD for the worker. Biometrics fees can apply separately where required. The application package depends on the category. For Professionals, the applicant should have: - proof of citizenship; - employment/service contract; - evidence the occupation is on the CUSMA list; - degree/diploma or other qualifying credential; - professional licence where required; and - proof of temporary-entry/admissibility requirements. For ICTs, add corporate relationship documentation and evidence of the applicant's prior qualifying employment and position. For Traders/Investors, commercial, financial and ownership records are essential. Applicants should not rely on a single “A-number + degree” package for every CUSMA category.

7. Permit Duration, Renewal, Temporary Intent and Final CUSMA Audit

CUSMA does not guarantee one fixed work-permit duration for every applicant. A CUSMA work permit can generally be issued for up to 3 years in the professional and ICT context where the employment period and passport validity support that duration. The actual permit cannot exceed the validity of the passport and may be shorter based on the requested employment period or other immigration considerations. CUSMA permits can be extended when the applicant continues to satisfy the applicable category and temporary-entry requirements. Renewal is not an automatic indefinite right. Each extension must continue to satisfy the CUSMA category and Canadian temporary-residence rules. The concept of temporary entry is central. CUSMA does not create permanent residence. An applicant may have a long-term intention to pursue permanent residence under another program, but the CUSMA work-permit application itself must satisfy the temporary-worker requirements. The employer-specific nature of most CUSMA work permits also matters after approval. A T36 Professional cannot simply move to an unrelated employer without the correct new authorization. An ICT worker cannot use a T37/T38 permit to work for an unrelated Canadian company. A professional in a regulated occupation must separately comply with provincial/territorial licensing law. Immigration approval does not substitute for a professional licence. The final permit should be reviewed for: - employer name; - occupation; - location; - expiry date; - conditions; - medical restrictions; and - any category-specific limitations. Common 2026 errors include: - using an old T23/T24 code without verifying current coding instructions; - assuming all 60+ professional occupations use the same credential; - treating a degree as sufficient for every profession; - treating permanent residents of the U.S. or Mexico as CUSMA citizens; - assuming every Mexican applicant must apply abroad; - assuming every U.S. citizen can use any POE in any circumstance; - claiming CUSMA is an open-work-permit category; - ignoring Canadian licensing; - treating a company investment as automatically sufficient for T35; and - assuming three years is guaranteed. The safest decision sequence is: Citizenship → CUSMA category → treaty eligibility → job/corporate/trade/investment evidence → credentials/licensing → temporary intent/admissibility → application location → employer Portal requirements → fees → final permit conditions.

Frequently Asked Questions