Post-Brexit impact on CETA mobility
The Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (“CETA”) includes mobility provisions between Canada and European Union (“EU”) member states, providing a useful route for investors, contractual service providers, independent professionals, intra-company transferees, and business visitors to obtain authorization to carry out work activities in Canada.
Given the United Kingdom (“UK”) officially left the EU on Friday, January 31, 2020, are UK citizens still able to make use of CETA for work in Canada?
Transition period
Fortunately, no major changes immediately took place since the UK’s “Brexit” from the EU. The EU and UK were able to negotiate a Withdrawal Agreement that was signed on January 24, 2020 and formally approved on January 30, 2020. Accordingly, the UK has entered a transition period for approximately 11 months, at least until Dec 31, 2020, with possible extension.
During this transition period, the UK will have time to discuss the terms of its longer-term relationship with the EU, while otherwise benefiting from largely the same status. In particular, Canada has agreed that the UK can continue to be party to international treaties between the EU and Canada, including CETA.
Consequently, UK citizens should be able to continue to benefit from CETA’s mobility provisions to gain work authorization in Canada throughout the transition period.
Post-transition period
Once the transition period ends and the UK is no longer considered party to CETA, Canada and the UK would have to directly negotiate a bilateral agreement. Therefore, mobility options beyond the transition period are not yet clear.
However, for those who were considering CETA’s intra-company transferee provisions, there may still be opportunity under Canada’s general intra-company transferee category based on paragraph 205(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. Similarly, individuals who were considering applying for a work permit on the basis of other CETA provisions may have options through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program’s Labour Market Impact Assessment (“LMIA”) process, or other LMIA-exempt work permit categories.
Our immigration group would be pleased to help you better understand your post-Brexit options to work in Canada as a citizen of the United Kingdom.
This update is intended for general information only. If you have questions about the above, please contact a member of our Immigration group.
Click here to subscribe to Stewart McKelvey Thought Leadership.
Archive
The integrity of the jury system has become a pressing topic for our courts of late, with articles about jury duty frequently appearing front and centre in the press. The recent message from the Nova…
Read MoreIN THIS ISSUE: Cloud computing: House to navigate risky skies by Daniela Bassan and Michelle Chai Growing a startup by Clarence Bennett, Twila Reid and Nicholas Russon Knowing the lay of the land – Aboriginal rights and land claims in Labrador by Colm St. Roch Seviour and Steve Scruton Download…
Read MoreDOES IT APPLY TO YOU? On June 1, 2013, the Personal Health Information Act (PHIA) comes into force in Nova Scotia. If you are involved in health care in Nova Scotia, you need to know whether PHIA…
Read MoreEDITOR’S COMMENT This edition of Atlantic Employers’ Counsel focuses on key areas of employment standards in Atlantic Canada. Employment standards legislation outlines the rights and obligations of employees and requirements that apply to employers in…
Read MoreNEW TORT OF CYBERBULLYING On May 10, 2013 the Nova Scotia legislature passed the Cyber-safety Act (Bill 61). When this bill comes into force, it will give rise to a new tort of cyberbullying that…
Read MoreGOVERNMENT ACTION In the Economic Action Plan 2010, the Harper Government committed to bring greater clarity to how mortgage prepayment penalties were calculated. As part of the commitment, on February 26, 2013 the government released…
Read MoreSTEWART MCKELVEY WELCOMES BACK WANDA DOIRON AS MANAGER, CORPORATE SERVICES – NOVA SCOTIA You might remember Wanda from her time in our Corporate Services group from 2002 to 2008. Since then, she has worked in-house…
Read MoreREASONABLE PEOPLE DOING QUESTIONABLE THINGS: CONFLICTS OF INTEREST AND JUST CAUSE Can a unionized employee moonlight in his off hours to earn some extra money by doing the same work he does for his daytime…
Read MoreStewart McKelvey’s Vision Improving Legal Analysis (SVILA*) is an e-discovery project and litigation management tool. For more information on our e-discovery services, download the SVILA e-discovery document.
Read MoreIN THIS ISSUE: A New Brunswick business lawyer’s perspective by Peter Klohn Why Canada’s immigration rules matter to your business by Andrea Baldwin Financing Energy Projects during the Project Lifecycle by Lydia Bugden, Colm St. Roch Seviour and Tauna Staniland Download…
Read More