Spouses of international students
Your spouse or common-law partner may qualify if you have a valid study permit and you're:
- in a master's degree program of 16 months or longer
- in a doctoral degree program
- in an eligible program listed by IRCC, or
- in one of these professional degree programs at a university: dentistry (DDS, DMD), law (LLB, JD, BCL), medicine (MD), optometry (OD), pharmacy (PharmD, BS, BSc, BPharm), veterinary medicine (DVM), nursing (BScN, BSN, BNSc, BN), education (BEd) or engineering (BEng, BE, BASc)
The permit is usually valid for the same period as your study permit. Spouses of college diploma or most undergraduate students no longer qualify.
Spouses of foreign workers
Since January 21, 2025, only select spouses of workers qualify. Your spouse may be eligible if you work in:
- any TEER 0 or 1 occupation, or
- a select TEER 2 or 3 occupation on IRCC's list
and you meet IRCC's other conditions, including having enough time left on your work permit. Dependent children of workers no longer qualify under this measure.
BC significant investment projects: as of March 23, 2026, spouses of workers on a qualifying significant investment project in British Columbia can apply, at any TEER level.
Spouses of PR applicants and sponsored partners
- Economic PR applicants: if you're a worker who has applied for permanent residence through an eligible program, your spouse may qualify for an open work permit.
- Inland spousal sponsorship: if you're sponsoring your spouse from inside Canada, they can apply for an open work permit with or after the sponsorship. See our inland vs outland guide.
Already have one? Extensions
Family members in Canada who already hold an open work permit can often extend it, even after January 21, 2025, if their permit is shorter than the principal applicant's and they apply before it expires. A permit can't go past the principal applicant's permit or the family member's passport.