Bridging Open Work Permit: Who Qualifies, Cost, and Timeline

A Bridging Open Work Permit lets you keep working in Canada while Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) processes your application for permanent residence. It fills the gap between your current work permit expiring and a final decision on your PR file, so you don’t have to stop working or leave the country during a wait that often stretches for months. Government fees total $340 for most applicants, and a BOWP can be issued for up to two years.¹

Who Qualifies

Two things need to line up: your status in Canada, and the permanent residence program you applied through.

Your Status in Canada

You must be physically in Canada when you apply, and your work authorization must be in one of these three states:¹

Your current work permit is still valid and you hold valid temporary resident status.
Your permit has expired, but you applied to extend or change it before the expiry date. In that case you keep working under the same conditions as your original permit until IRCC decides.²
Your permit expired and you didn’t apply in time, but you’re within 90 days of losing status and are applying for restoration.³

The 90-day restoration window is strict. IRCC must receive your application no more than 90 days after your status expired, and if you apply online the system runs on coordinated universal time (UTC), not your local time zone. One exception: foreign workers who hold a letter of support from a participating province or territory are not bound by the 90-day cutoff and can apply for restoration after it closes.³

Your Permanent Residence Program

Only certain PR streams qualify you for a BOWP:¹

Express Entry programs: Federal Skilled Worker Program, Canadian Experience Class, and Federal Skilled Trades Program.
Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), both Express Entry-linked and base nominations.
Quebec Skilled Worker Program.

The Agri-Food Immigration Pilot closed to new applications on May 14, 2025. Applicants whose files were accepted before that date may still be BOWP-eligible; anyone applying now needs to qualify through one of the programs above.⁴

Two extra conditions catch people out. If you were nominated through a PNP, your nomination certificate cannot include any employment restrictions. If your province tied the nomination to a specific employer, you can’t get an open permit, because an open permit by definition lets you work for anyone.¹ Read your nomination letter carefully for any language tying you to a particular company or position.

And if you’re applying through an Express Entry program, you must intend to live outside Quebec at the time you apply for the BOWP. If Quebec is your destination, the Quebec Skilled Worker Program is the right pathway, and applicants under that program can get a BOWP no matter where in Canada they currently live.¹

What It Costs

A standard application involves three government fees:⁵

Work permit processing fee: $155
Open work permit holder fee: $100
Biometrics fee: $85 per person

Total: $340 for a single applicant, paid by credit or debit card during online submission.

If you also need to restore your status, add $246.25, which brings the total to $586.25.⁵ Applying before your current permit expires avoids that charge entirely.

How Long the Permit Lasts

A BOWP can be issued for up to two years. It stays valid until IRCC decides your permanent residence application, until the permit itself expires, or until your passport expires, whichever comes first. Because it’s open, you can work for any employer in any occupation anywhere in Canada while it’s in force, and switching jobs is fine.

If your BOWP is running out and your PR file is still under review, you can apply for a new BOWP to extend your work authorization, provided you still meet the requirements.

Documents to Gather

Before you open the online form, pull together:

Your Acknowledgement of Receipt (AOR), the letter or email IRCC sends once your PR application clears its completeness check. It carries the file number that links your BOWP request to your PR file. Without it, you can’t apply.⁶
A clear copy of your valid passport, including the data page and all stamps.⁷
A digital photograph meeting IRCC’s size and background specifications.
A copy of your current or expired work permit.
Completed Form IMM 5710, the application to extend your stay or change conditions as a worker.⁸

Fill Form IMM 5710 out on a computer, not by hand. It generates barcodes that IRCC’s system reads, and you need to click Validate at the bottom so the barcode page appears when you save the PDF. In the “Intended Work in Canada” section, select Open Work Permit and leave the employer name and address fields blank. Enter the file number from your AOR to link the BOWP to your PR case. Answer the background questions on immigration and travel history accurately; inconsistencies can delay or sink the application.⁸

Medical Exam Exemption

Under a temporary public policy extended through October 5, 2029, you may be exempt from a new immigration medical exam if you already live in Canada, completed an exam within the last five years, and that exam showed low or no risk to public health or safety.⁹ If you qualify, include your previous exam number in the application. If you need a new exam, results are generally valid for 12 months.

How to Apply

In most cases you must apply online through your IRCC account.¹ Sign in, start a work permit application, and upload the completed IMM 5710, passport copy, photo, AOR letter, and any other documents the system checklist requests. Each file has to meet the specified format and size limits. Pay the fees, and you’ll receive a submission confirmation. That confirmation, together with proof you applied before your permit expired, is what protects your work authorization while IRCC reviews the file.

Paper applications are only available if a disability prevents online submission or if you’re hitting a technical problem with the online system. You cannot apply for a BOWP at a port of entry, so flagpoling is not an option.

Biometrics

After you submit, IRCC may send a biometrics instruction letter. You then have 30 days from the date of that letter to give fingerprints and a photo at an official collection location.¹⁰ Missing that window can stall the application. If you gave biometrics for a previous immigration application within the last ten years, you may not need to repeat them; check your IRCC account.

Processing Times and Working While You Wait

IRCC updates estimated processing times weekly. Recent estimates for temporary residence applications like work permits have ranged from roughly 8 to 16 weeks, but this shifts with volume and application quality. The estimate reflects how long it took to process 80% of similar recent applications, so some cases fall outside the range.¹¹

While you wait, you can keep working under the conditions of your original work permit, as long as you applied before it expired or are within the restoration window. You don’t need to wait for the BOWP itself to be issued before continuing your job.

Travel While Your Application Is Pending

This is where many applicants get caught out. You can technically leave Canada while your BOWP is pending, but returning is a gamble. If the BOWP hasn’t been decided when you come back, a border officer may admit you only as a visitor, which means you can’t work until the permit is issued.¹² Three things can happen at the border:

The officer admits you as a visitor if no decision has been made, and you can’t work until the permit arrives.
The officer admits you as a worker if the BOWP was approved while you were away.
The officer asks you to apply for a new work permit at the port of entry.

The safest move is to stay in Canada until the BOWP is in hand. If travel is unavoidable, carry proof of your pending application and make sure you meet every other requirement for re-entry.

If Your PR Application Is Refused

A PR refusal doesn’t automatically cancel your BOWP. The permit stays valid until its printed expiry date. But the reason you were given the permit no longer exists, so you shouldn’t assume you can keep working indefinitely. Before the BOWP expires, either apply for a different type of temporary status, such as a visitor record or a new employer-specific work permit, or plan to leave Canada.

Speed matters after a refusal. If you let the BOWP expire without lining up new status, you lose your legal standing and face the 90-day restoration clock, or worse, an enforced departure. Talking to an immigration lawyer or consultant quickly after a refusal gives you the best chance of keeping status through another pathway.

1
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Bridging Open Work Permit: Eligibility
2
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. I Applied for a New Work Permit. Can I Stay in Canada if My Work Permit Expires?
3
Government of Canada. Restore Your Status and Get a Work Permit
4
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Closed: Agri-Food Pilot
5
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Citizenship and Immigration Application Fees
6
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. How Can I Check if My Application Has Been Received?
7
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Document Checklist IMM 5488
8
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Application to Change Conditions, Extend My Stay or Remain in Canada as a Worker IMM 5710
9
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Medical Exams for Visitors, Students and Workers
10
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Find Out if You Need to Give Biometrics
11
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Check Current IRCC Processing Times
12
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. I Have Applied to Extend My Work Permit. Can I Travel Outside Canada?