Administrators Information Regarding Immigration Procedures for Tenure-Track/Tenured Academic Staff

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Academic Staff Immigration Page

Administrators Procedures Regarding Immigration Procedures for Tenure-track/tenured Academic Staff

McGill recruits internationally to find the best qualified and most suitable candidates for tenure-track/tenured academic staff positions. When recruiting non-Canadians, the following procedures must be followed carefully by the department or faculty to satisfy immigration requirements. Further assistance is available from the veronica [dot] nahorniak [at] mcgill [dot] ca (Immigration Coordinator) .

New faculty should be made aware of immigration requirements, processes and the costs involved. Further details may be obtained from Citizenship and Immigration Canada's website. Please refer to www.cic.gc.ca.

Advertising Requirements

Selection of Tenure-Track/Tenured Academic Staff

I. The Department, or Faculty, must evaluate the qualifications of each applicant and record in a comprehensive manner the reasons for each rejection. A detailed justification is required by the immigration authorities for the refusal of Canadian or permanent resident candidates. This applies to permanent and temporary positions.

II. If, in the Department's judgement, there are no Canadians or permanent residents possessing the qualifications of the position as advertised (same title, same description of duties), the Department may offer the position to the non-Canadian candidate selected.

III. The job offer must be made conditional upon obtaining the requisite work permit and immigration clearance. The Department shall not offer the job to a non-Canadian before the one month delay for submission of applications has been satisfied.

IV. The wording for the condition to be inserted into any letter of offer is:
"In accordance with Canadian and Québec law, this offer is conditional upon your obtaining the appropriate authorization from any or all of the following as applicable: Citizenship & Immigration Canada, Immigration Québec and Human Resources & Skills Development Canada (HRSDC). While McGill University undertakes to assist you with the formalities, it cannot guarantee a favourable decision from the Immigration Authorities."

Please Note: The offer is also conditional upon the approval of the Provost (see Staffing Policy).

V. An offer letter from the Department Chair (or Dean in faculties without departments) is to be sent to the candidate containing the following information:

• title of the position
• salary offered
• effective date of appointment
• duration of appointment
• whether it is tenure-track
• the conditions

If the candidate accepts, and he/she is not a Canadian citizen or permanent resident a temporary work permit must be obtained.

Temporary Work Permit

The Department completes all the required forms (contact Immigration Coordinator to obtain these) and forwards them to the Immigration Coordinator.

Please refer to Immigration Procedures for Tenure-Track/Tenured Academic Staff for further details on procedures for the following Immigration Categories:

1. Regular Procedures for Non-Canadian Academic Staff (non-NAFTA)
2. NAFTA: Non-Canadian Temporary Employees entering Canada under the North American Free-Trade Agreement
3. Exemptions under Spousal Open Work Permit
4. Non-Canadian Temporary Employees in Specially Designated Categories

Renewal of Temporary Work Permit

The Temporary work permit is issued for a period of between 12 to 36 months, at the discretion of the Immigration Authorities. Renewal is also subject to approval. If the job changes, the position must be re-advertised.

The procedure to renew a Temporary work permit should be initiated at least five months prior to the expiry date of the current Temporary work permit. The Department completes the forms for renewal and forwards them to the Immigration Coordinator.

Forms and Checklists are available from the Immigration Coordinator.

Permanent Residency

Once the new academic staff member has arrived with a temporary work permit, procedures to obtain permanent residency should be started as soon as possible. The Immigration Coordinator will contact the new staff member upon arrival and forward the necessary forms and document checklists. Please contact the veronica [dot] nahorniak [at] mcgill [dot] ca (Immigration Coordinator) for further details on the process.

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