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Working Holiday Canada News

March 17: +1,800 invitations and Taiwan gets a quota boost

Canada sent a total of 1,827 IEC invitations during the week of March 17.

Taiwan received an additional 1,435 spots for its Working Holiday Visa, plus 65 toward its Young Professionals quota.

So far, 63,241 invitations have been issued since the 2023 IEC season opened on January 9.

In 2023, Canada will accept up to 90,000 newcomers under IEC.

In order to come to Canada on an IEC work permit, such as the Working Holiday Visa, you need to get health insurance for the duration of your stay.

Every year, we hear stories of people who make major errors when it comes to insurance for their IEC adventure in Canada, leading to shorter-than-expect work permit durations and unnecessary medical bills. That’s why we just released a new video on all things health insurance. Check it out!

The 2023 IEC season

The 2023 International Experience Canada (IEC) season opened on January 9, 2023. During the 2023 season, Canada expects to admit 90,000 youth from more than 30 countries to work and travel. With overall quotas for IEC increasing by 20 percent, 2023 is shaping up to be a great year for the program.

Since January 9, eligible candidates are able to complete these steps:

  1. Submit a profile: Submit a profile through your IRCC account in order to be considered for an invitation. If you submitted a profile in previous years, you can use the same account, but you have to create a new profile.
  2. Receive an invitation: In order to apply for a work permit, first you have to be invited. Invitations are issued each week through a randomized lottery system. The earlier you’re in the pool, the more invitation rounds you’ll be considered for.
  3. Submit a work permit application: If you receive an invitation, you then have 10 days to accept or decline the invitation. If you accept, you have 20 days from that moment to prepare and submit your application.

Invitation rounds typically begin in the weeks following the season opening.

Once quotas for each country are announced, they will be posted on this page along with regular updates on spots remaining and chances of receiving an invitation.

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Quotas & invitations for the 2023 IEC season

Updates for 2023 IEC season

PoolQuotaInvitations to dateInvitations since last weekSpots availableSpots filled last roundEligible candidates in poolCandidate changeChances of invite in next round
Andorra – WH2510019-111Excellent
Australia – WHUnlimited3556150Unlimitedn/a28940Excellent
Australia – YPUnlimited641Unlimitedn/a20Excellent
Australia – ICUnlimited00Unlimitedn/a00Excellent
Austria - WH100154000193Very Low
Austria - YP606160-110Excellent
Austria - IC201019000Excellent
Belgium - WH7506742728215387Excellent
Chile - WH147522920006092158Very Low
Chile - YP27029025157816-8Excellent
Chile - IC5405000Excellent
Costa Rica - WH80630362116843Very low
Costa Rica - YP1512933030Excellent
Costa Rica - IC5005000Excellent
Croatia - WH27578422721-2Excellent
Croatia - YP2012712167-5066Excellent
Croatia - IC500500-1Excellent
Czech Republic - WH10006161859913365Low
Czech Republic - YP145120072060Excellent
Czech Republic - IC5005010Excellent
Denmark – WH3501781221518183Low
Estonia - WH11078565370Excellent
Estonia - YP1030800-1Excellent
Estonia - IC5005000Excellent
France - WH7000168840003652598Very Low
France - YP2200154611012815772-26Excellent
France - VIE5501921137210412Excellent
France - IC42502556305240219990-41Excellent
Germany – WH4490247710127408620338Low
Germany – YP350191262411610-9Excellent
Germany – IC160473136320Excellent
Greece - WH18022581608124Excellent
Greece - YP1092311622-2Excellent
Greece - IC100010000Excellent
Hong Kong - WH2002376884134Low
Ireland – WH10500462612576368232672Excellent
Ireland – YP150612141-164Excellent
Ireland – IC507144121Excellent
Italy - WH10001222421008258515Excellent
Japan - WH65003081110407610723957Low
Latvia - WH40726001-5Very low
Latvia - YP862610-2Excellent
Latvia - IC2002000Excellent
Lithuania - WH175304182410322Excellent
Lithuania - YP2015013000Excellent
Lithuania - IC5005000Excellent
Luxembourg - WH8019167022Excellent
Luxembourg - YP100010000Excellent
Luxembourg - IC10309000Excellent
Netherlands - WH4306672734220473Excellent
Netherlands - YP17089412011-4Excellent
New Zealand – WH25001203501620338223Low
Norway - WH130460101111Excellent
Norway - YP155010100Excellent
Norway - IC5005000Excellent
Poland - WH6354741235683111Excellent
Poland - YP1103359630-4Excellent
Poland - IC531210-1Excellent
Portugal - WH1750517181378104818Excellent
Portugal - YP200182191210Excellent
Portugal - IC503049000Excellent
San Marino - WH254022000Excellent
Slovakia - WH31532581084196Excellent
Slovakia - YP3030260-4310Excellent
Slovakia - IC5005000Excellent
Slovenia - WH8027167210Excellent
Slovenia - YP153114010Excellent
Slovenia - IC5005000Excellent
South Korea - WH650074561691740179109457Low
Spain – WH18001169251081167735Very Good
Spain – YP150907110340Excellent
Spain — IECX Vives50n/aExcellent
Spain – IC502049000Excellent
Sweden - WH580181214781014-7Excellent
Sweden - YP1001639510-1Excellent
Sweden - IC204218110Excellent
Switzerland - YP200145139795-7Excellent
Switzerland - IC5019037000Excellent
Taiwan - WH237525530958-958111690Low
Taiwan - YP11588781-614-4Excellent
Taiwan - IC10112901-1Excellent
UK – WH1000057542006481132493102Low

Get the latest IEC news straight to your inbox! To receive alerts and updates about the 2023 IEC Working Holiday Canada season, make sure you sign up for the Moving2Canada newsletter.

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What to do to prepare yourself for IEC?

If you’re hoping to snag an invitation through IEC, the best thing to do is plan ahead. You can start by checking your eligibility for IEC — take our free Canadian Immigration Quiz to see if you’re eligible.

First, make sure you’re eligible for one of the three IEC programs: the Working Holiday program (the most popular option), Young Professionals, and International Co-op.

If you meet the eligibility for one of the programs, the next step is to submit yourself to the pools. Submitting your profile as early as possible will guarantee that you’re considered for all invitation rounds. Invitations are issued randomly, so you want to be in the pools as early as possible.

You can also begin preparing yourself for the work permit application you’ll have to submit if you receive an invitation.

For free personalized guidance, make sure to sign up for a Moving2Canada account. Your account gives you access to tons of resources, including checklists with step-by-step instructions for your immigration process, job openings from Canadian employers looking to hire IEC participants, and much more!

Finding a job for the 2023 IEC season

Many IEC Working Holiday participants may want to start looking for jobs in Canada before they arrive. Thankfully, we have partnered with several Canadian employers who are looking to hire 2023 IEC participants.

Check out the Moving2Canada Jobs Board.

Young Guns Container Crew

If you’re looking for a physically demanding job with a great crew, we recommend taking a look at our partner, Young Guns Container Crew. They’re hiring labourers to help unload shipping containers in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, and Cornwall, Ontario (with more locations to come in 2023). They love IECers and can offer you a job before you arrive. Apply here — or get more information by watching this video:

Pursuit

Pursuit provides awe-inspiring experiences for guests and team members alike in locations such as Banff, Jasper, Golden, and Waterton. Don’t take our word for it, check out this spectacular video!

Pursuit is hiring for a bunch of seasonal and year-round positions. Send in your application here.

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What is the IEC program?

The IEC program allows international youth from more than 30 countries aged 18 to 35 (or in some cases, 18 to 30) to live and work in Canada for up to 24 months.

Further help with your Working Holiday Canada application

Please explore our many resources to help you plan your application. Research is crucial as you plan for success on your Working Holiday Canada permit.

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