Employment rights and obligations for foreign nationals
Learn about the rights available to foreign nationals working in Ontario and the obligations of recruiters and employers.
Overview
The information on this page is for:
- someone who is considered a foreign national
- a recruiter or employer of foreign nationals
- someone acting on behalf of recruiters or employers
You are considered a foreign national if you are employed or attempting to find employment in Ontario through an immigration or foreign temporary employee program.
You are considered a recruiter if you either:
- try to find someone to fill a job
- try to find a job for someone
- help another person do (a) or (b)
- refer someone to another person to do (a) or (b).
Foreign national rights
If you are a foreign national employed or attempting to find employment in Ontario through an immigration or foreign temporary employee program, you have rights under the Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act (EPFNA)
The EPFNA prohibits recruiters and employers from:
- charging you any fees or recovering any costs, including any related to hiring you (with one exception related to some seasonal agriculture workers)
- taking your property and documents, such as passport or work permit
- intimidating or penalizing you for asking about or asserting your rights under the EPFNA
Foreign nationals may also have rights under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA)
The ESA covers employment standards such as the minimum wage and limits on hours of work.
If you believe your rights have been violated, you can file a claim.
Recruiter obligations
If you are a recruiter in Ontario, you have obligations under the Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act (EPFNA)
The EPFNA prohibits you from:
- charging foreign nationals any fees related to hiring them
- taking a foreign national’s property, such as passport or work permit
- intimidating or penalizing a foreign national for asking about or asserting their rights under the EPFNA
- using the services of another recruiter that you know has charged an unlawful fee to a foreign national
Where a recruiter uses the services of another recruiter that charged an unlawful fee to a foreign national, it is liable to repay the unlawfully charged fees. If it is a corporation, the directors of the corporate recruiter are also liable to repay those unlawfully charged fees.
The EPFNA also requires that recruiters give two information sheets to foreign nationals, which explain their rights under the EPFNA and the ESA. The information sheets must be in the foreign nationals preferred language, if it's available.
Recruiters are also responsible for recording the:
- names of foreign nationals they place and attempt to place in employment
- names and addresses of employers and potential employers
- date and reason for the payment
Employer obligations
If you are an employer who hired someone through an immigration or foreign temporary employee program in Ontario, you have obligations under the EPFNA and the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA).
The EPFNA prohibits you from:
- recovering any costs from a foreign national (with one exception related to some seasonal agriculture workers)
- taking a foreign national’s property, such as passport or work permit
- intimidating or penalizing a foreign national for asking about or asserting their rights under the EPFNA and the ESA
- using the services of a recruiter that you know has charged an unlawful fee to a foreign national
Employers are responsible for recording the:
- names and addresses of recruiters they paid
- amount and date of the payment
Note that employers are required to keep written records about each person they hire.
The ESA covers employment standards such as the minimum wage and limits on hours of work.
File a claim
If you believe your rights under the ESA or EPFNA have been violated, you can file a claim within a certain time limit. Generally, you must file an ESA claim within two years of the alleged violation and file an EPFNA claim within three and a half years of the alleged violation.