Top 6 Canadian employers offering LMIA-exempt work permits. An LMIA-exempt work visa could be available to foreign nationals who work for one of eight Canadian companies, mostly in the tech sector.

IRCC introduced a new work permit earlier this month as a component of the Innovation Stream. One of the four main pillars of Canada’s tech talent strategy, the Innovation Stream aims to bring in talented personnel to propel the nation’s economy.

Here is a summary of the job openings as of October 16th, along with the eight companies that meet the requirements for the employer-specific, LMIA-exempt work visa.

  • Ada Support Inc.: Based in Toronto, hiring in Toronto and remote; Glassdoor rating: 3.1.
  • AlayaCare: Headquartered in Montreal, hiring in Montreal and Toronto; Glassdoor rating: 3.5.
  • CellCarta: Located in Montreal, hiring in Montreal and remote; Glassdoor rating: 2.2.
  • Clarius Mobile Health: Vancouver-based, hiring in Vancouver; Glassdoor rating: 4.3.
  • Clio: Headquartered in Burnaby, hiring in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, and remote; Glassdoor rating: 3.9.
  • Lightspeed Commerce: Montreal-based, hiring in Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, and remote; Glassdoor rating: 3.7.
  • Duchesnay Pharmaceutical Group: Located in Montreal, not currently hiring in Canada; Glassdoor rating: 3.4.
  • Vive Crop Protection: Based in Mississauga, not currently hiring in Canada; Glassdoor rating: 4.5.

Explore Job Opportunities, Roles, and Benefits at These 6 Hiring Canadian Companies

Ada Support Inc.

Ada, a Toronto-based startup founded in 2016, wants to replace agent-led customer support with AI-driven customer service. It provides multilingual, AI-powered customer care via several channels to businesses and their clients worldwide.

Even though Ada is a remote organization, some positions can need applicants to reside in particular provinces.

Benefits for employees include unlimited vacation time, stock options, work abroad opportunities, and a home office budget. In departments including product development, revenue, operations, finance, and customer experience, the organization currently has over 15 unfilled roles.

Examples of available positions include:

  • Manager, Sales Development (Toronto)
  • Senior Technical Writer (Remote – Canada)
  • HR Generalist (Toronto)
  • Staff Software Engineer, Solutions (Remote – Canada)
  • DevOps Engineer (Remote – Canada)

AlayaCare

AlayaCare, a Montreal-based startup founded in 2014, is focused on using artificial intelligence (AI) and technology to solve problems in the healthcare industry, especially in the home care industry. Clients can streamline a number of operations, such as employee administration, scheduling, billing, and more, with the help of the company’s cloud-based software.

Currently, AlayaCare has approximately 550 employees in the US, Canada, Australia, and Brazil. There are several employment vacancies in Canada, some of which require bilingualism in both French and English, in either Toronto or Montreal.

Among the positions that are open are:

  • Senior Developer, Scheduling (Montreal, Quebec)
  • Implementation Specialist (Toronto)
  • Engineering Manager – SRE (Montreal, Quebec)
  • Bilingual Senior Technical Services Specialist (Montreal, Quebec)
  • Senior DevOps Analyst (Montreal, Quebec, Canada)

CellCarta

The Montreal-based business CellCarta uses technology and research to distinguish between tissues and cells in order to find biomarkers for more accurate diagnosis and treatment. This method supports more specialized therapies and improves the customisation of illness detection and prevention efforts. The business is active in Belgium, the United States, Australia, and China. Only a few positions are open in Canada as of this posting, mostly in Montreal.

Among the positions that are open are:

  • Global Technology Architecture Manager (Montreal)
  • Global Revenue Accounting Manager (Remote)

Clarius Mobile Health

The British Columbia-based business Clarius was founded in 2014 with the intention of giving all medical professionals access to reasonably priced ultrasound equipment.

Based on input from its staff, Clarius was certified in 2024 by Great Place To Work®, a leader in the world of workplace culture evaluation.

The organization provides benefits like team events, a professional development program, employee appreciation, and a hybrid work environment.

Clarius has one position available in Canada right now:

Manufacturing technician (Vancouver)

Clio

With its cloud-based legal technology, Clio helps attorneys handle a variety of duties, including client intake and contact management, timekeeping, billing, payments, and more. Together with its British Columbian headquarters, Clio also maintains offices in Toronto, Calgary, and Dublin. Depending on the role, the organization offers both a hybrid work model and remote positions.

Benefits offered by the employer include RRSP matching, flexible paid time off (customizable to individual needs, minimum four weeks), parental leave, and a range of health, dental, and vision plans.

Among the positions that are open are:

  • Director, Product Research (Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver – with remote option available)
  • Business Development Representative (Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto)
  • Customer Onboarding Specialist (Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto)Data Scientist (Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto – with remote option available)
  • Account Executive, Mid-Market (Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver)
  • Account Executive, Customer Sales (Vancouver, Calgary)

Lightspeed Commerce

Lightspeed, a Montreal-based company founded in 2005, provides companies with an all-inclusive commerce platform built to help them grow and simplify their operations.

There are currently a number of job openings at Lightspeed Commerce in Canada, mostly in Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa. There are also a few remote positions available.

Among the positions that are open are:

  • Senior Strategic Pricing Specialist (Montreal)
  • Software Development Manager (Toronto)
  • Senior Site Reliability Engineer (Ottawa)
  • Team Lead, Software Development (Montreal)
  • Staff Software Developer (Ottawa)
  • Senior Product Manager, Payment Processing (Montreal)

While these two companies are not currently hiring in Canada, this may change in the future: 

Vive Crop Protection

Vive Crop Protection, an ag-tech business based in Mississauga, Ontario, uses a unique delivery method and crop protection products to help farmers save time, effort, and resources. There aren’t any Canadian-specific job openings at the company right now. It does, however, urge suitably qualified applicants to enquire about available positions.

Duchesnay Pharmaceutical Group (DPG)

The goal of the pharmaceutical company Duchesnay Pharmaceutical Group (DPG), situated in Montreal, is to improve patients’ health and quality of life by creating novel drugs and offering treatment alternatives.

Six pharmaceutical companies that operate in Canada and the United States make up the organization.

Benefits from Duchesnay include flexible scheduling, including summer hours, and hybrid teleworking. But as of right now, the business isn’t employing in Canada.

Selection Criteria for Employer-Specific Work Permits Under the Innovation Stream

The Innovation Stream provides LMIA-exempt work permits to employers involved in the Global Hypergrowth Project (GHP).

Launched by the Canadian government, the GHP aims to assist innovative Canadian companies in their growth. The initiative is designed to support job creation, aid small businesses, and enhance economic growth. The first eight selected companies, listed above, are all homegrown businesses recognized by the government as industry leaders and innovators.