Your post-graduation work permit is expiring: what to check

First

IRCC says a PGWP is a one-time opportunity and generally can't be renewed. The exception: if you didn't get the full length because your passport was about to expire, you can apply to extend with a new passport and explain in a letter.

Check

1. Your exact expiry date (on your permit). The tracker can count down and email reminders.
2. Applying before expiry. If you apply for a new work permit before yours expires and stay in Canada, IRCC says you can stay until it decides and may keep working under your original permit's conditions (often called maintained status). If you apply for a study permit or visitor record instead, you must stop working the day your work permit expires.
3. Bridging open work permit. For people waiting on certain PR applications such as Express Entry (including CEC) or PNP. A profile isn't enough: you need a complete PR application that passed IRCC's completeness check. IRCC also sets timing conditions tied to your permit's expiry, so check its current list early.
4. Other pathways open to you, such as an employer-supported work permit or a provincial nominee program, each with its own requirements.

Avoid

• letting your permit expire while waiting for an Express Entry invitation (IRCC warns against this)
• leaving Canada after expiry with an application pending (IRCC says you then can't work until approved)
• relying on old articles about temporary PGWP extensions, which have ended.

FAQ

Renew my PGWP?

Generally no, except the passport case.

Keep working after expiry?

Only if you applied for a new work permit before expiry and stayed in Canada, under the original conditions.

Bridging permit with just a profile?

No, you need a complete PR application past the completeness check.

Official sources

• IRCC: Extending a post-graduation work permit
• IRCC: Working while an application is being processed
• IRCC: Bridging open work permits

Related guides

• How many hours do you need for the Canadian Experience Class?
• Does part-time work count for the Canadian Experience Class?