IEC Recognized Organization (RO) Canada Programs

No, IEC deletes all profiles from one IEC Season to the other. So, if you are accepted into our RO program, you will need to create a brand new IEC profile under Stepwest and start from zero once the new IEC season begins. You can follow the steps here to create an IEC profile.

Try again! The regulation changed during IEC 2023. If you could not travel to Canada before your POE expired in the past, it no longer counts as a participation anymore. So apply again under regular IEC!

As outlined on the IRCC website here, you must wait until the POE has expired to create a new IEC profile to receive an Invitation to Apply.

Example: You are from Australia and you had a Port of Entry Letter (POE) for your Working Holiday valid for 12 months, but you never traveled to Canada. The POE has expired. You can now apply again, as your previous participation will not count! You are still eligible for a Working Holiday in Canada, no need to use a Recognized Organization.

If you’re selected, we’ll email you to book a meeting. After the meeting, if we determine that we can support your case, you will receive official confirmation of your acceptance by email.

Joining our waiting list is completely free, but it does not mean that we will be reaching out to offer you an RO spot. Due to the high volume of applications, we are unable to respond to individual requests for application updates.

Yes. Just like the regular IEC pathway, when you get approved under RO status, you will have 12 months to activate your RO Port of Entry (POE) Letter.

You must have a valid status in Canada to be eligible to join our program and when going through the RO application process. So if you still have plenty of time on your current permit this is perfect timing for you to secure your RO work permit. 

No, processing times are the exact same as under the regular IEC process (8 weeks). The benefit of applying under a Recognized Organization is that your Invitation to Apply (ITA) is guaranteed, and we will give you access to a permit that you might not otherwise be eligible for.

Absolutely not! Applying under a Recognized Organization does not mean you will be guaranteed an approval. Your application will be reviewed by IRCC, and you must be sure you comply with all requirements and provide all the required information before the deadlines. The last word will be on the IRCC Officer that reviews your application, so it ultimately will be up to the Government of Canada

No, it will not. When you apply under a RO the discontinuance requirement does not apply, as per the IRCC website.

Example: You are from Poland, and the regulation under IEC says that you must wait six months to apply again for a second work permit category. This will not apply under our IEC RO Program, as we will be able to help you right away! 

As with the regular IEC pathway, you must still provide a mailing address in your home country, even if you are living abroad, as per the IRCC website instructions here.

Please note that Italian residency requirements are NOT waived by using a RO– In addition to a residential address, applicants must submit a valid a residence certificate (certificato di residenza).

35 years old, no matter the IEC country you are from. As long as you receive your Invitation to Apply (ITA) before your 36th birthday, we can help you! Even if under regular IEC you are only eligible until 30 years old.

Example: You are from Japan, Sweden or Netherlands, where the age limit is 30 years old. If you apply with a Recognized Organization, the age limit will be 35 years old instead.

It depends actually! Usually, Biometrics are valid for 10 years; yet, it is not always the case. This is why it is very important that you check your own Biometrics validity here.

⚠️ Important: Your work permit will never be issued for a longer period than your Biometrics, even if you are eligible for a longer work permit.

Example: You are from Ireland, and your Biometrics expire in Dec 2027. You receive a POE or approval letter in March 2026 and you activate your work permit right away with valid 2-year insurance. Instead of receiving a work permit for 2 years (until March 2028), your work permit will be issued only until Dec 2027 due to your Biometrics expiring by then. This cannot be corrected after the work permit is issued.

Therefore, if your biometrics expire sooner than the expected duration of your work permit, you MUST select “No” to the question: “Have you ever completed Biometrics before?” This will cause the IRCC system to trigger a request letter for you to complete Biometrics again!

This will ensure that the expiry of your biometrics does not limit the duration of your work permit.

Yes, but only if you submit a truthful application and provide all required documents to the Government of Canada, exactly as you would for a regular IEC work permit application.

This is why we hold a one-to-one meeting with all participants before any payment is made. We want to ensure you are eligible for the RO IEC work permit you are applying for. Please note, however, that your work permit application will ultimately be reviewed by an IRCC Officer. You must comply with all IRCC requirements and provide any information requested. Failure to do so, or providing false information in your application, may result in a refusal with no refund.

No. You will still need to go through the same process. Remember that you will not get maintained status during your RO work permit process, so you should apply for an extension as a visitor, at least 30 days before your current work permit expires. Remember that if you lose your status in Canada, we can not help!

You are correct – officially, IEC allows up to two participations under a Recognized Organization (RO). Repeat participation through an RO are permitted; however, at Stepwest we give priority to applicants who have never previously held a Recognized Organization IEC work permit. This ensures we can provide opportunities to as many different participants as possible.

Example: If you’re from Australia, you could spend up to 24 months in Canada on a regular IEC Working Holiday permit, and then another extra 24 months through a Recognized Organization (RO). That adds up to a total of 4 years of working holiday experience in Canada.

At Stepwest, if you’ve already had the full 4 years and you are part of our waiting list, we will give priority to an applicant from Australia who has only had the regular 24-month IEC Working Holiday permit. This way, we can create opportunities for participants who have had less time in Canada through IEC and make the program fairer for everyone.

Absolutely not. Maybe you did a working holiday in Canada in your early 20s and now you would like to return in your 30s. That’s fine, we can still help in your are outside of Canada.

Only if it is already a requirement under regular IEC for your country of citizenship or if you are planning to work in specific jobs that require a medical exam.

The regulation for RO participants is exactly the same as Regular IEC, so if your country of citizenship requires a medical exam, you will also need it for your RO application or if you are planning to work in a specific field. Learn more about the medical exam requirements here.

Yes, but you should have a new passport at the time of activation, so you can get the full duration of your work permit.

You can still apply for your RO work permit with your old passport and get approved, but make sure you start planning in advance so you can get a new passport for your RO work permit activation. This is especially the case if you are currently in Canada, as the process to get a new passport might take longer.

Remember, getting a new passport means that you will need a new Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA). Learn more about getting a new passport through the IEC process here.

No, you can not. You still need insurance that covers you for your complete stay. Provincial plans in Canada are not eligible for IEC. Please learn everything about IEC insurance requirements here.

Insurance must be valid for the entire period of the work permit. Participants may present two consecutive health insurance policies if they are unable to purchase one policy covering the full duration.

⚠️ Please note: if the insurance coverage presented is shorter than the maximum duration of the work permit, the work permit will only be issued for the length of the insurance. In such cases, the work permit cannot be extended.

Only once you receive your approval letter or Port of Entry (POE) and you know the specific date you will be activating your RO work permit (example: date you will be landing in Canada). Please make sure to review the requirements of the insurance on IRCC website here.

You might need to! Take a look at this post where we explain everything you need to know about police certificates when applying under International Experience Canada (IEC).

You will need to leave Canada and re-enter in order to activate your IEC work permit. Please note that flagpoling is no longer permitted, so activation at a land border is not possible. According to IRCC’s latest update, when this measure was introduced, we do not recommend traveling to the United States or to St. Pierre and Miquelon for activation purposes.

At this time, IRCC has a temporary process that allows participants to submit a request for online activation. However, this option is only available until December 01st, 2025, and we cannot guarantee that it will remain available after that date.