How to Apply for Co-op Work Permit

Are you an international student taking a co-op program or thinking about taking a co-op program in Canada?

The co-op experience is a full-time work experience over a period of time. During the Co-op, students may work up to 35 or 40 hours a week; thus, they don’t enroll in any classes. If you want to learn more about co-op programs in Canada, click here. In this blog, we will walk you through how to apply for a co-op work permit. 

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The Co-op work permit is a permit that students need for Co-op, internships, practicum, or work ops. The idea is to help students to gain work experience without conflicting with their studies. Students must have a Co-op work permit before starting their Co-op. There is NO fee associated with the Co-op work permit. The estimated processing time is around 5 months. Therefore, we highly encourage students to apply as soon as possible. Students do NOT need a Co-op position before applying for the permit. 

Apply

Before applying for a Co-op work permit, you will need to sign-up for a GCkey account if you don’t already have one.
After everything is set-up, and you are logged into your GCkey account follow these steps:

  • Scroll down and click “Apply to come to Canada”
  • Click on “Visitor visa, study and/or work permit”
  • Answer “Work” to “What would you like to do in Canada?”
  • Answer “Temporarily-more than six months” to “How Long are you planning to stay in Canada?”
  • Continue answering the questions until you get the page with the IMM 5710 form and checklist
  • Download the IMM 5710 form directly from the page
  • Uploaded the completed form and all of the required documents
  • Type your name to finalize the application

    Please Note: There are serious consequences for not being truthful on an immigration form. Please only provide truthful information.

Here are some questions the application may have:

  1. Are you accompanying a family member who has status in Canada?
  2. Do you also want to apply for a study permit?
  3. When does your status in Canada expire?
  4. Have you had a medical exam performed by an IRCC authorized panel physician (doctor) within the last 12 months?
  5. Have you lived in a designated country or territory for more than six months in the last years? 

Download the complete guide for applying for a co-op work permit here

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