Foreign Workers

The Labour Standards Code provides rules about employment rights, for example rules about vacation pay, holiday pay and minimum wage. It also includes rules that protect foreign workers. The foreign worker rules are about:

  • recruiter licensing to recruit foreign workers in Nova Scotia
  • employer registration to recruit and hire foreign workers in Nova Scotia
  • charging and recovering recruitment fees/costs from a worker
  • holding a foreign worker's property
  • record keeping for employers and recruiters
  • changing terms and conditions of a foreign worker's employment

 

On this webpage, you will find information on each of these rules and on the Nova Scotia Foreign Worker Program in general. We have also provided a list of websites that may be helpful resources for foreign workers and for employers and recruiters of foreign workers.

Workers
Recruiters
Employers
Foreign Worker Related Sites

 

Federally regulated companies do not fall under the provincial Labour Standards Code. Employers and recruiters who are recruting workers for a federally regulated business are under federal jurisdiction.

 

Workers

 

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Recruiters

 

Recruiter Licensing

Recruiters of foreign workers in Nova Scotia must hold a recruiter licence from Labour Standards to provide recruitment services. Note: employers who do their own recruitment work do not need a recruiter licence. For information on how to apply for a recruiter licence, please see the fact sheet "Foreign Workers - Recruiter Licence Fact Sheet" below.

 

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Employers

 

Recruiting and Hiring Foreign Workers

Employers are required to have an employer registration certificate from Labour Standards to lawfully hire a foreign worker in Nova Scotia. For information on how to apply, please see the links below.

Employers who do their own recruitment work do not need a recruiter licence to engage in foreign worker recruitment.

Employers who want to use a recruiter to assist with recruiting and hiring foreign workers must use a licensed recruiter. A list of licensed foreign worker recruiters is available below.

 

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Foreign Worker Related Sites

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Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact Labour Standards.

 

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