A work permit is a permit allowing foreigners to work in Canada. If the Canadian employer needs to hire a temporary foreigner worker, they must apply for the LMIA (Labour Market Impact Assessment) from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). If it is approved, they can assist the foreigner worker to apply for work permit with this approval document, so then they can come to Canada to work for the employer. However, the LMIA work permit is closed, as it is restricted that they are only allowed to work for that specific employer. There is a high level of difficulty for the whole LMIA application process, as it has extremely high requirements for both the employer and the worker, and it is extremely hard to get the approval.
The Post Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) allows students who have graduated from a participating Canadian post-secondary institution to gain valuable Canadian work experience. It may be issued for the length of the study program, for a maximum of three years. However, it must be a minimum of eight months in duration of the study program. For example, if the study program duration is 2 years, they can apply for PGWP with validation of 3 years after they graduate. If the program duration is only 1 year, then the PGWP can only be valid for 1 year. PGWP is unlike LMIA, as it allows students to work for different employers and different jobs, whereas LMIA is closed, and is only limited to work for one employer and one job.