KNOWN EMPLOYER PROGRAM FOR CANADIAN COMPANIES

By late 2015, The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is expected to launch a test program with the Canadian government. The initiative is designed to streamline adjudication of certain types of employment-based immigration benefit requests filed by eligible U.S. employers. Essentially, the goal is to aid U.S.– Canada business travel.  

The pilot program emerged under the U.S. and Canada Beyond the Border initiative. The latter allows both countries to work together to address threats within, at, and away from their borders, while expediting lawful trade and travel. And in doing so, the pilot program furthers the binational commitment under the North American Free Trade Agreement.

The Known Employer program will facilitate legitimate cross-border business travel along the northern border ports of entry. Specifically, the program targets to: 

• Make adjudications more efficient and less costly.
• Reduce paperwork and delays for both the department and U.S. employers who seek to employ foreign workers.

This is not the first program of its kind. The DHS has initiated a trusted employer concept in the Philippines with its Priority Interview Program and  Business Executive Program in India.