ABOUT WALI
Western Agriculture Labour Initiative
BC Agriculture Council, through a subsidiary company, Western Agriculture Labour Initiative (WALI), works with employers, governments, and stakeholders to meet the growing challenge of finding farm workers and to improve working conditions.
The Temporary Foreign Worker Program assists Canadian employers in filling labour requirements when qualified Canadians and permanent residents are not available. The program ensures that Canadians have the first opportunity for jobs and that temporary foreign workers (TFWs) are protected while in Canada. Under the two most common programs used by farmers (SAWP and AgStream), employers must provide housing for workers).
WALI represents employer interests at the bi-national contract negotiations and assists employers in bringing temporary foreign workers to Canada. WALI also works with foreign governments to share information with Canadian authorities to advance the interests of employers and workers.
Please note that WALI is not staffed nor licensed to assist individual employers with LMIA applications.
WALI BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The BC Agriculture Council's Board of Directors serve as the WALI Board of Directors.
WALI EMPLOYER FEES
Updated 2023
Fees are collected directly through the WALI employer portal. WALI fees include the following:
Annual Employer Fee This fee is $200 per employer who employs temporary foreign workers (TFWs). The fee is charged at the time the first LMIA for the program year is processed (e.g. for workers arriving in January).
SAWP Worker Processing Fee The worker processing fee is $2 per worker from Mexico and $10 per worker from the Caribbean approved on the LMIA. This reflects the administrative processing time to process each application regardless of if the worker arrives or not. This fee must be paid once the employer confirms the names and number of workers requested and before the request is sent to the partner country.
Change Processing Fee The change process fee is $5 per worker per change request. This is only for SAWP Mexico workers. Payment is due once the change request is validated by WALI and before it is sent to the partner country (Mexico). WALI cannot guarantee the request will be approved by Mexico.
Mi Tierra Holiday Travel Fees With ongoing changes to travel restrictions, Mi Tierra continues working with airlines to negotiate pricing. Ticket prices are subject to change at any time and are posted on the employer portal. Prices will be confirmed when tickets are booked. See this WALI Update for further information.
For more information about WALI click here. For more information on fees charged, including Farmer ID Card discounts, click here.