TFWP low-wage cap: how the calculation works at work locations with fewer than 10 employees

The direct answer

For a work location with fewer than 10 employees, the variation described by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) uses a workforce size of 10 to calculate the cap on temporary foreign workers in low-wage positions. Using that base, the maximum is one worker when the 10% cap applies or two workers when the 20% cap applies.Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗

There is an important limit to this explanation. It does not determine which cap applies to a particular LMIA. Its safe scope is an LMIA that is already subject to the applicable cap.Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗

What counts toward the workforce size

The calculation includes more than the people physically working full-time on the day it is made. According to ESDC, the workforce count includes:Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗

A part-time employee working fewer than 30 hours per week counts as 0.5 of an employee. The correct count may therefore differ from the number of names on a current payroll: requested positions and approved workers who have not started also form part of the calculation.Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗

What changes for a work location with fewer than 10 employees

For this specific calculation, ESDC uses a workforce size of 10 even when the location has fewer employees. Applying 10% to that base results in a maximum of one low-wage position; applying 20% results in a maximum of two.Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗

Those results do not mean every employer may choose between one or two workers. The outcome depends on the cap that applies to the case. This article does not determine how an individual business, position or LMIA should be classified.

The update date is not an effective date

ESDC marks the variation as updated on August 18, 2026. The page does not provide a separate effective date for it. August 18 should therefore not be described as the date the variation took effect. The cited pages also do not support a claim that the change applies retroactively.Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗

The distinction matters. An update date tells readers when web content was revised; an effective date tells them when a rule begins to apply. Without a stated effective date for this variation, the article must preserve that uncertainty.

The same calculation appears in two official contexts

ESDC presents the variation in both its general requirements for low-wage positions and its requirements for positions supporting permanent residence with dual intent.Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗Requirements for positions supporting permanent residence ↗

Its appearance in both documents does not automatically extend the calculation to every LMIA. The safe description remains: the calculation applies when the LMIA in question is subject to the applicable cap.Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗Requirements for positions supporting permanent residence ↗

Safe next steps for employers

Unknowns, limits and next review

The page does not state a separate effective date. This article also does not assess the caps, exemptions or circumstances of an individual LMIA.Program requirements for low-wage positions ↗

The content should be reviewed if ESDC publishes an effective date or changes the formula, LMIA form, caps or exemptions. The next editorial review is proposed for August 28, 2026.