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Immigration Compliance for HR Professionals: Risk Management, Audits & Internal Controls 2026

An in-depth overview of employer immigration compliance for HR professionals, with practical strategies for managing audits, risks, and internal controls.

  • Instructor

Cristina Rogov

  • Date

  • Price

$150

  • Duration

3 hours

  • Format

Attend Live Online and On-Demand Recording

Summary

Employer immigration compliance has become one of the highest-risk areas for HR teams, compliance managers, and organizations that hire foreign workers. Between IRPA/IRPR obligations, TFWP and IMP requirements, Employer Portal submissions, LMIA conditions, Quebec-specific rules, and evolving audit practices, employers face significant legal, financial, operational, and reputational exposure if systems are not aligned with immigration law. Immigration Compliance for HR Professionals: Risk Management, Audits & Internal Controls provides HR leaders, immigration practitioners, and compliance teams with a practical, step-by-step framework for meeting employer obligations, conducting internal compliance reviews, preparing for government audits, and building strong internal controls that prevent violations. Through real case studies and actionable tools, participants will learn how to identify risk indicators, correct compliance gaps, respond strategically to inspections, and design sustainable systems that protect talent pipelines and corporate reputation. This advanced training is ideal for organizations that rely on foreign workers, HR teams responsible for hiring and onboarding, and professionals who must ensure alignment between immigration law, employment practices, and operational realities.

What you'll learn

  • Understand core employer obligations under IRPA/IRPR, TFWP, IMP, and Quebec rules—and how they impact HR practices.
  • Conduct internal immigration compliance reviews to identify gaps in wages, duties, locations, TEER codes, recruitment, documentation, and expiry tracking.
  • Prepare for IRCC/ESDC audits by knowing audit triggers, required documentation, timelines, interviews, and potential penalties.
  • Recognize major organizational risks including payroll inconsistencies, remote-work complications, restructuring, and weak internal communication systems.
  • Design strong internal controls and workflows for prevention, monitoring, escalation, document retention, and compliance communication across HR, legal, payroll, and operations.

Course outline

  • Foundations of Employer Immigration Compliance
    • Overview of employer responsibilities under IRPA/IRPR, TFWP, IMP, and Quebec requirements
    • Key HR concepts: employer-specific permit conditions, wage/benefit/occupation/location compliance, “substantially the same” conditions, good faith recruitment, 6-year record-keeping
    • Understanding employer portal submissions and LMIA compliance obligations
  • Internal Immigration Compliance Reviews
    • Purpose of audits: proactive vs. reactive; aligning compliance with workforce planning
    • What to review: provincial recruitment obligations, low-wage TFW requirements, offer letters/contracts, job descriptions, NOC/TEER accuracy, payroll vs. prevailing wage, work location and remote work policies, document retention, expiry tracking, internal restructuring
    • Building a compliance file: required evidence, correspondence, procedural fairness considerations, version control
    • HR audit checklist (tool provided)
  • Government Audits & Inspections
    • Types of reviews: ESDC inspections, IRCC compliance reviews, Quebec-specific processes
    • Audit triggers: random selection, media presence, employee/union complaints, employer portal discrepancies, hotline reports, high recruitment volumes, salary changes, restructuring or layoffs
    • What happens during an audit: notices, timelines, documentation requests, interviews, corrective action vs. enforcement, decisions and penalties
    • Penalties: administrative monetary penalties, LMIA/compliance revocation, program bans, public posting, loss of ability to hire foreign workers
    • Crisis management: responding to investigation notices, communication strategy, media preparation, stakeholder/investor relations, demonstrating good-faith compliance
  • Reputational, Legal, Financial & Operational Risk
    • Corporate risks: workforce continuity impacts, contractual liability, investor due diligence, talent attraction
    • HR-specific exposure: TEER coding errors, inconsistent wages, work location changes, duties vs. permit conditions
    • Organizational red flags: decentralized HR, weak onboarding, lack of escalation systems, overreliance on external counsel
    • Recruiter and third-party risk: oversight responsibilities, auditing external counsel, risks of employee-led applications
    • Remote/hybrid work: work location requirements, employees working in other provinces, internal approval workflows, effects on work authorization
  • Strategic Risk Mitigation & Internal System Design
    • Governance: ownership of compliance, shared accountability across HR/legal/payroll/operations, internal reporting mechanisms
    • Prevention strategies: pre-hire eligibility assessments, aligning immigration timelines with business needs, change-management protocols, document retention policies, standardized templates, internal compliance playbook
    • Tools and systems: permit expiry tracking, compliance dashboards, communication triggers for HR, immigration sign-off processes
    • Employee communication: orientation, renewal timelines, exit processes
    • When to involve legal counsel
  • Case Studies, Scenarios & Group Exercises
    • Examples: promotion without IRCC notification, inter-provincial remote work, corporate acquisition with foreign workers, anonymous complaint → inspection
    • Participant analysis: what went wrong, applicable obligations, corrective actions, prevention strategies

CPD credits for HR professionals

CPHR British Columbia & Yukon

  • Approved for 3 hours

CPHR Alberta

  • Approved for 3 hours

CPHR Saskatchewan

  • Approved for 3 hours

CPHR New-Brunswick

  • Approved for 3 hours

CPHR Nova Scotia

  • Approved for 3 hours

Your Instructors

Cristina Rogov

Immigration Lawyer

Cristina Rogov is a Canadian immigration lawyer licensed in both Ontario and Quebec who specializes in employer compliance, international mobility, and strategic workforce planning. She advises businesses, HR teams, and multinational organizations on IRPA/IRPR obligations, TFWP and IMP requirements, corporate restructurings, talent transfers, and government inspections across Canada.

Cristina regularly guides employers through compliance reviews, ESDC/IRCC audits, and risk assessments, helping organizations correct gaps before they escalate into penalties, reputational damage, or operational disruption. Her expertise lies in bridging business objectives with regulatory requirements—ensuring employers remain compliant while supporting growth, recruitment, and talent retention.

Known for her responsiveness, clarity, and practical problem-solving skills, Cristina brings a human-centered, solutions-driven approach to complex compliance challenges, making her an ideal instructor for HR professionals responsible for managing immigration risk.

Frequently asked questions

Have questions? We’re here to help. Check out our FAQs to learn more about this Course.

Absolutely. Every LPEN course is recorded, and the recording is added to your account within a few business days. You can log in anytime to watch it on demand and still receive your digital certificate of completion.

LPEN seeks accreditation for each course from the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC) and the Law Society of Ontario (LSO),the Law Society of BC (LSBC) when applicable. Accreditation details and approved CPD hours are listed in the CPD Credits section on each course page, so you can easily confirm how the course qualifies toward your professional development requirements.

A digital certificate of completion will be available once the course recording has been uploaded. After that, you can follow the steps at the top of your My Courses page—where you’ll also find a short video explaining how to download your certificate. Be sure to save it as part of your documentation for your CPD hours.

This course may be included in one or several LPEN Passes. Passes offer discounted rates and access to multiple courses, making CPD compliance simpler. Check out our Passes page to see where it is included.

You don’t need to create an account separately. When you register for a course or pass, an account is automatically created during checkout. You’ll be asked to enter your email address and set a password—these will be your login details for future access.

Single course
$150

What is included

  • Attendance at the live webinar
  • Access to recorded webinar until December 31, 2027
  • Eligible for CPD Credits / Hours (listed under CPD Credits)
  • Certificate of Completion
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