--- title: Have You Heard of SOPA? Access New Talent Quickly and Easily description: SOPA provides eastern Ontario employers with a paperwork-FREE way to hire overseas talent when they don’t have Canadian talent to fill urgent positions. image: https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hubfs/image1-1.jpg --- [Skip to main content](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/have-you-heard-of-sopa-access-new-talent-quickly-and-easily#main) - FAQs - [News](https://ontarioeast.ca/news) - [Events](https://ontarioeast.ca/events) - [Ontario East Municipal Conference](https://ontarioeast.ca/happenings/our-team-partners) - [About Us](https://ontarioeast.ca/about-us/) - Search [![site_main_logo](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hubfs/site_main_logo.svg) ![site_main_logo_scrolled](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hubfs/site_main_logo_scrolled.svg) ![Ontario East Economic Development logo](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/logo.png?width=245&height=150&name=logo.png) ![Ontario East Economic Development logo](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/logo.png?width=245&height=150&name=logo.png)](https://ontarioeast.ca/) - [Show submenu for Regional Profile Regional Profile](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/) - [Our Communities](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/our-communities/) - [Advantages](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/advantages/) - [Workforce](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/workforce/) - [Incentives and Funding](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/incentives-and-funding/) - [Success Stories](https://ontarioeast.ca/success-stories/) - [Available Properties](https://ontarioeast.ca/available-properties/) - [Show submenu for Key Employment Sectors Key Employment Sectors](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/) - [Advanced Manufacturing](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/advanced-manufacturing/) - [Food and Beverage](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/food-and-beverage/) - [Logistics and Transportation](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/logistics-and-transportation/) - [Other](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/other/) - [Show submenu for Members Members](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/) - [Member Directory](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/) - [Become a Member](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/become-a-member/) - [Membership Application Form](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/membership-application-form/) - [Regional Marketing Committee](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/regional-marketing-committee/) - [Jobs & RFPs](https://ontarioeast.ca/jobs-rfps/) Open main navigation Menu Close main navigation Menu - Search - Show submenu for Regional Profile Regional Profile - Regional Profile - [Regional Profile](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/) - [Our Communities](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/our-communities/) - [Advantages](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/advantages/) - [Workforce](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/workforce/) - [Incentives and Funding](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/incentives-and-funding/) - [Success Stories](https://ontarioeast.ca/success-stories/) - [Available Properties](https://ontarioeast.ca/available-properties/) - Show submenu for Key Employment Sectors Key Employment Sectors - Key Employment Sectors - [Key Employment Sectors](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/) - [Advanced Manufacturing](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/advanced-manufacturing/) - [Food and Beverage](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/food-and-beverage/) - [Logistics and Transportation](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/logistics-and-transportation/) - [Other](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/other/) - [FAQs](https://ontarioeast.ca/faqs/) - [News](https://ontarioeast.ca/news/) - [Events](https://ontarioeast.ca/events/) - Show submenu for Members Members - Members - [Members](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/) - [Member Directory](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/) - [Become a Member](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/become-a-member/) - [Membership Application Form](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/membership-application-form/) - [Regional Marketing Committee](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/regional-marketing-committee/) - [Jobs & RFPs](https://ontarioeast.ca/jobs-rfps/) - [Ontario East Municipal Conference](https://oemc.ca/) - [Contact Us](https://ontarioeast.ca/contact-us/) - [Contact Us](https://ontarioeast.ca/contact-us/) [Contact Us](https://ontarioeast.ca/contact-us/) Search ![Canada, Employment Ontario, Government of Ontario logos](https://ontarioeast.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/ontario-employment-logos.svg) This Employment Ontario project is funded in part by the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario. # Have You Heard of SOPA? Access New Talent Quickly and Easily For Ontario East November 23, 2020 ![](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/image1-1.jpg?width=565&name=image1-1.jpg) Eastern Ontario employers, get ready to hire new international talent without doing any paperwork. If you’ve had trouble finding Canadian workers for a specific skill set or you want to hire someone international long term, you can connect with [Settlement Online Pre-Arrival (SOPA)](https://ottawa-worldskills.org/employers/) to access a database of job seekers who have been pre-approved for permanent residency, but are scared to come to Canada without having secured employment. Delivering no-cost pre-arrival services for job readiness and retention, this program is funded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. The goal of SOPA is to enhance the ability of pre-arrival immigrants to integrate into the Ontario labour market. **Free pre-arrival services for job seeker readiness, success, and retention include:** - One-on-one orientation - Job search support - Employment counselling - Workplace culture training - Referrals to post-arrival services ## Eastern Ontario Employers Get the Talent You Need You may be worried that you don’t have time for all the paperwork involved with hiring overseas talent. And your staff are already slammed with other tasks as well. But don’t worry!  > There is no immigration paperwork for you. Just get the talent you need. SOPA is federally funded and the Ontario office is located in Ottawa. There is a SOPA office in every province to help you with [recruitment and retention strategies](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/5-recruitment-and-retention-strategies-you-need-to-know). ### 10 SOPA Benefits for Eastern Ontario Employers: 1. Relax with no paperwork required 2. Access a Database of people ready to move to Canada (permanent residency granted) 3. ![10 SOPA Benefits for Eastern Ontario Employers:](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/L-X5OOA6XCMNlWlzyWthvt-CaWKJtRdzxejNR27Cr2vrUwq99bvfjFkWRWqUHpY6HljrqVM_icYLMuUj-a3bwKeCy07-E4BbzuoerTse4CDLuwYKG6E41Ut8DUORSFdDn_3AqyD8)Choose from a pool of skilled, highly educated and talented candidates to fill workforce needs 4. Hire candidates that bring international experience, intelligence, connections and global perspectives 5. Receive cross-cultural training for you and your team 6. Reduce recruitment, retention and training costs 7. Effectively recruit, onboard, manage, and retain a diverse workforce 8. Develop a workforce with the skills, knowledge, and abilities to take your company into the future 9. Let SOPA manage the entire language training process 10. Ensure employees meet your specific business requirements ## No Immigration Paperwork With International Talent Through SOPA The SOPA program is designed to make hiring overseas talent stress-free and seamless for eastern Ontario employers and employers across Canada. Just one of the many ways the [region benefits from an Ontario immigration strategy](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/could-the-region-benefit-from-an-ontario-immigration-strategy). It is an efficient and effective way to hire international workers when you don’t have Canadian talent to fill those positions. Get the infographic to find out more about upskilling and reskilling for Canadian and international talent to improve your workforce capability and productivity. [![Job Seeker SAO List image](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/4499088/12e01039-a864-4fbe-9b1a-ed975d865333.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/4499088/12e01039-a864-4fbe-9b1a-ed975d865333) *External links are provided as informational resources only and are not necessarily endorsed by Ontario East.*   ![Ontario East](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hubfs/Ontario%20Website%202021/Mask%20Group%20(11).png) ## Ontario East [For employers](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/tag/for-employers) - [![linkedin-1](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hubfs/linkedin-1.svg) Post](https://www.linkedin.com/company/ontarioeast/) - [![square-x-twitter](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hubfs/square-x-twitter.svg) Post](https://x.com/OntarioEast) - [![facebook](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hubfs/facebook.svg) Share](https://www.facebook.com/Ontario.East/) - [![envelope-solid](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hubfs/envelope-solid.svg) Email](mailto:info@ontarioeast.ca) ## You Might Also Be Interested In ### [![](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported%20sitepage%20images/Y8oID8-swiz-CP9LCAZ-XGvmkKsfAqBFJNd6CCB-eUrDlLHW-R3x5JcP5vf7M5fh15GGgQt3oDS1i5OpLPPD7IUbSLmnJswCAFleTLnW_SedZD3Vxe6ve4kRMCl4yBFRHXLw9Aet-1.jpg?height=485&name=Y8oID8-swiz-CP9LCAZ-XGvmkKsfAqBFJNd6CCB-eUrDlLHW-R3x5JcP5vf7M5fh15GGgQt3oDS1i5OpLPPD7IUbSLmnJswCAFleTLnW_SedZD3Vxe6ve4kRMCl4yBFRHXLw9Aet-1.jpg) July 05, 2021 Hiring Tools to Support Talent Retention: Discover LMI Help Desk Read Now For employers](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hiring-tools-to-support-talent-retention) ### [![](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/fair-288604_1920-3.jpg?height=485&name=fair-288604_1920-3.jpg) June 03, 2019 How to Prepare for Job Fairs in Ontario Manufacturing Read Now For employers](https://blog.ontarioeast.ca/how-to-prepare-for-job-fairs-in-ontario-manufacturing) ![](https://ontarioeast.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Mask-Group-4.svg) ## Subscribe to our eNewsletter ###### CONTACT US (613) 634-8569 623 Fortune Crescent, Suite 100 Kingston, ON K7P 0L5 [Email Us](mailto:info@ontarioeast.ca) ###### LINKS [Regional Profile](https://ontarioeast.ca/regional-profile/) [Available Properties](https://ontarioeast.ca/available-properties/) [Key Employment Sectors](https://ontarioeast.ca/key-employment-sectors/) [FAQs](https://ontarioeast.ca/faqs/) [News](https://ontarioeast.ca/news/) [Jobs & RFPs](https://ontarioeast.ca/jobs-rfps/) [Members](https://ontarioeast.ca/members/) [About Us](https://ontarioeast.ca/about-us/) [Events](https://ontarioeast.ca/events/) [Ontario East Municipal Conference](https://ontarioeast.ca/ontario-east-municipal-conference/) [Contact Us](https://ontarioeast.ca/contact-us/) ###### ZoomProspector [Admin Access Login](https://auth.zoomprospector.com/Account/Login?returnUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fadmin.zoomprospector.com%2FAccount%2FLoginCallback%3FreturnUrl%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fadmin.zoomprospector.com%252F) © Ontario East Economic Development, 2026 Acme Co, Inc. All Rights Reserved. [Terms and Privacy Policy](https://ontarioeast.ca/terms-and-privacy-policy/) ![Canada, Employment Ontario, Government of Ontario logos](https://ontarioeast.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/ontario-employment-logos.svg)