Incoming Mitacs Globalink Research Interns

• The Government of Canada refers to ‘visas’ and ‘entry permits’ (study permit, work permit or temporary resident visa).
• Your hosting department at Guelph will register you as a Nil-Salaried Intern (possible work permit required), then it is your responsibility to check the Immigration Canada website to see what type of entry permit you need. In your acceptance letter from Mitacs, it states that GRIs are coming through the 120-day work permit exemption stream.  However, it is a good idea to check whether you need a Work Permit by completing a short quiz here.
• You will find a link to the Immigration Guidebook for GRIs on the Mitacs website. This document describes what you should consider and what you need to know when applying for an entry permit.
• Some information and useful links are also provided on our Immigration Information page
• If you have questions about the entry permit process, the International Student Advisors at the University of Guelph are qualified to answer questions you may have. Find more information about the International Student Advisors here.

On-Campus Options:

• Summer Hostel offers options in the East Village over the summer months. If you are looking to make reservations before the booking opens for the summer, please email hostel@uoguelph.ca and make sure to tell them you are a Mitacs student.
  • Please note, that normally the Summer Hostel doesn't open until the third week in May. If you plan to stay in the Summer Hostel and arrive before it opens, you will be required to arrange your own short-term accommodation until it opens.

• Due to the short duration of your stay, you may find it difficult to find accommodation for the duration of your stay as most landlords require longer-term leases.
• Places4students.com is a site where you can view listings in Guelph
• You may be able to find U of G students who are subletting their room on sites like The Cannon or Facebook Marketplace
• You may wish to explore short-term rental options, such as AirBnb or Vrbo for long-term rentals without a lease.
• Other tips and information can be found at Off-Campus Living resources.

Your department will register you as a NIL salaried employee and you will have to purchase University Health Inurance Plan (UHIP) through Human Resources at the University of Guelph. Because Guelph requires you to purchase health insurance through the University, you may want to opt out of the insurance provided by Mitacs.

As a Nil-Salaried Intern, you will not have access to the walk-in health services on campus and will be required to use the local clinics/services or go to the emergency room at Guelph General Hospital. Use the Ontario Government Health811 to find a local health service. Enter the keyword 'walk in clinic' and location 'Guelph' if you are need to find a medical clinic that is open.  

There are many options to consider when looking to get from the airport to the U of G campus. Check out our page on getting to Guelph for new international students.

Your Guelph Department is the academic unit at the University of Guelph that is hosting you. It's the academic department where your supervising professor works. Your supervisors/department will do the following things for you:

• Provide a Letter of Invitation
• Set up a U of G email account
• Ensure you are registered for the appropriate health insurance
• Request an ID card, e-access, and library access

If you need assistance when you arrive contact your supervisor (identified on your Letter of Invitation), and your supervisor or the departmental administrator should be able to assist you. 

The University of Guelph has prepared a list of resources for students who are new to Canada. Please check out the LIvining in Canada resources here. 

Additionally, you should be assigned a Mitacs Mentor in Guelph whom you can meet with and ask questions. Mitcas Mentors are usually University of Guelph students who are familiar with campus and the city.

Student receives their acceptance letter from Mitacs, which states that these interns are coming through the 120-day work permit exemption stream

1. Determine what kind of permit or entry document is required using this tool from Immigration Canada: Do You Need a Work Permit to Work in Canada?
   1. Most GRI's will fit under the Short-term (120-day) work permit exemption for researchers category. If this is a fit, the process outlined in Step 3 is not applicable and you may skip to Step 4
   2. If an LMIA-exempt work permit is required, proceed to Step 3

1. If an LMIA-exempt work-permit is required, the hosting professor/department must:
   1. Submit an offer of employment to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) noting that employers are required to pay a $230 compliance fee when submitting this
      • If there is no department administrator with registered access to the IRCC Employer Portal for the University, departments may contact Human Resources (hrhiring@uoguelph.ca) to request a LMIA-exempt visitor information form
      • Hosting Professors are required to complete the form with all of the required details including internal coding required for the $230 employer compliance fee, and send it back to HRhiring@uoguelph.ca
      • Human resources will use the information from this form to submit the ‘offer of employment’ to the IRCC Employer portal which generates an offer of employment number. HR will send an email confirmation with this number to the host department contact.
      • The hosting department contact or professor must then provide the visiting intern with a copy of the offer of employment number provided by HR which is required for the work permit application.
   2. Once provided the offer of employment number, student interns must commence the work permit application process which is outlined here: Government of Canada - Work Permit: How to Apply 

1. The department (usually the admin person) will need to:
   1. Provide Interns with a letter of invitation, which they may be required to provide upon entry to Canada and/or as part of their LMIA-exempt work permit application. Departments are advised to use the nil-salaried template attached below (noting a draft copy may be required by HR to explore the LMIA-exempt option)
      Upon arrival to Canada, departments may set the intern up with a Nil-Salaried Intern appointment in HRER, which will generate a U of G email account for the student.
   2. Request that the intern is registered for the University Health Insurance Plan (UHIP) through Human Resources.
   3. Request an ID card, more information can be found here.
   4. E-access can be set up here.
   5. Set up Library access by sending the intern's full name, their U of G email address, a physical address/phone number, and a picture of the ID card (so the library can attach the barcode to the library account) to library@uoguelph.ca. 

As MITACS states that GRI's interns are coming through the 120-day work permit exemption stream, they should be processed as Nil-Salaried Interns. The Visiting International Research Student (VIRS) process, which produces an acceptance letter confirming the incumbent will be registered as a student, is therefore not an appropriate process. 

Make sure you are aware of the process for requesting space from your department and have a plan as to where the student will be able to work while on the U of G campus.

If coming through an Nil-Salaried Intern process, the hosting department will set the intern up as Nil-Salaried in the HRER, which will generate a U of G email account for the student.
If coming through the VIRS process, OpenEd will set the student up with an email account.

Set up Library access by sending the intern's full name, their U of G email address, a physical address/phone number, and a picture of the ID card (so the library can attach the barcode to the library account) to library@uoguelph.ca. 

E-access to specific buildings/labs/after hours, should be arranged through the administrative secretary in your department to set up the corresponding permissions.

On-Campus Options:

• Family Housing offers a month-to-month lease
• Summer Hostel offers options in the East Village over the summer months. If students are looking to make reservations before the booking opens for the summer, please email hostel@uoguelph.ca and specify that they are a Mitacs student.
  • Please note, that normally the Summer Hostel doesn't open until the third week in May. If they plan to stay in the Summer Hostel and arrive before it opens, they will be required to arrange their own short-term accommodation until it opens.

Off-Campus Options:

• Due to the short duration of their stay, students may find it difficult to find accommodation for the duration of their stay as most landlords require longer-term leases.
• Places4students.com is a site where students can view listings in Guelph
• Incoming interns may be able to find U of G students who are subletting their room on sites like The Cannon or Facebook Marketplace
• They may wish to explore short-term rental options, such as AirBnb or Vrbo for long-term rentals without a lease.
• Other tips and information can be found on at Off-Campus Living.

As Nil-Salaried Interns, the GRIs will not have access to the walk-in health services on campus and will be required to use the local clinics/services or go to the emergency room at Guelph General Hospital. Use the Ontario Government Health811 to find a local health service.

Ensure you have the time to support the incoming GRI. They are new to Canada and will need support and advice throughout their stay. Know who in your department will be able to provide them the support they need.