September 15, 2026: Invest Brampton Off ESDC’s Global Talent Stream Category A List

Employment and Social Development Canada republished the designated referral-partner list for Category A of the Global Talent Stream. On its program requirements page, the heading reads Updated: September 15, 2026. The live list no longer names Invest Brampton.

That change is for Category A only. Category A is the path for an innovative firm that needs unique and specialized talent and must be referred by a partner ESDC still lists. Category B, which uses the global talent occupations list, does not need that referral.

ESDC’s own rule is blunt. A Category A application must include a referral form completed by a designated partner that vouches for the employer. A file without that form is incomplete and will not be processed.

What Category A still requires

You may use Category A if a listed partner has referred you and you are hiring a person with unique and specialized talent to help the firm scale. The partner’s job is to vouch for legitimacy and eligibility.

The form is not optional paperwork. ESDC states that applications submitted to Category A without a referral form will be considered incomplete and will not be processed. Each temporary foreign worker requested under Category A needs a separate completed referral form.

Ontario names still on the September 15 list

These are the Ontario organizations on the live ESDC list as of the September 15 update. Confirm the page before you rely on any name.

The same September 15 list also does not name the Town of Oakville, the Regional Municipality of Niagara, Communitech Corporation, or the Ontario Investment Office. If your old contact sat at one of those desks, that contact is no longer a Category A referral partner on the official page.

National partners remain available, including Invest in Canada, the Business Development Bank of Canada, the Council of Canadian Innovators, Global Affairs Canada’s Trade Commissioner Service, ISED’s Accelerated Growth Service, and NRC-IRAP. Use a name that is actually on the current page.

What this means if you planned a Brampton Category A hire

Invest Brampton is not on the September 15 list. A Brampton employer that expected a local referral must now obtain the form from another listed organization that will actually vouch for the firm. A stale letter on old letterhead does not replace a current designated partner.

If you already have a completed form from a partner that is still listed, keep that form with the LMIA. If the partner was dropped, get a new form before you upload. ESDC also requires a new completed form when Category A positions change and new workers are identified. Name-change requests for Category A positions will not be processed without a new referral.

Category B is unchanged by this list. If the job is on the global talent occupations list, you do not use the partner table at all. Do not force a Category A file because someone used that stream last year.

This list update does not change ESDC’s September 10 processing-time table, where the Global Talent Stream still shows an average of 10 business days for complete files. An incomplete Category A upload never starts that clock. Our September 10 LMIA times post covers the averages. Use this post for the partner names.

What to do this week

1. Open the live ESDC requirements page and search the partner list for the organization you planned to use.
2. If that name is gone, stop the Category A file until a still-listed partner will complete a current referral form.
3. If the job matches Category B, file under Category B instead of hunting a referral you do not need.
4. Attach one referral form per Category A worker. Do not reuse one form across several positions.
5. Recheck the list on the day you upload. ESDC dated this version September 15, 2026. It can move again.

If you are an employer planning a Global Talent Stream hire in the GTA, or a worker whose permit depends on a Category A LMIA, contact JSR Immigration & Legals through our consultation page or the work permit service page.

This article is general information current to September 21, 2026, and is not legal or immigration advice. Confirm the live designated-partner list on Canada.ca before you file.