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Truck Driver Jobs in Canada with LMIA — Licence, Provinces, Employers

Transport truck drivers (NOC 73300) are a fixture of the LMIA register: 912 approvals covering 3,256 positions for 805 distinct employers in the current window (decisions through June 2026). It is also the occupation surrounded by the most misleading advertising, so this guide separates the rules from the myths.

The licence comes first — there is no way around it

You cannot drive a commercial truck in Canada on a foreign car's licence, and an employer cannot put you behind the wheel while you "learn on the job" in the way farm labour allows. Commercial trucking is licensed provincially: you need the province's Class 1 (or equivalent) licence for tractor-trailers, which means passing the knowledge and road tests and, in the largest provinces, completing Mandatory Entry-Level Training (MELT) at an approved school. Employers hiring through LMIA are hiring drivers who are licensed or immediately licensable — read any "truck driver jobs in Canada without experience, no licence needed" advert as a warning sign, not an opportunity.

Experience matters in this occupation for a second reason: misclassification and driver-incorporation schemes are an enforcement focus in Canadian trucking, and ESDC's own program material warns employers about misclassifying drivers as independent contractors. A legitimate LMIA trucking job is an employee job, with payroll deductions, set working conditions and an employment agreement.

Where the approvals are

<div style="overflow-x:auto"><table><tr><th>Province / Territory</th><th>Approvals</th><th>Approved positions</th><th>Employers</th></tr><tr><td>Ontario</td><td>282</td><td>953</td><td>236</td></tr><tr><td>Quebec</td><td>178</td><td>336</td><td>144</td></tr><tr><td>Alberta</td><td>167</td><td>538</td><td>157</td></tr><tr><td>British Columbia</td><td>144</td><td>739</td><td>138</td></tr><tr><td>Manitoba</td><td>57</td><td>271</td><td>55</td></tr><tr><td>Saskatchewan</td><td>39</td><td>255</td><td>38</td></tr><tr><td>Nova Scotia</td><td>25</td><td>95</td><td>19</td></tr><tr><td>New Brunswick</td><td>14</td><td>61</td><td>12</td></tr><tr><td>Prince Edward Island</td><td>3</td><td>5</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>Newfoundland and Labrador</td><td>2</td><td>2</td><td>2</td></tr><tr><td>Northwest Territories</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>1</td></tr></table></div>

Long-haul corridors drive the pattern: the Prairie provinces and Ontario hold large shares, and Atlantic Canada approves steadily for regional carriers. The full employer list is in the truck drivers directory, and the truck driver facet pairs it with the application route.

Wages and the stream question

Whether a driving job runs high-wage or low-wage depends on the offered wage against the provincial threshold — in several provinces experienced long-haul pay clears the threshold, in others it does not, and the low-wage cap then applies to the carrier's location (trucking is not one of the 20%-cap sectors). Run any specific offer through the Wage Threshold Checker before judging it, and remember the wage must also match the prevailing wage for the occupation in that region, which Job Bank publishes.

Frequently asked questions