Which jobs make your spouse eligible for an open work permit?

Two things decide it, and they are separate. What your partner does for a living, and how long is left on their permit. Failing either one refuses the application, and failing the first is not something better documents can fix.
The occupation
If your partner's occupation sits in TEER 0 or TEER 1, any occupation qualifies.
If it sits in TEER 2 or TEER 3, only selected occupations qualify. Those lists are published, which is the part most people do not realise. TEER 2 includes codes such as 22100 chemical technologists and technicians, 32101 licensed practical nurses, and 72200 electricians. TEER 3 includes 33100 dental assistants, 53201 coaches, and 73300 transport truck drivers. The full lists are on IRCC's own eligibility page, and that is the only version to trust. Lists circulating in groups are reproductions, and they go stale.
The time left
Your partner's permit "must be valid for at least 16 months" after IRCC receives your application. Counted forward from the day they receive it, not from today and not from the day it is approved.
The different route nobody mentions
If your partner is in a low-skilled occupation, TEER 4 or 5, and is on a provincial or federal pathway toward permanent residence, the rules change. There, the permit only needs to be valid for 6 months after your application is received.
So a refusal under one of these routes tells you nothing about the other.
Three situations with their own rules
If your partner has applied for a post-graduation work permit and has not received a positive decision yet, you are not eligible while that is outstanding.
Spouses of foreign-trained health professionals recruited by Quebec, under codes 31301, 32103 and 32120, do not have to meet the 16-month requirement. That applies from 25 May 2026.
Workers on British Columbia significant investment projects, from 23 March 2026, can be at any TEER level, and the 16-month requirement does not apply either.
All of the above is about a partner who is working. If your partner is studying rather than working, a different set of rules applies.
Source
Work permit for spouses and dependent children: who can apply, IRCC, modified 12 June 2026.
If you are not sure which TEER your partner's job sits in, the code on their work permit or their job offer letter is what settles it. Post that and the start date on their permit, and we will work it through.