Provincial Nominee Programs | July Month’s Overview

Over 6,000 Invitation to Apply (ITA) were issued under Canada’s Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) in the month of July, 2021. Each Canadian province and territory own and operate their own Express Entry aligned provincial immigration programs, except Quebec and Nunavut.

Each Canadian province and territory operate its own immigration program(s) designed to meet its specific economic and demographic needs. This allows provinces to select applicants as per labor market needs and occupations in-demand. Through Provincial Nominee Programs alone, Canada is expecting to accommodate 80,000 new immigrants per year, between 20201-2023. For all participating provinces, at least one of their immigration programs is aligned to Federal Express Entry, which in fact is the principal source of economic migrants for Canada.

Highlights of Express Entry aligned Provincial Nominee Program Draws conducted in July 2021

Two major Express Entry draws were held by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) under Provincial Nominee Programs category in the month of July. On July 7, a total of 627 invitations were issued and on July 21, a total of 462 invitations were issued to eligible candidates.

The size of the draws has increased over months and cut-offs have been low. So far, a total of 100,000 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) have been issued in 2021 under Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) immigration streams.

Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program

Ontario has held a total of six draws through Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) in the month of July. In the first draw held on July 7 under the Entrepreneur stream, a total of 21 invitations were issued by the province. In a major draw that was held on July 13 for Skilled migration, a total of 1,685 ITAs were issued under the Employer Job Offer: foreign worker and Employer Job Offer: international student streams. On July 15, the province held its first in-demand skills stream draw under which 55 eligible candidates received an invitation.

On July 21, 115 bilingual Express Entry candidates received invitations from Ontario. This draw was held on July 27 wherein a total of 1,031 candidates were invited from 18 different occupations under Ontario Express Entry Human Capital Priorities stream.

Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program

The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) held only one draw in the month of July under the Express Entry stream. A total of 181 candidates were issued ITAs in the draw held on July 14 with Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score cut-off of 301.

Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program

Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP) held a total of 4 rounds of invitations under the international skilled worker sub-categories- Express Entry and occupations in-demand. A total of 570 invitations were issued, that is 225 more invitations issued than in the month of June by the province.

Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program

Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) held two draws through skilled workers in Manitoba, international education, and skilled workers overseas streams. The province issued a total of 1,417 invitations. The major draw was held on July 27 in which 1,140 Express Entry candidates were invited to apply for a provincial nomination. This brought the total number of candidates invited through Express Entry to 1,188.

British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program

British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) invited a total of 885 candidates for provincial nomination under Express Entry BC and skills immigration streams. The province announced the temporary pausing of Entrepreneur immigration stream.

Prince Edward Island Provincial Nominee Program (PEI PNP)

The province held its pre-scheduled draw on July 15, issuing a total of 127 invitations to candidates. Most of the invitations were issued to candidates under Express Entry and labor impact streams. The remaining were issued to business impact candidates with a cut-off of 60.

Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs):

Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) are fast-track Canadian immigration programs and provide a unique pathway to immigrate to Canada. There are two types of provincial nomination programs:

1. Base nominations: these streams work outside of the Express Entry system and are managed by the provinces themselves. Base nominations are subject to streams and processing standards. The candidates opting for base nomination should meet the criteria for a PNP pathway, then apply and if successful receive a nomination certificate. Once the nomination certificate is received the candidate can apply for permanent residence status with the IRCC.
2. Enhanced nominations: these streams are linked with the Express Entry system suitable candidates are searched by the provincial immigration officials who match specific criteria. These provinces then invite the eligible candidates to apply for provincial nomination.

Express Entry

Express Entry is an electronic selection system used by the Federal as well as Provincial governments of Canada [to select], as well as designated Canadian employers [to nominate] candidates for Canadian permanent residence under three of its popular economic [skilled] immigration programs:

• Federal Skilled Worker Class (FSWC),
• Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC), and
• Canadian Experience Class (CEC)

Candidates eligible for any of the above programs are given a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score in the Express Entry Pool. It is based on their Core/Human capital factors such as age, work experience, education, and language ability in English and/or French, etc. And, based on scores, candidates are periodically invited (or nominated) for permanent residence.

Check out Owlspriority Immigration’s Canada Settlement Resources to learn more about ways to find a new job in Canada, making your initial days in Canada stress-free and confident, etc.