Invitations were issued by British Columbia, Ontario, Alberta, and Manitoba to apply to candidates through Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) this week. Through these programs, interested candidates may be invited to apply for provincial nomination.
For gaining permanent residence, receiving a provincial nomination can be beneficial. Quebec’s immigration programs are distinct from Canada’s immigration programs and are administered by the province. Quebec is the only province to have control over all economic class immigrants. 105,000 permanent residency admissions per year have been accounted for by the provincial nominee program (PNP).
It is an effective tool for both provincial and federal governments to promote economic development outside of urban centers. 893 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) were issued by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to Express Entry candidates who already had a provincial nomination.
These draws also occurred in the same week. Except for Quebec and Nunavut, most Canadian provinces and territories have PNPs aligned with the Express Entry. Since June 2022, this was the first Express Entry draw to target PNP candidates. All Express Entry draws have been all-program draws between July and the recent draw.
January 28 – February 3, Results of Provincial Immigration
British Columbia
More than 279 candidates were invited by British Columbia to apply for provincial nomination on January 31. For tech occupations, the province invited 243 candidates in a targeted draw. In the Skilled Worker and International Graduates categories, invitations were issued to candidates which also included Express Entry candidates.
A minimum SIRS score of 85 is required for candidates from the Skilled Worker and International Graduate streams. The SIRS score system is only used for British Columbia’s PNP but it acts much like the Express Entry.
The province held rounds of invitations for candidates who are working in the occupations mentioned below:
- 18 HealthCare workers from the International Graduate, Skilled Worker, including Express Entry category, with a minimum score of 60 points
- 18 early childhood educators and assistants with a minimum score of 60 points, and
- Other in-demand occupations with a cut-off score of 60 points.
Ontario
On January 31, 611 ITAs were issued to candidates in the Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker stream of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP). The draw was targeted toward tech and healthcare occupations. A minimum score of 53 is required by a candidate to receive an invitation.
On February 2, Ontario additionally held two targeted draws for candidates in the Human Capital Priorities stream. 1,175 candidates were invited by the province in tech occupations with a minimum score between 481 and 489 as well as 725 candidates in healthcare occupations with a minimum score between 476 and 489.
Alberta
Alberta issued 154 notifications of letters of interest in the second round of published draw results for 2023, in the Express Entry stream of the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program (AAIP) on January 23, as well as 46 letters of interest on January 19. It is recently announced by the province that Express Entry candidates in the AAIP will be invited based on a combination of immediate family ties and high-demand occupations as selection factors when completing draws from the Federal Express Entry pool.
Manitoba
21 Letters of Advice were issued by Manitoba to apply on January 30. Under the province’s special immigration measure, letters were issued to the people fleeing the conflict in Ukraine. For considering immigration under this pathway, candidates must be:
- Having a minimum of CLB 4 in every language band , i.e., reading, writing, speaking, and listening
- A citizen of Ukraine
- Having a valid language test
- Able to score 60 points according to MPNP assessment criteria
- Having an established connection to Manitoba
