Canada’s Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP) issued nearly 3,000 invitations to apply for provincial nomination during the month of November.

Nearly every Canadian province and territory, with the exception of Nunavut and Quebec which operates its own immigration programs has its own Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). Having their own immigration programs allows provincial governments to select immigration candidates who meet their local labour market needs and to manage the regional settlement of the immigrant population within their jurisdiction. Each province adopts its own criteria for selecting foreign workers eligible for Canadian permanent residence under its respective PNP.

The PNP complements federal immigration programs and enables Canadian provinces to play a key role in the selection of immigrants.

Since its launch in 1998, the PNP has become the second main route to permanent residence in Canada.  Between now and 2023, PNPs alone are expected to result in more than 80,000 immigrants per year being admitted as permanent residents.

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November 2021 PNP-Focused Express Entry Highlights

Each province that operates the PNP has at least one stream that is aligned with the federal Express Entry system—Canada’s main economic immigration pathway.

So far this year, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has been holding PNP–specific Express Entry draws, on average, every two weeks.

In November, IRCC conducted two Express Entry draws targeting PNP candidates, issuing 775 ITAs on November 10, and another 613 on November 24.

Since mid-September, IRCC has been holding draws under the PNP category only. There have been 23 PNP-specific draws so far this year through which 13,000 candidates received invitations.

During the month of November, Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) did not issue any invitations through its PNP streams. This suggests that the province may have reached its nomination allocation quota for 2021.

The following is a summary of draws by province, listed in order from most to least invitations in November.

British Columbia

Over the past month, British Columbia held a total of six draws and invited 861 candidates to apply for a provincial nomination through the Express Entry British Columbia and Skills Immigration streams closely matching the number of invitations issued every month since the beginning of the year.

Manitoba

The province of Manitoba held two draws through the following three streams: Skilled Workers in Manitoba, International Education Stream, and Skilled Workers Overseas this past month. The draws were held on November 1 and November 18 with a total of 849 Letters of Advice to Apply issued of which 143 were issued to candidates who declared a valid Express Entry profile.

Saskatchewan

In November, the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP) held the largest invitation round of the year through the Express Entry and Occupations In-Demand sub-categories of the International Skilled Worker Category issuing a total of 633 invitations to apply for a provincial nomination. This round of invitations was the first time that invitations were issued in both subcategories after a one-month break. 

The SINP also announced that it will launch a new pilot program in December 2021 to help employers recruit international talent for certain in-demand occupations. Sectors with the highest demand for labor include healthcare, manufacturing, agriculture, agricultural technology, construction, hospitality, and retail. To be eligible, candidates for the new Hard-To-Fill Skills Pilot project must have a permanent, full-time job offer, meet a minimum level of proficiency in an official Canadian language, and meet minimum education and work experience requirements.

Alberta

So far in November, the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP)’s Express Entry Stream held one invitation round.  The AINP held the draw on November 9 and invited 200 candidates with CRS scores of at least 343. 

Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island held a large pre-scheduled draw on November 18 and issued a combined 188 invitations to immigration candidates. Most of the invitations, 172, were issued to Express Entry and Labour Impact candidates. The remaining 16 invitations went to Business Impact candidates who had a minimum point threshold of 67. PEI held 11 draws so far this year, bringing the total number of invitations issued to 1,729.

Nova Scotia

On November 18, Nova Scotia added three new eligible occupations listed under the Occupations In-Demand stream, including food & beverage servers (NOC 6513), food counter attendants (NOC 6711), and light-duty cleaners (NOC 6731).

Newfoundland and Labrador

In November, Newfoundland and Labrador released the results of the first three draws held under the Priority Skills Newfoundland and Labrador stream. So far this year, the Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Nominee Program (NLPNP) invited a total of 663 candidates to apply for a provincial nomination.

What are PNPs?

PNPs allow Canadian provinces and territories to nominate individuals for permanent immigration.

There are two types of PNPs: base and enhanced.

Base nomination streams work outside of the Express Entry system, as they are managed by the provinces themselves. These types of nominations are subject to the processing standards of the specific PNP stream.

In order to go from a successful base nomination to permanent residency, candidates will generally have to go through a two-step process. First, candidates determine that they meet the criteria for a PNP stream, apply, and if successful, receive a nomination certificate. Once they have this certificate, they will be can apply for permanent resident status with the federal government.

Enhanced nomination streams, on the other hand, are linked with the Express Entry system. They allow provincial immigration officials to search the Express Entry pool of candidates for applicants who match specific criteria. The provinces then invite these candidates to apply for a provincial nomination.

The Express Entry system manages the pool of candidates for Canada’s three main federal-level economic immigration programs — the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, and the Canadian Experience Class.

If candidates get a provincial nomination through an enhanced provincial stream, they are awarded an additional 600 Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points. This practically guarantees that they will receive an invitation to apply (ITA) for permanent residence in a subsequent Express Entry draw.

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