Five provinces in Canada have welcomed applicants to apply for provincial immigration.
Provincial immigration differs across Canada. While most Canadian provinces and territories have Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs), Quebec does not because of a particular agreement with the federal government that permits it to choose all of its economic immigrants.
PNPs assist provinces in identifying economic immigration applicants who are most likely to benefit the provincial labour force by economically establishing and filling urgent job vacancies. PNPs often feature separate streams for healthcare, technology, and agricultural workers and entrepreneurs.
The PNP has had great success in attracting economic immigrants. So much so that Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) recently used a similar strategy for the Express Entry application management system. On a nationwide basis, there are presently six specialized categories for in-demand jobs. IRCC held six Express Entry rounds of invites between June 27 and July 7, five of which were for jobs eligible for category-based selection.
Provincial immigration results June 30-July 7
ONTARIO
On July 6, Ontario invited 748 PNP candidates to submit for nomination through the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) Express Entry Human Capital Priorities stream. It was a draw aimed at tech jobs, and candidates needed a CRS score between 479 and 485.
IRCC determines the number of candidates that each province may nominate. Ontario has the most PNP nominations in Canada and can invite up to 16,500 candidates in 2023. This is approximately double the province’s allocation for 2022.
QUEBEC
Quebec’s provincial immigration results were recently published, revealing that on June 29, the Minister of Immigration, Francization, and Integration invited 1,218 people to apply for permanent selection.
Candidates must have a level 7 oral competence in French (or higher) according to the Échelle québécoise des niveaux de compétence en français des adultes (Quebec scale of
adult French proficiency levels)
or its equivalent.
They must also have a job that has National Occupational Classification (NOC) codes. The minimum score in this draw varied depending on the eligible NOC. Some received a score of 584, while others had a score of 592.
BRITISH COLUMBIA
On July 5, British Columbia held three lotteries for 137 candidates in the Skilled Worker and International Graduate streams of the BC PNP (including Express Entry).
The greatest draw called for 97 applicants with a minimum Skills Immigration Registration System (SIRS) score of 90.
MANITOBA
Late on June 29, Manitoba held a draw in which 587 Letters of Advice to Apply were issued to candidates in three streams over four drawings.
Skilled Workers could have qualified for one of two drawings. The first was occupation-specific, with 315 candidates required to have a minimum score of 613. The following occupations were considered:
- 60030 – Restaurant and food service managers
- 62020 – Food service supervisors
- 65201 – Food counter attendants, kitchen helpers and related support occupations
A total of 184 letters of recommendation were issued to Skilled Workers with a minimum score of 662 from all occupations.
With a minimum score of 717, the remaining two draws welcomed 62 candidates from the International Education stream and 26 Skilled Workers Overseas.
ALBERTA
Alberta has also recently published the results of the June 29 draw. The government held a small draw in which 12 candidates from the Express Entry Dedicated Healthcare Pathway, Alberta Job Offer were invited.
The lowest-scoring qualifying candidate received a CRS of 354. Since April of this year, Alberta has welcomed 105 candidates through this stream.
