Ontario to soon re-open PNP immigration stream

Ontario is re-opening and expanding one of its Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) streams on July 6.

Ontario’s Employer Job Offer: In-Demand Skills Stream will re-open on that date and will feature 13 additional employment positions located outside of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) only.

The purpose of this stream is to help address labour shortages in specific in-demand occupations such as in agriculture, construction, trucking, or personal support work.

Workers inside and outside of Canada can apply to this stream.

To obtain a provincial nomination under the stream, an immigration candidate must have a valid job offer and meet other eligibility criteria.

Find out if you are eligible for any Canadian immigration programs

How to be eligible

Candidates must obtain a full-time and permanent job offer (i.e. a minimum of 1,560 hours in a year and no end date of the position).

The job must be in an eligible occupation inside or outside of the GTA.

The job must fall under one of the following National Occupation Classification skill level C or D codes:

NOC 3413 - nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates
NOC 4412 - home support workers and related occupations, excluding housekeepers
NOC 7441 - residential and commercial installers and servicers
NOC 7511 - transport truck drivers
NOC 7521 - heavy equipment operators (except crane)
NOC 7611 - construction trades helpers and labourers
NOC 8431 - general farm workers
NOC 8432 - nursery and greenhouse workers
NOC 8611 - harvesting labourers
NOC 9462 - industrial butchers and meat cutters, poultry preparers and related workers

Expanded occupations

As of July 6, a job offer under the following NOC codes (also levels C or D) will be valid for this stream, as long as the job is located outside of the GTA:

NOC 9411 - machine operators, mineral and metal processing
NOC 9416 - metalworking and forging machine operators
NOC 9417 - machining tool operators
NOC 9418 - other metal products machine operators
NOC 9421 - chemical plant machine operators
NOC 9422 - plastics processing machine operators
NOC 9437 - woodworking machine operators
NOC 9446 - industrial sewing machine operators
NOC 9461 - process control and machine operators, food, beverage and associated products processing
NOC 9523 - electronics assemblers, fabricators, inspectors and testers
NOC 9526 - mechanical assemblers and inspectors
NOC 9536 - industrial painters, coaters and metal finishing process operators
NOC 9537 - other products assemblers, finishers and inspectors

Other requirements

Employers have numerous obligations. For instance, they must demonstrate the person they are hiring through this Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) stream is necessary to their business and they must pay them at or above the median wage level for the occupation.

Immigration candidates must have at least 9 months of cumulative paid full-time work experience in the occupation they have received a job offer for. They must also have the equivalent of a Canadian secondary school (high school) education, or higher, and a minimum English or French-language level of a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) of 4 or higher in each competency (reading, writing, listening, and speaking).

Among other requirements include an immigration candidate demonstrating they have a valid license to work in an occupation that requires a license or other authorization in Ontario.

About the OINP

Ontario operates the largest PNP in Canada since it has the country’s largest population and economy.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has provided Ontario with a PNP allocation of 7,350 principal applicants in 2020. In addition, Ontario can nominate 250 temporary foreign workers in intermediate skilled occupations (NOC C roles).

The OINP has remained active throughout 2020 including during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

It has held 12 skilled worker and entrepreneur draws so far this year.

Find out if you are eligible for any Canadian immigration programs