It’s no secret that technologies are in rapid evolution today, and Canada has boldly established itself as a leader in the development of the IT sector. More and more technical workers are immigrating to Canada in search of new job opportunities, with at least 800,000 professionals working in the country’s IT industry. This leads us to the conclusion that Immigration to Canada for IT professionals is gaining momentum.
Immigration paths for IT professionals
Canada offers a variety of immigration pathways for IT professionals, including Express Entry, which serves federal immigration programs, and a Provincial Nominee Program – several provincial immigration programs that allow you to obtain permanent residence in Canada.
Immigration for IT specialists through Express Entry
Express Entry is an electronic system used by the federal government for screening applications for Canadian permanent residency for skilled workers. It is not a separate immigration program, it serves three existing programs: the Federal Skilled Worker Program, a program for skilled workers with foreign work experience who want to immigrate to Canada, Federal Skilled Trades Program, an economic immigration program for workers in trades occupations, and Canadian Experience Class, aimed at qualified workers who already have Canadian work experience.
IT professionals can immigrate through Express Entry, provided they meet the program criteria. All Express Entry candidates receive points for work experience, education, age, knowledge of languages and some other criteria. An IT professional can expect to receive an invitation to Express Entry if he/she is 30 years old or less, a master’s degree, three years of work experience and English at CLB level 9 or above.
But what to do if the level of education of a candidate is only a bachelor’s degree, the language is below CLB 9, and the age is above 30? In this case, there is an option to immigrate through the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) which is part of the Provincial Nominee Program!
OINP Tech Draws – Ontarian program for IT specialists
Immigration to Canada for IT professionals is also possible via the OINP Tech Draws which are part of the Ontario’s Express Entry Human Capital Priorities Stream, which in turn is a component of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP). Candidate profiles are taken from the Express Entry pool, and those lucky ones who receive a Notification of Interest (NOI) can receive an additional 600 points in Express Entry if nominated, which in turn guarantees an invitation from the Federal Department of Immigration! Applicants who have received the NOI must apply within 45 calendar days of receiving the invitation and create profiles on the province’s website. The time for consideration of applications at both stages: provincial and federal takes about six months. Thus, within a year after applying, the best IT specialists can obtain the status of a permanent resident of Canada!
Three of Canada’s five largest tech hubs, Toronto, Ottawa, and Waterloo, are located in Ontario. With the introduction of OINP Tech Draws, the Province of Ontario has sought to meet the growing demand for skilled IT professionals. It is important to emphasize that OINP Tech Draw is a unique immigration opportunity for IT candidates who have at least one year of experience in the following six occupations:
- NOC 2173 Software Engineers and Designers
- NOC 2174 Computer Programmers and Interactive Media Developers
- NOC 0213 Computer and Information Systems Managers
- NOC 2172 Database Analysts and Data Administrators
- NOC 2147 Computer Engineers (Except Software Engineers and Designers)
- NOC 2175 Web Designers and Developers
NOC 2173 Software Engineers and Designers
These tech talents design, research, evaluate, maintain and integrate software applications, operating systems, technical environments, embedded software, information warehouses and telecommunications software.
NOC 2174 Computer Programmers and Interactive Media Developers
These experts integrate, modify, write and test computer code for data processing applications, microcomputer and mainframe software applications, communications software and operating systems-level software. Interactive media developers write, modify, integrate and test computer code for Internet applications, computer-based training software, computer games, film, video and other interactive media
NOC 0213 Computer and Information Systems Managers
These professionals plan, organize, direct, monitor and evaluate the activities of organizations that analyze, design, develop, implement, operate and administer computer and telecommunications software, networks and information systems.
NOC 2172 Database Analysts and Data Administrators
Database analysts design, develop, and administer data management solutions using database management software. Data administrators design and implement data administration policies, standards, and models.
NOC 2147 Computer Engineers
These tech talents research, plan, design, develop, modify, evaluate and integrate computer and telecommunications equipment and related equipment, as well as information and communication systems networks.
NOC 2175 Web Designers and Developers
This profession serves for the research, design, development and creation of sites on the Internet and company intranets.
The selection criteria for the OINP Tech Draw stream include:
- Education level equal to a Canadian bachelor’s degree, or higher
- Proficiency in one of the official languages at CLB 7 level
- The intention to live and work in Ontario.
- Residing in Canada legally if the application is from Canada.
- Confirmation of funds to support yourself.
It is important to note that a job offer is not required to qualify for this program, but may add points to Express Entry profile!
How many IT-specialists have already used the program?
This program was first launched in July 2019. To date, Ontario has already conducted five targeted selections of candidates within the OINP Tech Draw, and 6,341 IT specialists have already received Notifications of Interest (NOI) from Ontario, of which 3,396 in 2019!
Of the 3,396 invited, 2,211 accepted the invitation and received a nomination of Ontario. The nominations were distributed as follows:
- NOC 2173 Software Engineers and Designers – 935 nominees.
- NOC 2174 Computer Programmers and Interactive Media Developers – 598 nominees
- NOC 0213 Computer and Information Systems Managers – 260 nominees
- NOC 2172 Database Analysts and Data Administrators – 184 nominees
- NOC 2147 Computer Engineers (Except Software Engineers and Designers) – 121 nominees
- NOC 2175 Web Designers and Developers – 113 nominees
Besides, OINP nominated 211 candidates for other IT occupations.
It is worth emphasizing, that 33% of all Ontario nominations in 2019 were granted to candidates in the OINP Tech Draws! All of these candidates received 600 points in their Express Entry profile and were invited to apply for permanent residence by the federal government, and some of them have already received their permanent residence in Canada this year. The lowest CRS score in the OINP Tech Draw was 421 points. On average, candidates need a score of 420-460 points to get a Notification of Interest from OINP. Therefore, this program is so attractive for candidates in the above six IT occupations. Canada highly values IT professionals from abroad. The skills of these professionals are in demand in the Canadian labour market.
Immigration to Canada for IT professionals. OINP Tech Draws statistics
Date | Invitations |
Jul 12, 2019 | 1623 |
| Aug 1, 2019 | 1773 |
Jan 15, 2020 | 954 |
| May 13, 2020 | 703 |
| Jul 29, 2020 | 1288 |
If you work in the IT sector and want to move to a safe country with high standards of living, Canada is the right place for you. Contact our company to learn more about immigration to Canada for IT professionals.