What PNPs are available from outside Canada?

Clients who do not have Canadian work experience, or who have not studied in Canada and who do not score enough points in Express Entry often ask us what provincial nominee programs – or PNPs – are available to apply from outside Canada? It is no secret that there are more than 80 streams in provincial programs. But alas, most of them are linked to the connection with the province. In other words, those programs require work experience or a job offer from a provincial employer, previous studies in the province, or at least relatives living in that province.

You also need to remember that some of the provincial programs are associated with Express Entry. In turn, this also means the need to meet the threshold of the requirements of the federal system. For example, if your occupation is on the NOC list 0 or A, then you will still need to pass English or French at CLB level 7 in order to register a profile in Express Entry, and if your occupation is on the NOC B list, you have to reach CLB level 5.

Another important point is that some of the programs involve “passive” participation. In order to apply for a provincial nomination, you must receive an invitation from the province to your Express Entry profile. Thus, some of the programs will still remain inaccessible without having Express Entry a profile or getting an invitation inside the system. Finally, some of the provincial programs also have their own scoring system, which also has a minimum registration threshold, and in which there are invitation rounds, so candidates must get a passing score to get the invitation to apply.

In this article, we analyze the programs available to those who wish to immigrate to Canada but do not have any ties to the Canadian provinces. Our list includes programs that do not require a job offer, Canadian work experience, study in Canada, or residency in the province at the time of application. It includes provincial immigration streams in Ontario, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba, and Nova Scotia.

A full description of the provincial immigration strategy is available on this page.

The Ontario French-Speaking Skilled Worker Stream in the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) was created to bring Francophones to the province of Ontario. Over the past decades, the number of French-speaking Ontarians has dropped dramatically and the government is trying to maintain bilingualism in the province.

The main requirement for this program is bilingualism. You need to score French at CLB 7 and English at CLB 6 at the same time. In addition, you need to prove 1 year of work experience in the NOC 0, A or B occupation. You must also have a higher education.

This program is tied to Express Entry and requires an invitation from the Ontario government to apply for a nomination. The invitation comes straight to your Express Entry profile. The CRS range in Express Entry, sufficient to receive an invitation, ranges from 420 to 450 points. In 2020, invitation rounds in this stream were held three times (as of November 2020) and the minimum points in those draws were 424, 432 and 433, respectively.

An OINP French-Speaking Skilled Worker application is usually considered within 30-60 days, after which, if nominated, you will receive an additional 600 points in your Express Entry profile. With this score, you will surely receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence in Express Entry.

In 2019, Ontario invited 549 people to this stream. As a result, 401 candidates received a nomination and applied for permanent residence. Statistics for 2020 will be available in early 2021.

The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) Human Capital Priorities Stream was created to attract the most qualified immigrants to the province of Ontario. This stream enables the Ontario government to invite immigrants in some skilled occupations that experience a shortage in the labour market.

The main requirement in this program is to have a valid profile in the Express Entry system. To participate in the program, you must receive a notification of interest from Ontario to apply for a nomination. The invitation comes straight to your profile. The CRS score range in Express Entry sufficient to receive an invitation in this stream ranges from 400 to 465 points and depends on the currently lowest score in Express Entry. Most often, the maximum score in a round is one point below the last minimum score in Express Entry. The lowest score recorded in 2020 was 421 points. Ontario conducts about 10-15 draws in the Human Capital Priorities Stream.

In the framework of the Human Capital Priorities Streams, Ontario hosts three types of invitation rounds:

1. Draws based on a “general basis” (any candidates with the highest scores are invited)
2. Draws for specifically targeted occupations (only candidates from selected occupations are invited)
3. OINP Tech Draws (only for candidates from six approved IT occupations are invited)

In 2019-2020, Ontario has targeted the following occupations in this program:

• NOC 0111 Financial managers
• NOC 0114 Other administrative services managers
• NOC 0124 Advertising, marketing and public relations managers
• NOC 0601 Corporate sales managers
• NOC 0621 Retail and wholesale trade managers
• NOC 0651 Managers in customer and personal services, n.e.c.
• NOC 1111 Financial auditors and accountants
• NOC 1114 Other financial officers
• NOC 1122 Professional occupations in business management consulting
• NOC 3012 Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses
• NOC 3124 Allied primary health practitioners
• NOC 3132 Dietitians and nutritionists

Occupations approved for OINP Tech Draw:

• NOC 2173 Software engineers and designers
• NOC 2174 Computer programmers and interactive media developers
• NOC 2147 Computer engineers
• NOC 2175 Web designers and developers
• NOC 2172 Database analysts and data administrators
• NOC 0213 Computer and information systems managers

Read also our blog about OINP Tech Draw

Immigration to Canada for IT professionals

Applications in this stream are usually considered within 30-60 days, after which, if you receive a nomination, you will get another 600 points in your Express Entry profile. With this score, you will surely receive an invitation for permanent residence in Express Entry.

In 2019, Ontario invited 6,958 people to this stream and 3,396 of them were invited to OINP Tech Draw. As a result, Ontario nominated 2,710 people in the Human Capital Priorities stream, 2211 of them in the OINP Tech Draw and 499 in other draws. Statistics for 2020 will be available in early 2021.

Similar to other provincial programs, Saskatchewan also invites candidates from Express Entry. However, Saskatchewan has implemented its own scoring system and an online portal for accepting applications from candidates wishing to settle in Saskatchewan through the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP).

Saskatchewan Express Entry allows applicants to create a Provincial Expression of Interest (EOI) profile after they have registered with Express Entry. The main requirement for this program is English or French at the CLB 5 level, at least one year of study at the post-secondary level, as well as 1 year of work experience in occupation from the NOC 0, A or B list in the past ten years (or 2 years out of the past 5 years for trades occupations). Your work experience must be in occupations in the NOC that is not excluded from the list of permitted occupations and be related to your education.

The minimum score required to enter the pool of candidates in the provincial Expression of Interest (EOI) system is 60 points. On average, to receive an invitation, you need to get 68-70+ points. Draws in this stream are usually reviewed within 20-35 weeks, after which, if you receive a nomination, you will receive another 600 points in your Express Entry profile. With this score, you will surely receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence in Express Entry.

In 2019, Saskatchewan invited 5,138 people to this stream. Statistics for 2020 will be available in early 2021.

Saskatchewan International Skilled Worker Occupations In-Demand is one of the programs that attract the most interest among candidates with low language skills who have an in-demand occupation in Saskatchewan.

The Saskatchewan Occupations In-Demand Stream allows applicants to create a Provincial Expression of Interest (EOI) profile to receive an invitation to apply for a Saskatchewan nomination. The main requirement for this stream is English or French at the CLB 4 level, at least one year of study at the post-secondary level, as well as 1 year of work experience in occupation from the NOC 0, A or B list over the past ten years (or 2 years over the past 5 years for trades). Your work experience must be in occupations in the NOC that is not excluded from the list of permitted occupations and be related to your education.

The minimum score required to enter the pool of candidates in the provincial Expression of Interest (EOI) system is 60 points. To receive an invitation, you need to get 68-70+ points. Invitation rounds in this stream are usually reviewed within 20-35 weeks, after which, if nominated, you can apply for permanent residence in Canada by mail. A paper-based application for permanent residence will be reviewed by the federal government for approximately 17-24 months. Thus, immigration through the Saskatchewan Occupations In-Demand stream takes about two years or longer.

In 2019, Saskatchewan invited 4,280 people through this stream. Statistics for 2020 will be available in early 2021.

The Province of Prince Edward Island has also made the Prince Edward Island Provincial Nominee Program (PEI PNP) immigration stream available to candidates from overseas. The requirements for this stream are as close as possible to the minimum requirements of the Federal Express Entry system. Candidates need to have at least 1 year of work experience in skilled work (or 2 years in the last 5 years for trades) and score English or French at CLB level 7 (for NOC 0 and A occupations) or CLB level 5 (for NOC B occupations).

Like a similar program in Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island Express Entry allows applicants to create a Provincial Expression of Interest (EOI) profile after they have registered with Express Entry and link the two profiles. An important distinction of Prince Edward Island Express Entry is that there are two parallel sub-streams in this program – one for candidates from overseas, and the other for candidates who already reside on Prince Edward Island as temporary residents – international students or workers. Moreover, the provincial government openly states that preference will be given to those who already live and work in the province.

If you are nominated by Prince Edward Island, you will receive 600 points in your Express Entry profile. With this score, you will surely receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence in Express Entry.

On January 2, 2021, the province of Newfoundland and Labrador launched the newest provincial program available from overseas – Newfoundland and Labrador Priority Skills. This program targets two categories of candidates: In-demand Academic candidates and In-demand Work candidates.

The first category includes alumni of Memorial University who have completed masters or doctoral programs in one of the priority fields such as technology, healthcare, aquaculture and agriculture in the past three years.

The second category includes qualified specialists who have at least one year of work experience in in-demand occupations. Among these in-demand occupations are several professions in the field of healthcare (physicians, family doctors, nurses, radiotherapists, clinical psychologists, etc.), aquaculture, IT and engineering (biomedical engineers, UI / UX developer, electrical engineers, AI developers, mechanical engineers, Python developers, web developers, .NET developers, infrastructure engineers), as well as various technical specialists (computer security specialists, cloud specialists, bioinformatics specialists, computer network support specialists, scientists, data analysts, offshore technicians, operators ROV, ocean mapping specialists, and technical writers).

Applicants from abroad must have at least 1 year of work experience in the in-demand occupation over the past 10 years, pass English or French and prove their education. Registration of applications takes place through the Expression of Interest (EOI) system. Each candidate must achieve a minimum of 60 provincial points based on age, work experience, language proficiency, and education. There are two subcategories within this program: Skilled Worker or Express Entry Skilled Worker. In the first of them, the application for permanent residence is paper-based, and in the second, the nomination is added to the Express Entry profile and gives an additional 600 points. With this point, you will surely receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence in Express Entry.

The Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) is the oldest of all provincial programs. Unsurprisingly, after the introduction of the Express Entry system, Manitoba created an immigration stream linked to the federal system. The Manitoba Skilled Workers Overseas Express Entry Stream is designed for applicants of high human capital with the skills, training, and experience associated with Manitoba’s in-demand occupation list and strong family ties to Manitoba.

To participate in this program, you must have a valid Express Entry profile and create a Provincial Expression of Interest (EOI) profile. It is also necessary to link both profiles in order to receive a notification of interest from Manitoba in Express Entry or to have application support from a close relative or friend living in that province. In each invitation round, which takes place every two weeks, Manitoba invites dozens of candidates directly from Express Entry.

The main requirement for this program is the English or French at the CLB level 7 level for candidates in the NOC 0, A or CLB level 6 for candidates in the NOC B. Candidates also need 6 months of work experience in one of the in-demand occupations and at least one-year post-secondary education.

In 2019, Manitoba nominated 809 people in this stream. Statistics for 2020 will be available in early 2021.

The Manitoba Skilled Workers Overseas: Human Capital Stream is designed for skilled workers with the skills, training and experience associated with Manitoba’s in-demand occupation list and who demonstrate a high potential to establish a strong attachment to these occupations in the labour market shortly after arriving in Manitoba.

Important! This stream is still not launched! Instead, Manitoba continues to accept applications and issues nominations under the old Manitoba Skilled Workers Overseas Stream, which has the same requirements as the Manitoba Skilled Workers Overseas: Human Capital Stream.

To participate in this program, you must create a Provincial Expression of Interest (EOI) profile. To apply for a nomination, you need to receive a notification of interest from Manitoba in a provincial profile or have the support of the application from a close relative or friend living in the province. Manitoba holds draws in this stream every two weeks.

The main requirement for this program is English or French at CLB 7 for regulated professions, CLB 6 for compulsory trades, and CLB 5 for all other occupations. Canadian candidates also need 6 months of work experience in one of the in-demand occupations and at least one year of post-secondary education.

In 2019, Manitoba nominated 1,376 people in this stream. Statistics for 2020 will be available in early 2021.

The Morden’s Community Driven Immigration Initiative is a city-specific immigration program that is unique of its kind. With a population of 10,000, Morden welcomes about 50 families a year, supporting them to be nominated under the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP).

The Morden’s Community-Driven Immigration Initiative allows you to receive a letter of support from a community to show ties to a province if an applicant is unable to get support from a friend or family member through the Manitoba Skilled Workers Overseas Stream.

This program is primarily aimed at mechanics, welders, cooks, industrial painters and/or those who are fluent in French at CLB 5 level. Such candidates must have two years of work experience, English or French at CLB level 5 and a minimum of 1 year of post-secondary education. In addition, the Morden program also accepts applications from other professions. Such candidates must have two years of work experience in the past five years, English or French at CLB level 7, and higher education. All candidates for the Morden program must be under the age of 45 and have no connections with other provinces in Canada, such as friends, family, previous employment or education.

After submitting your application, if Morden selects you, you will be asked to come for an exploratory visit. During the visit, you will be able to learn about Morden and prepare for an interview with the MPNP officer at the end of your visit. After being interviewed with an MPNP officer, if approved, you will be able to apply for a Manitoba Skilled Workers Overseas nomination. If you receive a nomination, you will be able to apply for permanent residence in Canada. After obtaining permanent residence, you can move to Morden.

According to Morden’s Community Driven Immigration Initiative, on average, it receives more than a thousand applications a year, but no more than 5% of them get the approval.

The Nova Scotia Labour Market Priorities Stream in the framework of the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) allows the province to select candidates from Express Entry based on the provincial labour market needs. Thus, in each round, certain occupations are targeted. Unfortunately, the criteria for each round are not announced in advance.

To participate in this stream, you must have a valid Express Entry profile and create a Provincial Expression of Interest (EOI) profile. Invitation rounds in Nova Scotia Labor Market Priorities Stream occur 5-10 times a year. Depending on the occupation, the specific requirements for work experience, educational level and language level may change with each new round. In addition to targeted occupations, Nova Scotia has conducted several draws for francophone candidates over the past two years.

If you receive a Nova Scotia nomination, you will get 600 points in your Express Entry profile. This score allows you to receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence in Express Entry.

In 2019-2020 Nova Scotia has invited the following occupations to Nova Scotia Labor Market Priorities Stream:

• NOC 4212 Social and community service workers
• NOC 3012 Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses
• NOC 7271 Carpenters
• NOC 4214 Early childhood educators and assistants
• NOC 1111 Financial auditors and accountants

You can look for options for moving to Canada through provincial immigration programs, but it is necessary to build your strategy based on ties to provinces. Our research has shown that PNPs available from outside Canada are limited to five provinces: Ontario, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, Manitoba, and Nova Scotia.

6 out of 10 streams are associated with Express Entry, which means you need to meet the minimum criteria for language, education and work experience to register in the Express Entry to be eligible for those streams. In addition, two of the programs – namely, Morden’s initiative and Newfoundland and Labrador Priority Skills are also partially associated with Express Entry. Only Saskatchewan Occupations In-Demand and Manitoba Skilled Workers Overseas Human Capital Priorities have no connection with Express Entry. But this is more a disadvantage as the paper-based application submission in these streams takes 1.5-2 years to be processed, which means that the provincial and federal stages can take more than two years before you can get a status of a permanent resident of Canada.

For candidates who have never lived in Canada before, out of 10 options, 7 allows applying without being invited first. 3 programs require getting an invitation from the province prior to application.

To summarize, if you do not qualify for Express Entry, and do not meet the requirements of any of the ten pathways described in the article, you may be better off paying attention to immigration strategies through study or work in Canada.

Oleg Schindler
Co-Founder and Director of Immigration Canada Pro
Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant
ICCRC License Number R706744