Provincial Nominee Program Update: More Immigrants Welcomed by Canada’s Western Provinces
Manitoba, Saskatchewan, British Columbia (BC), and Alberta have all seen significant activity in their Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) in recent weeks, as more than 2,500 individuals have either submitted an application for a provincial nomination certificate, or have been invited to do so.
CIC News June 22, 2017
After two months of inactivity in its Skilled Worker categories, the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program(MPNP) recently issued more than 600 Letters of Advice to Apply (LAA) for provincial nomination to individuals who had expressed an interest in the province.
Saskatchewan opened two of its popular immigration categories, receiving 1,200 applications from skilled workers, including 600 from individuals in the federal Express Entry pool.
BC also conducted two draws in the past month, inviting a range of skilled and semi-skilled workers, as well as international graduates, to apply for provincial nomination.
Alberta continues to receive and process applications, finalizing more than 2,800 applications so far in 2017.
Saskatchewan
Within the last month, two sub-categories of the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP) have opened to receive applications.
On May 24, the International Skilled Worker — Express Entry sub-category reached its intake limit of 600 applications. That intake period, which opened on May 16, represented the first time the sub-category had opened in three months. A job offer is not required in order to be eligible to apply to this sub-category.
The International Skilled Worker — Occupations In-Demand sub-category opened on June 12, and received 600 applications. This sub-category of the SINP offers a route to Canadian permanent resident status for eligible foreign workers in any of 17 occupations listed as in-demand in Saskatchewan. Like the Express Entry sub-category, a job offer is not required in order to be eligible to apply to the Occupations In-Demand sub-category.
Moreover, the Occupations In-Demand sub-category is a ‘base’ category. Consequently, a potential applicant who may not be eligible for one of the three federal programs managed through Express Entry may still be able to apply for permanent resident status through the Occupations In-Demand sub-category. As is often the case with this popular sub-category, the intake cap filled quickly — within hours — demonstrating again that individuals who had prepared in advance were in the best position to take advantage of the opening.
The list of in-demand occupations for both the Express Entry and Occupations In-Demand sub-categories of the International Skilled Worker Category recently changed, affecting the two intake periods outlined above. To view the full list of in-demand occupations, as well as full eligibility requirements, click here.
