Permanent residence, sponsorship and refugee programs.

Ontario Provincial Programs

The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) may be a way for you to become permanent resident of Canada by first being nominated by the province of Ontario.

A great number of opportunities exist for temporary foreign workers, bilingual candidates, and trades workers in Ontario. However, the process has become competitive and limited. I will explain how it works and who can benefit from the program.

What is it?

The province of Ontario has 9 programs to nominate a person to become permanent resident of Canada. They nominate those working in high demand jobs who have a job offer from a business in Ontario. There are only 2 programs that do not require a job offer, which are the Masters and PhD Graduate streams.

What are the requirements?

Each program (stream) has very specific requirements for the applicant, the job offer, and for the business providing the job offer. I will provide some of the main requirements below.

Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker stream: for those with minimum of 2 years of work experience in a skilled job (positions Teer 0, 1, 2 or 3). For example, Welders, Farm Supervisors, Engineers, etc. You must have a job offer from a business in Ontario in an exact position as your work experience that will pay you the median wage or higher.

Employer Job Offer: International Student stream: for those who graduated from an eligible college or university in Ontario in programs of 1 or more years of duration. The most important aspect is having a job offer in a skilled position from a business in Ontario. You must submit your application within two years of completing the requirements necessary to obtain your degree, diploma or certificate.

Employer Job Offer: In-Demand Skills stream: for those with minimum of 9 months of work experience in Ontario in specific in-demand occupations such as in agriculture, construction, and other select occupations. You must have a job offer from a business in Ontario in the same position as your work experience that will pay you the Ontario median wage or higher.

How do I apply?

The process to become nominated by Ontario consists of several steps. We help you in each step of the way. (Step 2 does not apply if you were selected by Ontario through Express Entry).

Step 1: Establish that you meet all of the requirements for one of the programs. Research whether your experience and job offer are in demand and the chances of being selected. We do all of this for our clients in the initial consultation and review all of their documents to establish if it is worthwhile to embark on the process.

Step 2: if you are ready, we help you to create your profile, obtain your score and submit your profile to have a chance of being selected. There will be a wait time until the province selects your profile. The selection depends on the priorities of the province and your overall score. We work with you to ensure your profile is up to date and advise you on your options to increase your score.

Step 3: if you are selected by Ontario, then it is time to send them all of your documents and information to prove that you meet the requirements. You must also pay a processing fee. This is when you are applying to be nominated. This is the most important step as Ontario will issue you a nomination. We assist you to submit all the correct documents and information.

Step 4: the province reviews your documents and issues you the nomination. You can now apply for permanent residence to IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada). If a document is missing or if it is determined that you do not meet the requirements, the application may be returned and refused.