What is the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)?

Manitoba was the first province to launch the Provincial Nominee Program in 1998. Since its launch, Manitoba has tremendously benefitted from immigration to the province through the PNP, which has played a major role in the province’s population, labour force and economic growth.

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Manitoba is a very popular option for newcomers to Canada. Over 90 percent of provincial nominees get a job in their first year, and the province’s retention rate is very high, with almost 90 percent of nominees choosing to stay in the province.

Manitoba has enhanced and base immigration streams. The enhanced immigration stream means that the stream is affiliated with the Express Entry system, which the federal government uses to manage permanent residence applications. Express Entry gives immigration candidates a score based on the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). The candidates with the highest scores are invited to apply for permanent residence.

If you get a nomination from an enhanced provincial program, you get an extra 600 CRS points, which essentially guarantees the immigration candidate an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence.

Base streams require candidates who get a provincial nomination to apply directly to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

Manitoba Immigration Streams

There are five options if you wish to immigrate to Manitoba through the PNP:

Skilled Worker in Manitoba Stream
Skilled Worker Overseas Stream
Manitoba Business Investor Stream
International Education Stream
Morden Community Driven Initiative

Skilled Worker in Manitoba Stream

The Skilled Worker in Manitoba Stream is for temporary foreign workers and international student graduates who are employed in Manitoba currently and have been offered full time, permanent employment in Manitoba. The stream consists of two pathways: the Manitoba Work Experience Pathway and the Employer Direct Recruitment Pathway.

The Manitoba Work Experience Pathway is for people currently working in Manitoba with a temporary work permit. The Employer Direct Recruitment Pathway eligibility requires an interview by a representative of the Manitoba PNP and a Manitoba employer, which is carried outside Canada. You must receive an Invitation to Apply before applying through this pathway.

Skilled Worker Overseas Stream

The Skilled Worker Overseas Stream is for qualified skilled workers who may be outside Canada but can demonstrate a strong tie or connection to the province. You may also be eligible if you are already in Canada.

The stream consists of two pathways: the Manitoba Express Entry Pathway and the Human Capital Pathway.

The Manitoba Express Entry Pathway is for candidates with an Express Entry profile and candidates who are eligible for the Manitoba PNP. The candidate must also have experience in an occupation that is listed in the provinces ‘In-demand Occupations’ list and have a strong connection to Manitoba.

The Human Capital Pathway is for foreign skilled workers with experience working in the provinces ‘In Demand Occupations’ list.

Manitoba Business Investor Stream

The Manitoba Business Investor Stream are for people wishing to establish a business in Manitoba.

The stream consists of two pathways: the Farm Investor Pathway and the Entrepreneur Pathway.

The Farm investor Pathway is for candidates with experience in farm business who wish to come to Manitoba to establish and operate a farm.

The Entrepreneur Pathway is a way for the province to recruit eligible foreign business owners to come to Manitoba. In order to be chosen, business owners must have the intent and ability to establish or purchase a new business or co-own an existing business. They must do so in their first two years in Manitoba.

International Education Stream

The International Education Stream is for international graduates from Manitoba who wish to stay in the province permanently. It provides graduates who meet the needs of the labor market with faster pathways to permanent residency.

The stream has three pathways: Career Employment Pathway, Graduate Internship Pathway and Student Entrepreneur Pathway.

The Career Employment Pathway is for post-secondary graduates who have long term employment in an in-demand occupation in Manitoba.

The Graduate Internship Pathway is for international master and doctoral graduates who have completed an Accelerate or Elevate internship with Mitacs, which is an organization that works with the Manitoba government to provide internships to international graduates.

The International Student Entrepreneur Pathway provides international graduates of a learning institution in Manitoba the opportunity to become entrepreneurs in Manitoba.

Morden Community-Driven Immigration Initiative

Morden is a town southwest of Winnipeg that is actively looking for immigrants to work in certain occupations to meet the town’s labor market needs and become permanent residents of Canada.

In order to be eligible for the Morden Community-Driven Immigration Initiative, you must meet certain age, education, language, and work experience requirements. In addition, you must not have a connection to any other part of Canada and have enough money to settle in Morden.

How does the Manitoba PNP work?

If you wish to immigrate to Canada through the Manitoba PNP, you must submit an Expression of Interest (EOI). Once you complete the questions online, you will receive a score. The highest scoring candidates will be invited to submit a Manitoba PNP application.

If you are successful in your application, you will receive a provincial nomination from Manitoba. You would then use this nomination to apply directly to the Canadian federal government for a permanent residence visa. If you are an Express Entry candidate, you would do this through the Express Entry system.

The processing time for the Manitoba PNP is usually around 6 months, in addition to the time it takes IRCC to then process permanent residence applications.

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