British Columbia, Saskatchewan and PEI invite candidates in latest PNP results

Three Canadian provinces have nominated candidates for provincial nomination.

Under the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) all of Canada’s provinces and territories (except Quebec and Nunavut) can invite a certain number of candidates to apply for nomination to settle within their province.

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Provincial immigration results October 13-27

British Columbia

On October 17, British Columbia invited more than 152 candidates in the BC PNP.

The province held four separate draws. The largest was a general draw (meaning no occupation was targeted) and included candidates from the Skilled Worker, International Graduate, and Entry-Level and Semi-Skilled Streams.

Skilled Workers required a minimum Skills Immigration Registration System (SIRS) score of 111, International Graduates needed 113 and Entry-Level Semi-Skilled candidates needed a score of 91.

The remaining three draws targeted Skilled Worker and International Graduate candidates with work experience in specific occupations. All candidates needed a score higher than 60.

• Early Childhood Educators and Assistants- 31
• Healthcare-17
• Other priority occupations- less than 5

The province also held four targeted draws on October 24 inviting candidates from the Skilled Worker and International Graduate categories. 

The largest draw was for candidates with a tech occupation. There were 101 candidates invited with a minimum score of 90.  

The other three draws were similar to the previous week and required a minimum score of 60 

• Early Childhood Educators and Assistants- 34 
• Healthcare- 22 
• Other priority occupations- less than 5

Saskatchewan 

Saskatchewan held its first draw since August on October 23. The province invited 99 total candidates in two categories. There were 40 invitations issued to candidates in the Occupations-in-Demand category and 59 in the Express Entry category. 

In both instances, draws were targeted at specific National Occupation Classification (NOC) codes and all candidates required Educational Credential Assessments. All candidates required a minimum score of 84 

Prince Edward Island

The PEI PNP held a draw on October 19.

The province invited 102 Labour and Express Entry candidates. Candidates were considered if they were Critical Workers and Express Entry invitations were issued to individuals working for a PEI Employer with a minimum Expression of Interest (EOI) score of 55.

Additionally, two candidates were invited through the Business and Entrepreneur stream with a minimum EOI score of 80.

Over the past 12 months, PEI has invited 2,464 candidates through the Labour and Express Stream, representing 97% of invitations overall.

IRCC guidelines for PNP allocations

Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the provinces share responsibility for immigration. Each year, IRCC allocates a specific number of nominations to provincial governments. They use this allocation to nominate the candidates most likely to economically establish within the province. The PNP only applies to economic-class immigrants.

IRCC recently released guidelines that explain how it allocates nominations to each province. Essentially, IRCC evaluates a province's population, the number of newcomers who arrive each year and the rate of retention. The department then seeks feedback from the provinces and territories to better understand their immigration and economic needs and adjust the number of nominations as needed.

Applying these principles has helped establish the first-ever multi-year levels plan for the PNP. Previously, provinces were given allocations only a year in advance. This created challenges in planning infrastructure such as housing, healthcare, and settlement services.

Further, the PNP makes up the largest share of economic immigration targets in the Immigration Levels Plan. The Plan outlines the number of permanent residents Canada plans to admit over the coming three years. 2023-2025 set the highest targets in IRCC history, rising as high as 500,000 overall admissions, including 117,000 PNP admissions, each year by the end of 2025.

PNP-only Express Entry draw 

On October 24 IRCC held an Express Entry draw for1,548 candidates with a provincial nomination. The minimum CRS score required was 776.  

It was the first PNP-only Express Entry draw since May, which was also the last time IRCC held a program specific draw.  

The CRS score in a PNP-only draw is always significantly higher than in other draws because Express Entry candidates who receive provincial nomination (a process called enhanced nomination) automatically receive an additional 600 CRS points. This is much higher than the average CRS score for most candidates. 

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