Express Entry starts to shine, Provincial Nominee Programs innovate and Canada prioritizes family reunification To say 2017 was a busy year for Canadian immigration would be a bit like saying Mozart was pretty good at piano.     From the thousands of asylum seekers from Haiti and other countries fleeing uncertainty in the United States to the record numbers posted by Canada’s Express Entry selection system, 2017 saw Canada’s immigration system running at full throttle all year long.   In many ways, Canada had a much different year than its continental ne...

Immigrants have made important gains in Canada’s workforce over the last 10 years and more than 50 per cent have a bachelor’s degree or higher, new statistics from Canada’s 2016 census show.     Released Nov. 29, the figures show that immigrants accounted for 23.8 per cent of Canadian workers in 2016, up from 21.2 per cent in 2006. During that same period, Canada introduced major changes to its immigration system to address skilled labour shortages, namely the introduction of the Express Entry system in 2015.   Statistics Canada defines an immigrant as a ...

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has invited 2,750 candidates in the Express Entry pool to apply for Canadian permanent residence in a draw that took place on Nov. 15. The Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of the lowest-ranked candidate issued an Invitation to Apply (ITA) was 439.

Manitoba has announced a number of changes to its Provincial Nominee Program, including the creation of an in-demand occupations list and a new pathway aligned with Canada’s Express Entry system.     The measures are part of a broad restructuring and renewal of the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) to provide newcomers with new pathways to permanent residence in the province. The changes include the restructuring of three existing immigration streams — MPNP-B business immigration stream, Skilled Worker in Manitoba Stream and Skilled Worker Overseas Stream ...

The reopening last week of the Canadian province of Ontario’s Human Capital Priorities immigration stream allowed certain candidates in the Express Entry pool to benefit from one of Canada’s most popular Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) streams. Even though Ontario stopped receiving applications through this stream just a few days later, the good news is that the province may invite even more applications before the end of year. Moreover, the province has confirmed that if an application is approved after the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) annual allotment is filled, the succe...

The reopening last week of the Canadian province of Ontario’s Human Capital Priorities immigration stream allowed certain candidates in the Express Entry pool to benefit from one of Canada’s most popular Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) streams.   Even though Ontario stopped receiving applications through this stream just a few days later, the good news is that the province may invite even more applications before the end of year. Moreover, the province has confirmed that if an application is approved after the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) annual allotment i...

One of the most popular Express Entry-aligned Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) streams for immigration to Canada, Ontario’s Human Capital Priorities (HCP) stream, is now accepting applications. The OINP also expects to issue new Notifications of Interest (NOIs) to eligible candidates in the Express Entry pool before the end of 2017.   News of the HCP stream reopening was provided by immigration authorities in Ontario on Thursday, November 2.   This stream is a major component of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), one of Canada’s PNPs. Successful app...

The Government of Canada has invited 2,750 candidates to apply for permanent residence in a new Express Entry draw that took place on Dec. 20, 2017. The cut-off Comprehensive Ranking System score for this draw was 446.   Today’s cut-off score was down six points over the previous draw, which took place on Dec. 6 and had a cut-off score of 452.   As with the previous draw, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) employed the tie-break rule. While some candidates with a score of 446 received Invitations To Apply (ITAs), the tie-break means that only ...