Ontario’s over 13 million citizens comprise over one-third of Canada’s total population. The nation’s capital city, Ottawa, sits within this province. On October 25, Ontario invited new immigrants to apply for a provincial nomination. Ontario Immigration, through its Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), invited candidates who had profiles in the new Expression of Interest (EOI) pool.

The candidates were qualified in master’s and PhD Graduate streams. The candidates required a minimum score of 35 to qualify for an invitation to master’s Graduate stream. This draw did not require a targeted occupation or a location requirement, and in a separate draw, the OINP issued invitations to candidates in the Expression of Interest pool who may qualify under the PhD Graduate stream with a score of 24 and above.

One targeted invitation to apply was sent by the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program to a prospective applicant who would be eligible for the federal Economic Mobility Pathways Project under the Foreign Worker stream.

What is master’s graduate stream & how does it work?

International graduates holding an Ontario master’s degree have the option to apply to live and work permanently in Ontario through the Masters Graduate stream. Before submitting an online application to be nominated for permanent residence by the government of Ontario, you must first register in the OINP’s Expression of Interest System and obtain an invitation to apply.

Once invited, the next step would be to apply to the federal government through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. The eligibility criteria is as below. You eligible to apply to the Masters Graduate Stream if you satisfy all of the below requirements. You can apply without having a job offer.

• Completed master’s degree in Ontario
• Have a qualifying language test report
• Ontario-based residence
• Proof of Funds (PoF) are available
• Have genuine desire to reside in Ontario
• Residing in Ontario at the time of application
• Legal status in Canada (if applicable)
• Application period
• Expression of Interest and Invitation to Apply

What is PhD Graduate Stream & how does it work?

International graduates with an Ontario PhD degree have the option to apply to live and work permanently in Ontario through the PhD Graduate stream. Before submitting an online application to the government of Ontario, you must first register in the OINP’s Expression of Interest System and obtain an invitation to apply.

The next step is to apply to the federal government through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada if you are nominated (IRCC). You may apply to the PhD Graduate stream after receiving an invitation to do so. You must satisfy the following requirements for your application to be accepted. To apply, the candidate doesn’t need a job offer.

• Have the required education
• Ontario-based residence
• Proof of Funds (PoF)
• Genuine desire to reside in Ontario
• Legal status in Canada (if applicable)
• Application period
• Expression of Interest and Invitation to Apply

Ontario’s Express Entry System streams

The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) manages applications for the following streams using the Express Entry System of the federal government of Canada:

• French-Speaking Skilled Worker stream
• Human Capital Priorities stream
• Skilled Trades stream

Before the candidate can apply to these streams, s(he) must have received a notification of interest from the OINP and have an up-to-date profile in the federal government’s Express Entry system with the individual’s most recent work experience, language tests, and education.

Candidates must select either Ontario or All Provinces and Territories when they build their profile in the Express Entry System to show that they are interested in immigrating to Ontario. Candidate’s Express Entry profile must contain genuine and accurate information. The candidate’s OINP application may be rejected, or individual nomination may be withdrawn if the information in the Express Entry profile is false or untrue. Candidates can also be rejected by IRCC, which would prevent them for five years from applying to immigrate to Canada.

What is Express Entry (EE)?

Express Entry is an electronic selection system used by the Federal as well as Provincial governments of Canada [to select], as well as designated Canadian employers [to nominate] candidates for Canadian permanent residence under three of its popular economic [skilled] immigration programs:

• Federal Skilled Worker Class (FSWC),
• Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC),
• Canadian Experience Class (CEC)

Candidates eligible for any of the above programs are given a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score in the Express Entry Pool. It is based on their Core/Human capital factors such as age, work experience, education, and language ability in English and/or French, etc. And, based on scores, candidates are periodically invited (or nominated) for permanent residence.

Contact us to know if you qualify to migrate to Canada. Check out Owlspriority Immigration’s Canada Settlement Resources to learn about finding employment in Canada, making your initial days stress-free, etc.