A provincial nomination is one of Canada’s key immigration options. PNPs offer tailored pathways to Canadian permanent resident status for students, skilled or semi-skilled workers, entrepreneurs and business owners, among others. A provincial nomination can be especially valuable to candidates in the federal government’s Express Entry selection system A nomination awarded under an Express Entry-linked PNP, known as an "enhanced nomination," awards 600 points under the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS)

The following provinces and territory participate in Canada's Provincial Nominee Program:

• Alberta
• British Columbia
• Manitoba
• New Brunswick
• Newfoundland and Labrador
• Northwest Territories
• Nova Scotia
• Ontario
• Prince Edward Island
• Saskatchewan
• Yukon

The province of Quebec selects potential immigrants outside the PNP. The Government of Quebec has a separate agreement with Canada's federal government that allows it to nominate individuals based on its own immigration criteria.

An Express Entry-linked PNP category or stream is one that nominates candidates who are already in Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)'s economic immigration selection system.

The Express Entry system manages candidates in the following three federal economic immigration categories:

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

On top of meeting the eligibility criteria for one of these categories and creating an Express Entry profile, candidates interested in Express Entry-linked PNPs generally also must meet additional criteria set by the province and territory in question.

Express Entry candidates who are nominated by a Canadian province or territory receive an additional 600 points toward their Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score.

To differentiate between provincial nominations obtained through the Express Entry selection system or directly through the province, IRCC refers to a nomination as either ‘base’ or ‘enhanced.’

‘Base’ nominations may be beneficial to individuals who are interested in immigrating to Canada but who are not eligible for Express Entry. IRCC says applications for permanent residence under a base nomination are paper-based and are treated through the “regular” Canadian immigration application process.

‘Enhanced’ nominations are processed online through a candidate’s Express Entry profile and benefit from Express Entry's six months or less application processing time frame.

Some provinces have so-called "passive" Express Entry-linked immigration streams that allow provincial authorities to search the Express Entry pool for candidates who meet specified criteria. These streams are considered passive because candidates cannot submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) or apply without first being invited to do so by the province.

For example, Ontario's three Express Entry-linked streams — the Human Capital Priorities Stream, the French-Speaking Skilled Worker Stream and the Skilled Trades Stream — allow the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) to search the Express Entry pool for candidates who match their criteria and invite them to apply for a provincial nomination.

No. The job offer requirement varies based on the PNP category or stream's eligibility requirements.

No. There are many ways to obtain Canadian permanent residence without a provincial nomination. Discover your options for Canadian immigration by completing our free online assessment now.

The Canada PNP Finder is updated as soon as we receive news of developments in a PNP category or stream.