Ontario held its first Express Entry Skilled Trades stream draw of 2022.
Ontario invited 1,032 Express Entry candidates to apply for a provincial nomination on January 27.
The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) invited candidates who may be eligible for a provincial nomination through the Ontario Express Entry Skilled Trades Stream.
In order to be invited, candidates needed a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score between 381 and 461. Ontario invited candidates who had submitted their profiles between January 27, 2021 and January 27, 2022.
Discover if You Are Eligible for Canadian Immigration
If invited candidates receive the nomination, they will get 600 CRS points added to their score. They will also be eligible to receive an Invitations to Apply (ITA) from a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)-specific Express Entry draw.
Those who received an invitation now have 45 calendar days to apply for the provincial nomination.
Ontario’s Express Entry Skilled Trades Stream
Ontario’s Express Entry-linked Skilled Trades Stream offers a pathway to permanent residency for Federal Skilled Worker Program and Canadian Experience Class candidates. The OINP invites eligible candidates to apply for a provincial nomination.
To be eligible, candidates need to be living in Ontario with a valid work permit. They also need to have a minimum of one year of full-time work experience, or the equivalent in part-time work. They must have completed this work experience in the province in a skilled trade listed in Minor Group 633 or Major Group 72, 73, or 82 under Canada’s National Occupational Classification (NOC).
No job offer is needed to apply under the Skilled Trades Stream, but candidates must meet all the mandatory federal and provincial requirements.
The first step to being considered for a provincial nomination is to submit a profile to the Express Entry system.
About Express Entry
Express Entry is an application management system that allows people to apply for permanent residence directly to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). It is not an immigration program itself, but it manages the applications for the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Canadian Experience Class, and Federal Skilled Worker Program.
If you are eligible for one or more of these programs, you can then create an Express Entry profile. Once you upload all your documents, you will get a score based on your work experience, education, age, and language ability in English or French, among other criteria.
The highest scoring candidates are issued ITAs, which allow them to apply for permanent residence.
