This week British Columbia, Manitoba and Quebec issued nominations to immigration candidates through their Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs), or, in the case of Quebec, unique provincial immigration programs.
Candidates were invited through a combination of economic, humanitarian and human capital streams. Read on for a full breakdown of results.
Note: All provincial immigration streams use their own scoring system, which is implemented for internal purposes. Thus, scores from one province’s PNP or provincial pathway should not be compared to scores from another province.
Provincial immigration results (March 22nd to the 28th)
British Columbia
On March 19th the British Columbia PNP (BC PNP) announced it will phase out the International Graduate and International Post-Graduate streams. Both would be replaced by three new streams:
- The Bachelor stream—which will invite candidates who have obtained bachelor’s degrees from eligible post-secondary institutions, and have a full-time job offer;
- The Master’s stream—which will invite recent graduates with master’s degrees from eligible post-secondary institutions. To register, candidates will need a full-time job offer in a skilled occupation that is at least a year in length; and
- The Doctorate stream—which will invite candidates who are graduates and/or candidates within doctoral level programs in eligible post-secondary institutions.
Students who have completed a diploma or certificate program in Canada, but who are not eligible for the above streams, may still apply to other programs under the BC PNP. Candidates will need a minimum Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level of 8 to apply for these new graduate streams.
In addition, the BC PNP will also increase the minimum language proficiency requirements across all its streams (except for the Health Authority stream, which was previously adjusted).
The above changes are expected to be implemented in January 2025.
On March 26th the BC PNP issued at least 127 invitations to apply (ITAs) to immigration candidates through its Skilled Worker International Graduate (includes Express Entry British Columbia (EEBC) option) stream.
Candidates were invited from a range of different in-demand occupations:
- 28 candidates working in childcare professions needed a minimum score of 85 to be considered;
- 21 candidates working in construction related professions needed a minimum score of 90 to be considered;
- 30 candidates working in healthcare occupations needed a minimum score of 85 to be considered;
- 47 candidates working in tech-related occupations needed a minimum score of 114 to be considered; and
- At least 1 candidate working in veterinary care needed a minimum score of 85 to be considered.
For a full list of in-demand occupations in British Columbia, (including those in which candidates were working when invited in the above draw) click here.
The Skilled Worker International Graduate stream is for individuals who have graduated from an eligible Canadian university or college, and who have a job offer from an employer in British Columbia. The added EEBC option indicates that the BC PNP can (through this stream) invite candidates who are in the Express Entry pool, indicating that this is an enhanced PNP stream.
For more information on the BC PNP and its various streams, find our dedicated webpage here.
Quebec
Quebec recently revealed provincial immigration results for a draw that occurred on March 18th, 2024.
The Quebecois government invited 1,357 people to apply for permanent selection . To be invited in this draw, candidates needed to:
- Have at least a level 7 oral proficiency in French according to the Échelle québécoise des niveaux de compétence en français (Quebec’s language scale of assessing French ability); and
- Have a score within Quebec’s immigration system, equal or greater to 596 points.
Or
- Have at least a level 7 oral proficiency in French according to the Échelle québécoise des niveaux de compétence en français; and
- Have a valid job offer outside the territory of the metropolitan area of Montréal.
For more information on immigrating to Quebec, find our dedicated webpage here.
Manitoba
On March 26th the Manitoba PNP (MPNP) held a special immigration draw for Ukranian nationals, in line with Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC’s) special measures to aid Ukrainians affected by the war with Russia.
The province issued 179 expressions of interest (the equivalent of an ITA) to Ukranian citizens who:
- Had a minimum of CLB level 4 in each language band, with a valid language test result;
- Had an established connection to Manitoba (close relative, family-like, community, previous employment or studies in Manitoba);
- Had a score at least 60 points according to MPNP criteria; and
- Could satisfy all other requirements of the Skilled Worker Overseas Pathway, including sufficient settlement funds.
To find out more about immigrating to Manitoba, visit our dedicated webpage here.
