How to Apply for Opportunities Ontario,
Ontario’s Provincial Nominee Program

Image credit to footloosiety at flickr

As an alternative to the federal immigration stream, Ontario offers Opportunities Ontario, Ontario’s Provincial Nominee Program.  When Ontario employers have difficulty finding local skilled or experienced workers to fill positions, they can utilize this program.  Workers can be recruited from either the General Category or the International Student With Job Offer Stream.

Before you can apply for Ontario’s Provincial Nominee Program, the following steps must occur:

• your prospective employer must apply for a pre-screening of your position
• your position must be approved
• your prospective employer must send you the employer’s approval letter, the Joint Verification form signed by your prospective employer, and the Pre-screen Position form

Applicants must have a permanent, full-time job offer from an Ontario employer in one of the occupations that qualify, as defined by the Canadian National Occupational Classification (NOC) list.  These positions must be either a Skill Type 0 (managerial occupation), Skill Level A (professional occupation) or Skill Level B (technical occupation and skilled trade).

General Category

Whether living abroad or in Canada with legal status, you may be eligible for recruitment if you have specific skills for which an employer is looking.  You need at least two years of work experience in the intended occupation, or appropriate registration in Ontario, if you are applying for a position in a regulated occupation.

In addition to employers, investors that want to ensure long-term success of their investment can recruit or relocate key employees.  Prospective nominees are required to meet the same criteria as a foreign worker.

International Student Category

There are three streams in this category, listed below.

With Job Offer

Your job offer must be in either a Skill Type 0, Skill Level A or Skill Level B according to the NOC list, and you must have recently graduated from a publicly funded Canadian post-secondary institution.

PhD Graduate

A job offer is not required for graduates of a PhD program from one of Ontario’s publicly funded universities.

Pilot Masters Graduate

A job offer is not required for graduates of a Masters program from one of Ontario’s publicly funded universities.

You can find forms for Ontario’s Provincial Nominee Program here.

There is more than simply knowing how to apply for Ontario’s Provincial Nominee Program – you might need help with the application itself.

Although the Provincial Nominee Program is designed to expedite the process to immigrate to Canada, it does add an extra step.  After you are successful in getting nominated, you still need to apply for permanent residence with the federal government.  Taking both tasks into account can feel overwhelming, but experienced Canadian immigration lawyers can assist you to properly navigate both processes, so you don’t make any mistakes.

If you are interested in immigrating to Ontario, consider Opportunities Ontario, Ontario’s Provincial Nominee Program – the province might be interested in you!