Permanent Residence in Canada with Express Entry (outside of Quebec)

Receiving a nomination from a province or territory to earn an additional 600 points

Provinces and territories can also select you through the Express Entry system and allow you to earn the additional 600 points you may need in order to be selected from the applicant pool. All provinces and territories (with the exception of Nunavut and Quebec) have specific selection programmes in place for the Express Entry system. To increase your chances of being selected from the applicant pool, you may also wish to enquire with your chosen province about receiving a nomination from them. To participate in these programmes, you must first be in the Express Entry applicant pool. Programmes often have quotas which can be met! Find out more.

For each province that has an Express Entry selection process, you will usually need to demonstrate your ties to that province and your willingness to settle there.

Important Points

• Not all candidates for immigration through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) can automatically benefit from the Express Entry system once they have been nominated by a province. In fact, some provincial and territorial programs are not designed to obtain 600 additional points via Express Entry but are designed for the Provincial Nominee Program. It is often the case that a specific program for the province is dedicated to Express Entry, as we are about to describe below. If you have been nominated by a province outside of the Express Entry process, you will need to follow the traditional immigration process of the IRCC as a Provincial Nominee.
• Provincial Nominee Programs through the Express Entry system will not allow you to bypass the eligibility criteria of the three Express Entry immigration programs. In order to participate in one of the specific programs of the provinces and territories dedicated to Express Entry, you must be eligible for one of the following categories:
  – The Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP)
  – The Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP)
  – The Canadian Experience Class Program (CEC)

Alberta

Alberta offers just one program with Express Entry: the Alberta Express Entry Stream.

To be eligible, you must work in a job that “supports Alberta’s economic development and diversification”. No further details are given as to the occupations involved, but you can find the jobs in high demand on the government of Alberta’s Alis website. Alberta has also established a list of occupations for which you are less likely to receive an invitation. Specialising in one of the occupations on this list will reduce your chances of receiving a notification of interest from Alberta.

You must also exceed 300 points on the comprehensive ranking system and, obviously, intend to reside in Alberta.

Other things which may increase your chances include graduating in Canada, having relatives (parent, brother, sister) who live in Alberta, or having a job offer or work experience in Alberta.

British Columbia

British Columbia offers 4 programs through Express Entry which are summarised quite well here: BC PNP – Express Entry BC.

To find out more about the 4 programs:

• Skilled Worker (requires an employer offering a full-time, permanent job/you must have at least 2 years of experience in this field).
• Health Care Professional (requires an employer offering a full-time, permanent job in the health field/you must have at least 2 years of experience in this field).
• International Graduate (requires an employer offering a full-time, permanent job/you must have graduated from an institution in Canada within the last three years)
• International Post-Graduate (no employer required, but you must have graduated in British Columbia in a specific field within the last 3 years)

Manitoba

Manitoba offers a specific program called the Manitoba Express Entry Pathway which has its own specific criteria. Applicants must have a minimum of 6 months experience in one of the jobs on the Manitoba list of jobs in demand. Applicants must also demonstrate a strong connection to Manitoba through 2 possible factors:

• Support in Manitoba: this is for people who have a connection to Manitoba through a friend or relative who has been living here for at least a year.
• The Invitation to Manitoba program: this program is designed to encourage people who have little or no initial connection to the province to create a connection through a formal invitation to explore.

As part of an Express Entry application, Manitoba authorities also explain that if you are eligible for both Express Entry and one of the Provincial Nominee Programs offered by Manitoba (not linked to Express Entry), you may like to contact them to see if you could instead go through Express Entry.

New Brunswick

New Brunswick has a Provincial Nominee Program through Express Entry: the Labour Market Stream. To be eligible for this programme, you must be residing and working in New Brunswick with a skilled job at the time of your application (categories A, B, or 0 of the NOC). You must also demonstrate that you have a CLB 7 or higher and you must have completed an educational credential assessment. Furthermore, you must be eligible for the Federal Skilled Worker category.

If you want to stay in New Brunswick and are eligible for the Skilled Worker Program, the New Brunswick Labour Market Stream could speed up the process considerably; you are guaranteed to receive an invitation quickly with the 600 points from provincial nomination. The cost is $250 CAD.

For more information, visit the New Brunswick government site.

Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador offers a program called Express Entry Skilled Worker Category. To be eligible to take part, you must have a skilled (full-time) job offer in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador of at least 2 years and intend to reside there permanently. You must also earn at least 67 points according to the scale established by the Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Nominee Program (different to the Federal Skilled Worker Program – FSWP). You must also have completed an Educational Credentials Assessment (ECA). The application costs $250 CAD.
Post-graduate work permit holders who are eligible for Express Entry may also be eligible for this program.

You can find more information on this subject in this PDF guide for applicants. You can also look at this page on the Newfoundland and Labrador government site.

Northwest Territories

The NWT (Northwest Territories) only offer one program related to Express Entry:
• Express Entry Stream for Skilled Workers: this is primarily aimed at employers who wish to offer skilled workers (categories A, B, and 0 of the National Occupational Classification) a permanent job offer with a valid LMIA (Labour Market Impact Assessment).

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia offers 2 programs through Express Entry:

• Nova Scotia Experience: this program is for people who have at least one year of skilled work experience (A, B, or 0 of the NOC) in Nova Scotia. The criteria are very similar to those required for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC). If you already have one year of skilled work experience here, this program may be right for you. For more information, you can also consult the application guide.
• Nova Scotia Application: this program is for people who have a job offer in Nova Scotia (category A of the program) or who have at least one year of work experience (category B of the program) in one of the occupations that are particularly in demand in Nova Scotia (e.g. auditor, advertising, marketing and public relations professionals, civil engineer, higher education lecturer, paralegal, nursing assistant, social services worker, etc.). A language level at least equivalent to CLB 7 is required.

You must also earn 67 points out of a possible 100.

Please note that Nova Scotia does not charge a fee for processing these applications.

Ontario

Ontario offers three selection programs linked to the Express Entry system:

• The Human Capital Priorities Stream: this program focuses on the Express Entry profiles in which applicants have demonstrated their willingness to settle in Ontario (through pre-established ties to Ontario).
  Applicants must be eligible for the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) or Canadian Experience Class (CEC). The Skilled Trades Program is not considered. In addition, they must have a level of education equivalent to a Canadian bachelor’s, master’s, or PhD (if the degree is not Canadian, it must be submitted for an Educational Credentials Assessment (ECA)). You must also demonstrate a language level equivalent to or higher than CLB 7 in English OR French. As part of this Ontario Express Entry program, applicants will be required to have completed the Educational Credentials Assessment (except for those educated in Canada), including those who would be eligible for the Canadian Experience Class (where this assessment is usually optional).
• The Skilled Trades Stream: this program is for people who are eligible for the Canadian Experience Class and who have had at least one year of skilled work experience in Ontario in one of the skilled trades in the program category (group 633, major groups 72, 73, and 82 of the NOC). You must currently reside in Ontario with a valid work permit.
• The French-speaking Skilled Worker Stream: as part of its policy to promote Francophone immigration, Ontario has established a specific program for French speakers who also possess a good level of English. To be considered, you must first be eligible for either the Express Entry Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) or the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and have joined the applicant pool. You must also have a minimum level of CLB 7 in French and CLB 6 in English. You should have at least the equivalent of a Canadian bachelor’s degree and, of course, the intention to reside in Ontario (you will have to prove that you have started to establish ties with Ontario). This programme is particularly interesting for French-speakers from France and Belgium who have an adequate level of English and want to settle in Ontario.

The application fees are $1500 CAD for these 3 programs.

Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island has a program linked to Express Entry: the PEI PNP Express Entry Stream. Once your profile has been accepted into the Express Entry applicant pool, you can contact them by email to submit your application. Your application will be assessed according to a 100-point scale.

Two scales exist:

• the first is for those who have a job offer to work on PEI
• the second is for those who do not have a job offer

Priority is given to those who currently live and work on PEI (but this is not an obligation). The application fee is $300 CAD.

For more information, you can also consult their FAQs.

Saskatchewan: SINP (Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program)

Saskatchewan has implemented a provincial nominee process through Express Entry.

Saskatchewan Express Entry Sub-Category: this is for people who have had at least 12 to 24 months of work experience in Canada or abroad in skilled occupations in the past few years and who have at least 60 points out of 100 on the SINP assessment grid (based on education, skilled work experience, language proficiency or your ties to Saskatchewan).

The application fee is $300 CAD.

Yukon: YNP (Yukon Nominee Program)

Yukon has been implementing specific steps in its immigration process through Express Entry since March 2015. This program is for people with a valid, permanent job offer (with LMIA) for a job in categories A, B, or 0 of the Yukon occupational classification. Find out more…