Canada Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)

Canada provincial nominee program (PNP) is an immigration program under which provinces select individuals who apply to immigrate to a specific province in Canada in order to meet an economic need.

In as much as each province has its own specific selection process, one thing is common and that is that they all need skilled workers to fill labor shortages in their respective provinces hence the Provincial Nominee Program.

Canada provincial Nominee Program is one of the easiest ways to immigrate to Canada, so if you are a skilled worker with job experience looking to earn a living in Canada, this is one of the surest ways to go.

Provinces in Canada

There are 10 provinces in Canada and each province selects candidates for nomination based on their economic needs. These provinces include

Alberta
British Columbia
Manitoba
New Brunswick
Newfoundland and Labrador
Nova Scotia
Ontario
Prince Edward island
Quebec
Saskatchewan

There are certain occupations in need of skilled workers in different provinces so if you are applying under PNP you need to be familiar with the high in demand jobs in the province you want to apply to.

Under job experience categories, there are demands in the following occupations

Administrative assistants
Aerospace
Marketing and Advertising
Engineers
Agriculture
Accounting and Finance
Law
Information technology
Medicine and Health
Teaching sector
Trades sector

Who is Canada Provincial Nominee Program for?

Canada Provincial Nominee Program is for workers who wish to live in a specific province in Canada and have work experience, education and/or skills to contribute to the economy of that particular province.

How to Apply for Canada Provincial Nominee Program

Before applying for Canada Provincial Nominee Program, you need to understand the different application processes.

First off, your mode of application depends on which PNP stream you are applying to. There are generally two ways to apply

You can apply online through the Express Entry Program or
Through the paper-based process

Application for PNP using Express Entry Process

There are two different ways to apply under the express entry process, the first involves the following steps

Make contact with the province you wish to reside in and apply for a nomination under express entry stream
Once the province agrees to nominate you, create and express entry profile, if you already have one then update it to show you have been nominated

The second way to apply using the express entry process is

You should create an express entry profile and show the province(s) you are interested in
You should receive a “Notification of Interest” from at least one of the provinces, when this happens ensure to contact them directly
The next step is to apply to their express entry stream which will be offered through your account once nominated by the province and you will accept it electronically

Application for PNP using the paper-based Process

Your first line of action is to apply to the province for nomination under a non-express entry stream
Next, you must meet the eligibility requirement of the province that nominates you
Once nominated, you can go ahead to submit you application for permanent residence to Immigration Refugee and Citizenship Canada
You must pass a medical exam and have a clean criminal record regardless of the province of your choice

Note that the processing time for paper-based application is usually longer than that of express entry.

The province of Quebec has an entirely different immigration program from that of other provinces. Its selection process differs totally from other PNP.

Quebec has more autonomy in immigration policies and procedures granted to them by the Canadian Government which is why its immigration program differs from that of other provinces.

Quebec immigration programs include;