Ontario (OINP)

Ontario recognizes that employers play a critical role in our economic success. For many employers, newcomers to Ontario are a valuable source of skilled labour. If you are an Ontario employer having difficulty finding the workers you need, Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program may be the program for you.

The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) is an economic immigration program designed to help Ontario meet its labour market and economic development priorities. The program allows Ontario to nominate, for permanent residence, individuals who have the skills and experience to contribute to Ontario’s economy, and assists employers in recruiting and retaining foreign workers.

Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) is designed in part to assist employers who are having difficulty recruiting qualified, skilled workers in Ontario.

Role of investors

The program allows investors to have key employees obtain permanent resident status. Endorsed investors can recruit foreign workers through the General Category.

Individuals can also participate in OINP

Once they are recruited by an employer, individuals who meet all of the OINP requirements may be nominated by the province for permanent residence as Provincial Nominees. Individuals applying in the International Students: Masters Graduate or PhD graduates stream can apply directly to OINP.

Nominated individuals must then apply to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). IRCC then performs important admissibility checks for health and security in order to grant permanent residence to applicants. Nominees can also apply to IRCC for a temporary work permit while their permanent residence application is being processed.

Approved employers can recruit foreign workers through the General Category and the International with a Job Offer.

Individuals applying through the International Masters and Phd Graduates streams can apply directly to OINP

General Category:

Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) helps employers who are having difficulty finding the skilled workers they need. It also allows investors to bring in key employees on a permanent basis. Through the program, employers and investors can recruit foreign workers in any managerial, professional or skilled trades occupation (see the NOC 0, A or B categories).

Who can be recruited

Employers and investors may recruit qualified employees for approved positions through the General Category, whether they are abroad or in Canada with legal status (as temporary foreign workers or visitors). All prospective nominees who are visiting or residing in Canada will be required to provide documentation of their status with their application forms. Employers will need to indicate on their application forms whether they are recruiting foreign workers from abroad or foreign workers who are in Canada with legal status.

Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP)

offers international students with a job offer the opportunity to permanently live and work in Ontario.

Prospective nominees (the applicant) can only apply if they have received an approved permanent full-time job offer from an Ontario employer, or from a business making an approved and endorsed investment in Ontario.

To be eligible to apply, an International Student must have a job offer that meets the following criteria:

be an approved permanent, full-time job offer in a high-skilled occupation (NOC 0, A or B), and
meets the entry-level wage levels in Ontario for that occupation.

The International Student must also:

have graduated from or have met the requirements of a full-time degree or diploma program at an eligible publicly-funded Canadian college or university that is at least two (2) years in length or a one year post-graduate certificate program, which requires a previous degree in order to qualify,
have completed at least half of their studies in Canada, and
apply within two years from the date on which they graduated.

OINP will not accept applications from International Students in their final semester of studies. Applicants must have met all the degree requirements at the time of application.

Applicants must have met all the degree requirements at the time of application.

Important: Definition of “Full-Time”

The following are not considered permanent, full-time employees even if they work 1,560 hours in a 12-month period:

Seasonal or part-time Employees regardless of their working hours,
Subcontractors, independent contractors, business owners or agency workers,
Employees who do not work on the company’s premises, such as employees who work from home, or employees who work in a “virtual” location, and serve the employer by telecommuting.

International Students – Masters Graduate & Phd Graduate Stream

The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) offers an opportunity for international students with a Master’s degree obtained in Ontario to live and work permanently in Ontario.

Applicants applying to the Masters Graduate Stream can apply without a job offer.

Ontario High-Demand Occupations List

The list contains high demanding jobs and the candidates are selected on their obtained point. The most important thing to note here is, OINP will be targeting a list of in-demand trades but there will be no limit for issuing the Notification of Interest (NOI).

The occupations can be easily found by its National Occupational Classification (NOC).

Individuals nominated by the OINP can then apply for permanent residence through IRCC, IRCC makes the final decision on each application and issues permanent resident visas to successful applicants.

This program allows employers to:

Apply for the approval of permanent, full-time positions to be filled by foreign nationals
Recruit foreign nationals to fill those positions.