In August 2021, Canadian Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) invited approximately 3,400 applicants to apply for provincial nominations.
Launched in 1998, PNPs are the second most important pathway for economic immigration in Canada. Under the Immigration Levels Plan for 2021-23, Canada aims to welcome nearly 80,000 immigrants every year through various PNPs.
What Is the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) and How Does It Operate?
The PNPs allow Canadian provinces and territories to nominate suitable applicants with skills and experience relevant to the local labor market needs. Apart from Quebec Immigration and Nunavut, nearly every Canadian province and territory has its nomination program and a different set of requirements for potential applicants. While some programs require applicants to meet a certain set of criteria, others operate with an Expression of Interest (EOI) system.
The EOI system functions much like the Express Entry system. Applicants must create a profile and submit all necessary information regarding their education level, work experience, language skills, etc. The EOI system then ranks their profiles. Applicants who score equal or higher than the minimum point cut-off receive an invitation to apply for provincial nomination.
Other programs nominate applicants directly from the Express Entry pool based on their skills, experience and language proficiency, and Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score.
How Did the PNPs Perform in August 2021?
Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) have been holding biweekly PNP-specific Express Entry draws. In August 2021, the IRCC held 2 PNP-specific Express Entry draws.
The first one was on August 4, 2021, to invite 512 applicants and the second was on August 18 to invite 463 applicants. While the number of invitations issued during August was low compared to the last two months, the total number of invitations issued through the Express Entry system has reached an all-time high. Until now, the IRCC has issued over 100,000 ITAs since the start of this year.
