Canadian Immigration Blogs

New Express Entry Stream for Tradespersons

Ontario is Canada’s most populated province and is a very popular destination for new immigrants looking to settle in Canada. Ontario has an immigrant nomination program that assists eligible foreign nationals who have skilled work experience gain permanent residency in Canada, specifically Ontario, and contribute to the Canadian economy. The Provincial Nominee Program, itself, is extremely beneficial for Express Entry candidates as it can provide you with the most points out of all Express Entry factors. Successful candidates can obtain up to 600 additional points from this program and gain an invitation to apply at the next draw for the Express Entry pool. The new Trades Steam came into effect on May 31, 2017. In this article, I will address the new Stream and how it affects the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) and Express Entry altogether.

Canadian Experience Class for Tradespersons

In order to qualify under this new Stream for Tradespersons, candidates must be eligible under Canadian Experience Class (CEC). Of course any candidate who is eligible under the Canadian Experience Class must qualify and meet the minimum requirements necessary – these requirements will be listed below. Most importantly, candidates must also verify that they would like to reside in Ontario in their Express Entry profile and in addition must also receive a Notification of Interest (NOI) from the province of Ontario through their online account before they can submit their application.

Express Entry Questions

In this article, I will address questions and answers for Express Entry in order for you to further understand what Express Entry entails. Express Entry is intended for permanent resident applicants that fall under specific federal economic immigration programs. It is essentially intended to assist foreign nationals to enter Canada on factors that will ultimately benefit the Canadian economy. If you feel as though you would be eligible to apply for Express Entry, I suggest you read our article on Express Entry steps before reading this question and answer article. This article is intended to clarify any misunderstanding or confusion with regards to Express Entry.

Q: Does Express Entry in any way change current immigration program requirements?

A: Thankfully, it does not. Express Entry is not intended to change any current immigration program requirements. Furthermore, Express Entry is not a new program as it has been regulated and implemented for some time now. It is, however, a new way for Immigration Canada to manage applications for specific economic immigration programs, such as the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Canadian Experience Class and a part of the Provincial Nominee Program.

Move to the Province of Alberta

The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) is an economic based immigration program set out by the government of Alberta to attract foreign workers who have the skills and work experience to contribute to the economic growth of Alberta. Foreign nationals that have the skills and experience that the province is looking for will be nominated by the province of Alberta as long as requirements are met under the stream the applicant applies under. The AINP consists of three main immigration streams:

• Strategic Recruitment Stream
• Employer-Driven Stream
• Self-Employed Farmer Stream

This article will discuss Employer-Driven Stream, please refer to our other blogs for information on Strategic Recruitment Stream and Self-Employed Stream.

Employers who will NOT need an LMIA: Exemptions based on Agreements

You may already know that most employers will require a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) before they can hire a temporary foreign worker. However, there are always exceptions; not all employers need to obtain a positive LMIA before they may hire a temporary foreign worker. If you are not sure whether you need an LMIA, or you think that you might be exempt from the normal LMIA requirements, please read this blog for more information.

Two Categories of LMIA Exemptions

There are two broad categories of LMIA exemptions:

Who is eligible to apply for British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program?

The Canadian province of British Columbia depends largely on the type of people employed within it, the skills and trades those workers bring in, and the overall employment structure and demographic of the province. To accomplish such feats and to continue aiming for high and positive growth, immigration plays a vital role in the economic development of British Columbia. The British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP) offers methods of immigrations in to Canada, which are aimed, using various methods for immigration of such persons and groups with the required skills, trades, jobs, and occupations to meet the current labour market outcomes and to harness the safety of the future labour market projections.

The British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program enables an immigration pathway to meet the growing demands of future potential foreign workers and experienced business people and entrepreneurs – people who can contribute greatly to the economy and overall well-being of the province.