Welcome to the Guberman // Appleby Immigration Update. We hope you find the information provided relevant to your immigration needs. Our objective is to highlight recent updates in immigration that are of interest to our readers. If you have questions about how these changes impact you, we invite you to contact our Canadian immigration lawyers for tailored guidance.
Today’s topic:
ONIP New Ontario Workforce Priority Stream
OINP has streamlined its program offerings. Instead of multiple categories, each with its own criteria and requirements, OINP has created one omnibus Ontario Workforce Priority Stream. The focus of the stream is having a job offer in Ontario that is in a TEER 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 NOC. The stream also specifically includes Self-Employed Physicians. The applicant may or may not already be working for the employer in Ontario.
In addition to having a job offer from a qualified employer who is prepared to register with OINP and submit an application for approval of the job offer, there are also requirements for the applicant pertaining to work experience, licensing, language ability, education, legal status in Canada and the ability to demonstrate and intention to live and work in Canada.
The first step in the process is for the prospective employer to register with the program and submit an application for approval of the job offer. Once this has been done, the applicant can then file an electronic Expression of Interest within 30 days. If an Invitation to Apply is issued, the employer has 14 calendar days to request an approval of the position and concurrently, the applicant has 17 calendar days to submit their application to OINP and pay the process fees. It is a very tight timeline intended to keep the process moving forward. In the event of approval, the foreign national receives a Nomination Approval Letter, a Nomination Certificate, and, where applicable, a Work Permit Support Letter, and then has six months to apply to IRCC for permanent residence.
In order to be eligible as an employer, the business must have been active in Ontario for at least three years, must have a premises where the foreign national will work, and cannot have any outstanding Employment Standards or Health and Safety orders against it. Revenue requirements vary by region: employers in the Greater Toronto Area need at least $1 million in gross revenue, employers in a defined list of other regions such as Ottawa, Waterloo, Hamilton, and Niagara need at least $500,000, and employers elsewhere in the province need at least $250,000 over their two most recent fiscal years. Employers must also carry a minimum full-time Canadian or permanent resident headcount — five employees in the GTA, three outside it — and the job offer itself has to be full-time, permanent, and paid at or above the median wage for the region, running at least 1,560 hours a year. There is one notable exception: a lower wage is acceptable where the applicant is a recent Ontario graduate working in a TEER 0 to 3 occupation.
The applicant’s own eligibility depends on the TEER level of the job offer.
For a TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3 position, the foreign national must meet one of the work experience requirements:
Language ability needs to reach CLB 6 across all four skills, though CLB 5 is accepted for a defined list of skilled trades and technical occupations, and education requirements typically call for at least one year of post-secondary study, or a Canadian high school diploma or equivalent where the job offer falls under a listed skilled trade.
For TEER 4 or 5 positions, the work experience requirement is nine months of cumulative full-time experience within the two years before application, CLB 4 across all four language skills, and a Canadian high school diploma or its foreign equivalent.
Expression of Interest Scoring Factors
The information that is provided by the applicant to the Expression of Interest pool is a set of factors relating to NOC Teer, NOC Broad Occupational Category, Hourly Wage, Ontario Work Experience, Historical Canadian Work Experience Earnings, Highest Level of Education, Official Language Ability, Regionalization that will result in an overall score. The figures for competitive scores remain to be seen. It is interesting that while higher NOC Teers are awarded more points (9 for Teer 0 or 1; 6 for Teer 2 or 3; 0 for Teer 4 and 5), the NOC Broad Occupational Category point allocation appears to be designed around labour market shortage/demand and not skill level, education or significant experience:
- Category 3 (health) – 10 points
- Category 7 (trades, transportation, equipment operators) – 8 points
- Category 2 (natural and applied science) – 6 points
- Category 0 (senior managerial), 1 (business, finance, administration), 4 (education, law, social services), 8 (natural resources, agriculture) and 9 (manufacturing, utilities) – 4 points
- Category 5 (arts, culture, sports), 6 (sales, service) – 2 points
Regionalization Points
It is not unexpected to see that more points are awarded for job offers in locations that are more remote:
- Northern Ontario — 15 points
- Eastern Ontario — 10 points
- Central Ontario outside GTA — 10 points
- Southwestern Ontario — 10 points
- Inside GTA (except Toronto) — 5 points
- Toronto — 0 points
Self-Employed Physicians
There are also specific requirements for Self-Employed Physicians. If you have a specific query about this stream, please reach out to one of the lawyers at Guberman//Appleby Immigration Lawyers.
Based on the 2026 OINP draws to date, approximately 13,000 nominations of the province’s allocation of 14,000 were issued as of April 30, 2026. To date, no information has been provided on whether OINP plans to proceed with the remaining 1,000 (or fewer) spots and how/when the new stream will be applicable. That being said, it is encouraging that there is a category that is not restricted to specific occupations and that age is not a factor for consideration. Despite the fact that there are point limitations for executives and professionals, additional points for higher wages may prove to balance out that issue.
// CONTACT US
We welcome you to contact us directly to discuss the above. Please contact one of our Toronto immigration lawyers, by reaching out to our general line 416 548 7100 or via email info@gaimmlaw.com. Our immigration lawyers are always available to discuss any of your specific Canadian or US immigration queries either virtually or in person. We look forward to hearing from you.
