British Columbia (B.C.), Quebec, and Prince Edward Island (PEI) have issued invitations to apply for provincial immigration programs over the past week.
B.C. and PEI did so through their respective Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs). Each province and territory in Canada (with the exceptions of Quebec and Nunavut) has a PNP. They can have these programs because immigration is a shared responsibility between Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the provincial governments.
IRCC allocates a specific number of nominations to these provinces each year. It is then up to the provinces to select economic immigration candidates who are viewed as the most likely to integrate into the provincial economy successfully.
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All PNPs have individual streams for candidates with different eligibility criteria. For example, international graduates, candidates with specific occupations or work experience or candidates who are willing to live and work in rural locations.
Most provinces have a provincial scoring system that is similar to the federal Comprehensive Ranking System, but acts at a provincial level to evaluate candidates.
Quebec does not have a PNP and instead has a separate agreement with the federal government that allows it total autonomy over the selection of economic immigrants in the province.
British Columbia
B.C. invited 156 candidates to apply for nomination through the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) on August 20. B.C. holds draws for candidates almost weekly.
The province held four separate draws for candidates eligible under the Skilled Immigration category. The largest draw was general, meaning no occupation was specified, and invited 83 candidates from the Skilled Worker, International Graduate and Entry-Level and Semi-Skilled streams of the BC PNP. All candidates required a score of 130 except Entry-Level and Semi-Skilled candidates, who needed a score of 110 to be considered.
There were also three occupation-specific draws for Skilled Worker and International Graduate candidates. The results were:
38 invitations to candidates in childcare occupations with a minimum score of 85
20 invitations to candidates in construction occupations with a minimum score of 89
15 invitations to candidates in healthcare occupations with a minimum score of 99
Quebec
Quebec has retroactively published the results of a draw that occurred on August 8.
The Minister of Immigration, Francization, and Integration (MIFI) invited 1,415 candidates to apply for permanent selection via the Regular Skilled Worker Program.
All candidates required a score of 576 points to be considered as well as level 7 oral proficiency (or higher) in French according to the Échelle québécoise des niveaux de compétence en français (Québec scale of French proficiency levels for adult immigrants) or its equivalent.
Prince Edward Island
PEI invited 57 candidates through the Labour and Express Entry stream of the PEI PNP on August 22. It was the first draw in over a month.
To be considered, candidates had to currently be working in PEI in the healthcare and construction sectors. The province says those with work permits expiring in 2024 in the traditional (tourism, agriculture, fisheries) and trucking and transport sectors were also considered.
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