How it works
About the ontario workforce priority stream
Ontario's only nominee stream since the June 2026 redesign. The employer starts the process through the Employer Portal, and you then have 30 days to submit an expression of interest. Candidates in TEER 0 to 3 jobs, and self-employed physicians, can choose to be nominated through Express Entry for the 600-point boost, or take a paper-based nomination instead.
Applying from outside Canada: Genuinely open from abroad. Ontario states that immigration status is required only for applicants inside Canada. The practical gate is the employer, who must additionally show local recruitment efforts because you are overseas. As of 11 September 2026 the expression of interest portal is open but Ontario had not yet published any invitation round under this stream.
Source: the province's own page for this stream. Last checked September 11, 2026. Provinces change stream criteria without notice, so confirm the detail before you rely on it.
Requirements
What this stream asks for
- A full-time, permanent job offer in Ontario that the employer shows is urgently necessary to the business and pays the wage level set for that location
- An employer that applies through the Employer Portal, has traded for at least three years, has Ontario premises, and meets revenue and Canadian-employee thresholds
- For TEER 0 to 3 jobs: six months of full-time experience in the offered role in the last year, or two years in the same occupation in the last five, or the mandatory licence for the occupation
- For TEER 4 and 5 jobs: nine months of full-time experience in the offered role within the last two years
- Language at CLB 6 in all four abilities for TEER 0 to 3, CLB 5 for listed skilled trades, CLB 4 for TEER 4 and 5
- A post-secondary credential of at least one year, assessed if it is foreign; a Canadian secondary school diploma for listed trades and for TEER 4 and 5
- Valid immigration status only if you are applying from inside Canada
- An intention to live and work in Ontario
Programme
The Ontario programme right now
Ontario removed its eight previous streams on 25 June 2026 and replaced them with a single Ontario Workforce Priority stream. The expression of interest system for the old streams is closed, and profiles and job offers registered under them that had not produced an invitation were withdrawn. The province describes this as the first of two phases, so more change is expected.
The streams closed on 25 June 2026 were: Employer Job Offer (Foreign Worker, In-Demand Skills and International Student), Master's Graduate, PhD Graduate, and the three Express Entry streams (Human Capital Priorities, French-Speaking Skilled Worker and Skilled Trades).
Official OINP page Official draw results
Checked against the province's own pages on September 11, 2026. Streams change through the year, so confirm on the official page before you apply.
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Ontario Provincial Nominee Program How the Provincial Nominee Program works
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