Provincial Nominee Program

Canada’s latest Express Entry pool update on November 9, 2025, shows a steady rise in high-performing candidates, with 11% now holding a CRS score above 500. This reflects growing competitiveness, but also signals that many applicants are successfully improving their profiles through education, work experience, language skills, and provincial nominations.

Ontario has introduced major regulatory amendments to the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), granting the province wider authority to suspend or return applications before issuing nominations.

Fewer draws and an updated NOC set the stage for a higher number of Express Entry ITAs in 2023.

Immigration Levels Plan Target for 2023

The Immigration department invited 5,000 candidates in a Canadian Expereince Class (CEC)- only draw in the last day of July 2024 with minimum CRS of 510.

Candidates needed a minimum CRS score of 520 and had to create their Express Entry profile before July 15, 2025.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held a new Express Entry draw on October 29, 2025, issuing 6,000 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to candidates with French-language proficiency.

Candidates required a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 416, and only those who created their Express Entry profile before September 8, 2025, were considered.

This was the third-largest draw of the year, following two other major French-language draws held on February 19 and March 21. Altogether, candidates in the French category have received 36,000 ITAs in 2025, more than any other Express Entry category. This trend reflects IRCC’s ongoing commitment to strengthening Francophone immigration outside Quebec, consistent with the objectives of Canada’s Official Languages Act.

The October 29 draw also capped a busy month, coming right after consecutive draws for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), and Healthcare and social services streams.

So far in 2025, IRCC has issued 80,485 ITAs through 46 draws, distributed across key categories:

• French-language proficiency: 36,000 ITAs
• Canadian Experience Class: 22,850 ITAs
• Healthcare and social services: 9,792 ITAs
• Provincial Nominee Program: 7,249 ITAs
• Education: 3,500 ITAs
• Trade: 1,250 ITAs

These results underline Canada’s growing focus on language diversity and workforce integration, particularly in sectors facing labour shortages.

Canada invited 919 Express Entry candidates to apply for permanent residence on March 30.

Alberta invites 120 Express Entry candidates and BC targets tech occupations. 

Two provinces have announced major immigration draws this month, together issuing more than 1,700 invitations to apply (ITAs).

Alberta
Between September 2 and 10, the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program (AAIP) invited 1,376 candidates through seven separate draws. The largest took place on September 4, when 891 invitations were issued under the Alberta Opportunity Stream. Other draws targeted priority sectors such as healthcare, construction, agriculture, and aviation. 

So far this year, Alberta has issued 3,749 provincial nominations from its 2025 allocation of 4,875, leaving 1,126 spaces available for the remainder of the year.

Newfoundland and Labrador
On September 12, the province held its ninth round of 2025, inviting 353 candidates through the Provincial Nominee Program (NLPNP) and the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP). This included 218 invitations under the NLPNP and 135 through the AIP, the province’s largest AIP-specific draw so far in 2025. 

To date, Newfoundland and Labrador has invited 2,018 candidates under the NLPNP and 586 under the AIP, working within its increased 2025 allocations of 2,050 NLPNP nominations and 475 AIP spaces.

The Alberta Advantage Immigration Program (AAIP) conducted five provincial immigration draws between October 8 and October 21, 2025, issuing a total of 202 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) across several key sectors, including tech, healthcare, aviation, and agriculture.

Canada's immigration system is entering a new era where the provinces want to have even more control than the federal government.

The newly released Express Entry Year-End report for 2023 reveals a significant increase in the number of Invitations to Apply (ITAs) issued. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) distributed 110,266 ITAs across 42 draws in 2023, marking a 136% rise from 2022’s 46,539 ITAs.

Although all-program Express Entry draws could resume in two weeks, it may not be the end of PNP draws forever. Before the pandemic, IRCC occasionally held PNP-only draws. IRCC sees the PNP as paramount to supporting the economic development regions across Canada

British Columbia invited immigration candidates in four targeted draws under its Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)

126 skilled workers and international graduates with a minimum score of 85 points through the BC PNP Tech stream.

British Columbia has announced major changes to its Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) following a sharp reduction in federal immigration allocations. The province will accept only 1,100 new applications in 2025—limiting intake to front-line healthcare workers, entrepreneurs, and high-impact skilled workers.

If you're planning to immigrate to Ontario through a job offer, there's an important update you need to know: starting July 2, 2025, the process for applying under Ontario’s job offer streams will change.

British Columbia has received an additional 1,254 nomination spots under the Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP), increasing its 2025 allocation to 5,254—up from 4,000. The province will now begin processing some of the 2,240 International Post-Graduate (IPG) applications that had been waitlisted since late 2024 due to quota limits.

British Columbia is the only province to hold a general or targeted draw in the last week.

British Columbia has now issued over 1,300 invitations to apply for provincial nomination since the start of the year.
British Columbia invited 160 immigration candidates through Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) draws held on February 22.