April 30, 2018

How does the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) work?

The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) enables foreign nationals with the skills and experience targeted by Ontario to apply for permanent residence in Canada through an expedited process. The OINP consists of three main categories: Human Capital, Employer Job Offer, and Business. Each of these three categories contain various streams under which eligible candidates can apply. Opportunities Ontario announced that Ontario’s nomination allocation is a total of 6,600 for 2018. Furthermore, each stream has a yearly quota which may result in a particular stream being closed at any time during the 2018 year.

Interested candidates can register for an account online using the OINP Portal. After filing their application and paying the processing fees, the submitted application is reviewed for completeness to ensure that applicant has submitted all the required information and documentation to demonstrate that they fulfill the program eligibility requirements.

The OINP recently implemented changes to the processing of applications. If the application is complete, the OINP will confirm the same and the application will be forwarded to assess whether the applicant meets all the eligibility requirements. On the other hand, if the application is found to be incomplete, the OINP will grant an extension of 14 calendar days to provide additional documentation or information. However, this extension cannot be used to fulfill a condition that should have been met at the time of filing the application.

Selected candidates will be nominated by the OINP, following which they can apply for permanent residence. Next, Immigrations, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will assess the permanent residence application and make a final decision. IRCC will issue permanent resident visas to successful applicants.