The immigration minister of Canada, Marc Miller, met with provincial & territorial immigration ministers in Toronto to discuss shared priorities. The ministers meet twice a year & make up the FMRI, i.e., the Federation Of Ministers Responsible For Immigration. Along with this, four provinces held PNP draws as well. Well, the FMRI is a decision-making body which aims to support a flexible, timely, and efficacious immigration system in Canada. The mission of FMRI is to advance joint immigration priorities & to enhance Canada’s immigration policies as well as programs.

What The FMRI Discussed? 

Following the meeting with other immigration ministers, Marc Miller held a press conference, reiterating many points made at the time of the release of Immigration Levels Plan 2024-26. 

Herein, he explained that his department believes the plan will help create sustainable population growth in Canada while bringing in much-needed support in the construction & healthcare areas. 

In addition, provincial & federal immigration ministers also released a statement after the meeting outlining key discussion points, including: 

  • Reducing duplication among federal-provincial economic class immigration programs & reducing the time of application processing. 
  • Supporting immigration of Francophones outside Quebec.
  • Delivering a more responsive, client-centered economic immigration system. 
  • Diminishing barriers & streamlining foreign credential recognition. 
  • Exploring how governments can work together in order to address pressures on infrastructure, housing, as well as social services. 
  • Considering expanding settlement services eligibility, specifically among asylum claimants & temporary residents on a path to permanent residence. 
  • Improving Canada’s International Student Program integrity. 
  • Aligning work permits with provincial-territorial labor market requirements. 

Multi-Year Provincial Levels Plan 

The most recent FMRI meeting took place in Halifax in the month of March. During the Halifax meeting, the FMRI spoke more about the endorsement of the multi-year levels plan for Provincial Nominee Program. 

This implies that provincial & territorial governments will obtain PNP allocations up to three years in advance. Prior to this, provinces were only advised of the number of immigrants they could select for the PNP one year at a time. 

A multi-year plan can benefit the provinces by ensuring they can offer sufficient settlement services, healthcare, housing, & other infrastructure for immigrants while balancing the needs of those already residing there. 

At the time, ministers discussed other relevant issues like improving international education recognition & making it simple for in-demand professionals to begin working in Canada. 

Moreover, they also discussed the expansion of the Rural & Northern Immigration Pilot Program & Atlantic Immigration Program.     

The New Immigration Strategy Of Canada 

Provincial priorities generally align with the federal government. IRCC recently released a new strategy, i.e., An Immigration System For Canada’s Future. 

In this strategy, IRCC mentions the need for increased consultations with provincial governments, partners, & stakeholders to help adopt a government approach to support sustainable levels of immigration, which will strengthen the economy as well as the workforce of Canada. 

This approach was also referenced in the Immigration Levels Plan. Moreover, Canada will admit up to 500,000 new permanent residents each year in 2025-26, respectively. Among them, over 110,000 will arrive through the PNP in 2024 & 120,000 will come via the PNP in 2025-26. 

Immigration: A Shared Responsibility 

IRCC works closely with territories & provinces as immigration is a shared responsibility under Canada’s constitution. Under the IRPA, the legislation which governs Canada’s federal & provincial immigration system, provinces can select some of the economic immigration applicants who are likely to support local economies & integrate into the provincial workforce. 

That being said, IRCC still makes the final decision on whether a nominated applicant will permanently reside in Canada or not. 

However, it is vital to note that only Quebec & Nunavut do not have PNPs. Quebec has a separate agreement with the federal government, which offers it total control over economic immigration to the province. 

Four Provinces Held PNP Draws: Results      

The FMRI meeting followed an eventful week where four provinces held PNP draws. The results are as follows: 

  • British Columbia 

BC invited more than 219 applicants in the most recent BC PNP draw. Among the five draws, the most significant was a general draw inviting 116 applicants from Skilled Worker, International Graduate, & Entry-Level & Semi-Skilled streams. Minimum scores ranged from 94 -115, depending on the stream. The remaining four draws took place for International Graduates & Skilled Workers in specific professions. 

  • 59 Early Childhood Educators & Assistants 
  • 32 in Healthcare
  • Less than 5 in other priority professions

Applicants in these draws required a minimum score of 60. In addition, the province held its first target for those in construction professions. It invited over 12 Skilled Workers & International Graduate applicants with a minimum score of 75.  

  • Manitoba 

As four provinces held PNP draws, Manitoba invited over 301 applicants. The province held four draws for applicants in three streams. Among Skilled Workers in Manitoba, 100 applicants with a minimum score of 809 obtained invitations to apply in a general draw for all professions. 

In addition, the second draw was for Skilled Workers, which was occupation-specific & considered a wide range of NOC codes from homecare, healthcare, & education. 

The remaining draws saw over 61 applicants invited from the International Education Stream & around 48 Skilled Workers overseas with a minimum score of 721. 

  • Prince Edward Island 

Prince Edward Island invited over 141 applicants to the PEI PNP on November 16, 2023. The province invited around 134 Labor & Express Entry applicants for a PEI employer with a minimum EOI score of 55. 

In addition, there was also a small draw for Business Work Permit Entrepreneur applicants. These seven applicants required a minimum score of 80 to be considered. PEI has invited around 2527 applicants through these two streams in the last 12 months. 

  • Alberta 

Alberta invited over 16 Express Entry applicants on November 9. These applicants were in the Dedicated Healthcare Pathway with Alberta Job Offer Stream & needed a minimum CRS score of 300. 

The Alberta Advantage Immigration Program demonstrates that applicants in this stream who submit their final application can expect to wait up to two months for a final decision.