Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP)

The Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) allows participating provinces and territories to nominate individuals who have the skills, education and work experience needed in their jurisdictions and who intend to live there permanently. Each province and territory has its own eligibility requirements and selection criteria.

Important: Provincial nominees are not required to meet the six selection factors of the Federal Skilled Worker Program simply because they are provincial nominees. However, applicants under an Express Entry-aligned PNP stream must generally be eligible for one of the federal Express Entry programs, and all provincial nominees remain subject to federal requirements, including admissibility and the requirements of the Provincial Nominee Class.

The table below provides a high-level comparison of current PNP streams and pathways. “Yes” means the characteristic is generally a mandatory eligibility requirement of that stream/pathway; it does not mean that the characteristic can never be relevant where the table says “No.” Individual pathways and targeted categories may have additional requirements.

Important notes

* Requirements vary within the stream or pathway. These entries should not be treated as substitutes for the detailed eligibility requirements of the particular program.

Alberta: The Alberta Advantage Immigration Program currently has four worker streams — Tourism and Hospitality, Alberta Opportunity, Alberta Express Entry and Rural Renewal — plus the Dedicated Health Care Pathway under Alberta Express Entry. It also has four entrepreneur streams: Rural Entrepreneur, Graduate Entrepreneur, Farm and Foreign Graduate Entrepreneur.

British Columbia: The current worker program has only two Skills Immigration streams: Skilled Worker and Health Authority. Both have an Express Entry BC option. The former International Graduate, International Post-Graduate and Entry Level and Semi-Skilled streams should not be presented as current streams. The ELSS stream officially closed, and B.C. has stated that it will not launch new student streams. B.C.’s current entrepreneur program consists of the Base, Regional and Strategic Projects streams.

Manitoba: The MPNP currently has three main streams: Skilled Worker, International Education and Business Investor. The International Education Stream has three pathways: Career Employment, Graduate Internship and International Student Entrepreneur. The Skilled Worker Stream consists of Skilled Worker in Manitoba and Skilled Worker Overseas.

New Brunswick: The current NBPNP website identifies the Skilled Worker and Express Entry streams. New Brunswick also uses a Strategic Initiative for Francophone priorities and workers, but this should not be presented as a conventional third stream without explaining its current structure.

Nova Scotia: Nova Scotia consolidated its former 10 NSNP streams into four streams effective February 18, 2026: Nova Scotia Graduate, Skilled Worker, Entrepreneur and Nova Scotia: Express Entry. Former programs such as Critical Construction Worker Pilot and Physician continue under the consolidated Skilled Worker stream rather than as separate current streams.

Ontario: Ontario substantially redesigned the OINP in 2026. The former Human Capital Priorities, French-Speaking Skilled Worker, Skilled Trades, Employer Job Offer, Masters Graduate and PhD Graduate streams should therefore not be presented as current OINP streams. Ontario introduced the Ontario Workforce Priority stream as part of the redesign.

Prince Edward Island: PEI currently identifies Express Entry, Skilled Workers Outside Canada, Skilled Workers in PEI, Critical Workers, International Graduates, Intermediate Experience and Occupations in Demand as worker pathways, together with the Business Work Permit Stream. PEI’s current Express Entry requirements specifically require the applicant to qualify for one of the three federal Express Entry programs.

Saskatchewan: The SINP currently has two major program categories — International Skilled Worker and Saskatchewan Experience — with multiple pathways. The current International Skilled Worker pathways include Saskatchewan Express Entry, Occupations In-Demand, Employment Offer, Agriculture Talent, Health Talent and Innovation and Tech Talent. Saskatchewan Experience includes pathways such as Existing Work Permit and Students. The former Hard-To-Fill Skills Pilot is closed and should be removed from a current table.

Northwest Territories: The current NTNP has three streams: Employer-Driven, Francophone and Business. The Employer-Driven Stream contains Entry Level/Semi-Skilled, Skilled Worker and NWT Express Entry categories.

Yukon: The 2026 Yukon Nominee Program has three streams: Yukon Express Entry, Skilled Worker and Critical Impact Worker. It is an employer-driven program.

Quebec: Quebec is not included because it does not operate a PNP. Quebec selects its own economic immigrants under the Canada–Quebec immigration framework. Nunavut also does not operate a PNP.

This table is intended as a high-level screening tool only. Program criteria, intake restrictions, occupational priorities, invitation policies and application windows can change without notice. Always review the applicable provincial program guide before relying on a stream for an individual application.

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