CIMM – Provincial Nominee Program – November 25, 2024

Key Facts and Figures

• As part of the overall shift to reduce permanent resident admissions for 2025 in the Levels Plan, the targets for the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) will decrease from 110,000 in 2024 to 55,000 in 2025.
• While targets for all of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC) permanent resident lines of business are being decreased compared to 2024, the proportion of the plan dedicated to the economic class has grown.

Key Messages

• This year’s Immigration Levels Plan will include overall reductions to permanent resident admission targets, including the PNP; however, this is in an effort to help achieve well-managed, sustainable growth in the long term.
• The Plan adjusts all the economic immigration targets to respond to the country’s current economic and labour market needs.
• We will continue to work collaboratively with provinces and territories (PTs) to achieve our shared economic immigration objectives, including by transitioning more temporary residents (TRs) to permanent residence.

Supplementary Information

• The decrease in PNP levels space will slow the intake of provincial nominees and will likely impact the allocations that can be distributed to PTs in 2025.
• Due to existing inventories of applications, the decrease in levels space afforded to the PNP will lead to an increase in processing times. The full extent of this will be determined by the number of allocations distributed to PTs in 2025, as every additional allocation is anticipated to grow the PNP processing inventory.

If pressed on the public policy to facilitate work permits for TRs:

• IRCC introduced a time-limited public policy to support PTs in addressing labour market needs by extending work permit authorizations for those facing the expiry of their work permits in 2024 while their PNP applications are being processed.
• Eligible foreign nationals must be endorsed by PTs to be nomination-ready at the time of application. PTs are required to nominate eligible candidates within two years.
• Participating jurisdictions (Yukon, Alberta and Manitoba) are leveraging future allocations to identify strong candidates for permanent residency.
• As illustrated by this facilitative measure, IRCC remains committed to working with PTs to explore solutions for skilled TRs to provide clear pathways to permanent residence.