Hire a provincial nominee
The Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) lets provinces and territories nominate immigrants who meet local labour market needs and other priorities for permanent residence.
Each province and territory designs its own PNP streams, including those that aim to recruit and retain
- skilled and semi-skilled workers
- entrepreneurs and investors
- post-secondary graduates
Candidates must show that they can support themselves economically and plan to live in the nominating province or territory. IRCC and the nominating province or territory work together to ensure candidates are eligible for the program. In addition:
- we assess whether candidates are admissible to Canada
- provinces and territories set other program requirements, such as registration, that employers must follow
- employers must make a qualifying job offer to eligible candidates
Explore the provincial and territorial programs
Provinces and territories use the Express Entry system, a non-Express Entry system or both to operate their PNP.
Select a province or territory to learn about their PNP programs
Quebec does not have a provincial nominee program. Learn more about Quebec’s immigration programs
Choose an application process
Hiring using Express Entry
Processing time: We couldn’t load the data. Try again
Provinces and territories use the federal Express Entry process in 2 ways: to invite candidates from their PNP to apply to the Express Entry pool, or to search the pool for candidates who meet their hiring needs.
Candidate requirements
- Meet the minimum criteria of at least 1 of the 3 federal immigration programs managed through Express Entry
- Meet the requirements of the province or territory’s Express Entry PNP stream
- Have an active Express Entry profile
- They can create it on their own or follow the instructions provided by the province or territory.
Once a candidate meets these requirements, the province or territory will contact them to continue with the nomination process, which might involve additional steps for you, the employer.
Finding a qualified candidate
Check with the province or territory where you’re hiring to identify candidates through their Express Entry portal who meet your workforce needs.
Supporting a known candidate
If you know a candidate you would like to hire, you can also work with them and the nominating province or territory to support their application process.
Learn more about hiring through Express Entry as an employer.
Hiring using a non-Express Entry process
Processing time: We couldn’t load the data. Try again
Work directly with a candidate, or with the province or territory where you’re hiring, to support the candidate’s application. Check the province or territory’s website for details on their PNP non-Express Entry application process.
Features
Find out how to hire foreign workers for your business
Read the guide to find out how to hire and retain internationally trained workers for your business