Ontario’s Human Capital Priorities Stream: an immigration pathway for tech workers

Ontario’s Human Capital Priorities Stream: an immigration pathway for tech workers

All Canadian provinces and territories (except Nunavut) have provincial immigration programs. There is a great number of pathways for workers, students, and graduates. For example, if you secured a job offer in a Canadian company or have work experience in an in-demand occupation, you can be selected to apply for a provincial nomination, and, in case your application is approved, you can get permanent residency in Canada

Ontario, one of the best provinces to live in Canada, also has such a program, called the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP). It stands out from over provincial programs as it offers the Express Entry Human Capital Priorities (HCP) Stream — a special immigration pathway for IT professionals and other international tech workers.

What are the upsides?

The HCP Stream may be interesting to you for the following reasons:

  • You don’t need a job offer to apply.
  • You’ll immigrate to Ontario — one of the best Canadian provinces to live in. It’s home to Ottawa, the capital, and Toronto, the largest city in Canada with most job opportunities in the IT sector.
  • IT workers are welcome!

Over the 12 months ending in July 2020, Ontario welcomed more than 139,070 immigrants. In the first quarter of 2020, Ontario received 46% of all immigrants to Canada.

Requirements

You can apply to the HCP Stream if you:

  • Have a profile in Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC’s) Express Entry system
  • Received a Notification of Interest (NOI)
  • Have work experience in one of the eligible occupations

Here is the list of eligible occupations in 2020 (NOC stands for the “National Occupational Classification”):

  • Software engineers and designers (NOC 2173)
  • Computer programmers and interactive media developers (NOC 2174)
  • Computer engineers (NOC 2147)
  • Web designers and developers (NOC 2175)
  • Database analysts and data administrators (NOC 2172)
  • Computer and information systems managers (NOC 0213)

You must also meet the requirements of one of the federal immigration programs: the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) or Canadian Experience Class (CEC). When you submit your application to the OINP, you will need to select which of these programs you would like to be assessed against.

Choose Canadian Experience Class if you have skilled work experience in Canada. In other cases, choose the Federal Skilled Worker Program.

Requirements:

  • Work experience: at least 1 year of paid full-time work experience. It must be in the same occupation as you identified in your Express Entry profile. Under the FSWP, your work experience must be continuous and must be obtained within the last 5 years. Under CEC, it may be cumulative and must be obtained within the last 3 years in Canada. 
  • Education. You must have a Canadian bachelor’s, master’s or PhD degree or its equivalent in another country. If you completed your studies outside of Canada, you need to get an Educational Credential Assessment report that proves your education is equivalent to a Canadian degree.
  • Language. You must have English or French language test results showing you have obtained a minimum score of 7 under the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB). This score corresponds to IELTS 6.0 in all four categories (Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking).
  • Settlement funds. You must have a minimum of C$12,960 for one person, C$16,135 for a family of two, C$19,836 for a family of three (up to C$34,299 for a family of seven) to support yourself and your family when you settle in Canada.
  • Intention to live in Ontario. You can prove it by showing that you have worked or studied in Ontario, received a job offer, visited Ontario, have leased or owned property in the province, or have family members or professional contacts in Ontario.
  • Minimum score. If you choose to be assessed against the FSWP, you must score at least 67 points on the 6 selection factors (education, language skills, work experience, age, arranged employment in Canada, and adaptability).

In other words, to participate in this immigration stream, you need to have at least 1 year of work experience in the IT industry and job-related education as well as speak English at a good level.

Documents

You need to prepare and scan supporting documents:

  • Notification of Interest from Ontario
  • Passports (for you and all dependent family members) — pages with personal details and pages that contain Canadian visas and entry stamps
  • Passport-sized photos
  • Canadian status documents: work permits, study permits, temporary resident visas, other Canadian immigration documents, if applicable
  • Language test results no older than 2 years
  • Canadian education documents, if applicable
  • Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) if you completed your education outside Canada
  • Proof of work experience: resumé/CV with your past work experience and education, reference letters, proof of compensation (payslips, bank statements, income tax documents, letters from employers), a job offer in Ontario (if applicable), work contracts, and other supporting documents
  • Proof of funds: a job offer in Ontario or recent bank statements, statements of accounts showing investments, fixed-term deposits or mutual funds, etc.
  • Documents for your spouse or common-law partner: proof of education in Canada, proof of work experience in Canada, language test results, proof of having relatives in Canada, if applicable
  • Translations into English or French

Application process

You need to apply through the Express Entry System — an online system IRCC uses to manage applications for permanent residence in Canada.

You need to take several steps:

1. Eligibility. Determine whether you qualify for the federal Express Entry program: visit the IRCC website and answer a questionnaire. If you qualify, you will get a reference number, which can be used to create an online profile in the Express Entry system.

2. Express Entry profile. Create an account and submit a profile in the Express Entry system. You must indicate your interest in immigration to Ontario by selecting “Ontario” or “All Provinces and Territories.”

Once you create your profile, you will receive an Express Entry profile number and a Job Seeker Validation Code. You will also be assigned a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score. Your CRS score is calculated based on the information provided in your profile, including your age, education, language proficiency, skills, work experience, etc.

3. Pool of candidates. If you meet the Express Entry criteria, you will be accepted into the Express Entry pool of candidates.

4. Notification of Interest. You will receive a Notification of Interest (NOI) through your IRCC online account inviting you to submit an online application to the OINP.

From January to the end of July 2020, a total of 4,130 NOIs were issued within the Human Capital Priorities Stream. Candidates’ CRS scores varied between 421 and 477.

5. Nomination. Apply online to be nominated for permanent residence through the OINP e-Filing Portal within 45 days from the date you receive a NOI. It takes about 3 hours. You have to pay $1,500 to apply.

If your application is successful, you will receive a Nomination Approval Letter and an OINP Certificate of Nomination by email. You will have 30 calendar days to accept or refuse the nomination.

If you accept, you will receive an additional 600 points for being nominated. It means you will receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence from IRCC in the next round of invitations, which are usually done every 2 weeks. 

6. Permanent residence. After you receive a Certificate of Nomination, you will have 60 calendar days to submit your application to IRCC for permanent residence. You will need to include your nomination approval letter and nomination certificate. In most cases, you will need to give your biometrics (fingerprints and photo) after you apply.


Learn about other Canadian immigration programs and job relocation process:

→ Relocation process in Canada

→ British Columbia Tech Pilot: one of the best immigration pathways for IT workers

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