Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program: proposed regulatory amendments

The Province of Ontario has released details regarding proposed changes to a number of key streams under the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), the most important being those in respect to the In-Demand Skills stream and the Corporate stream.

The In-Demand Skills stream of the OINP supports employers facing labour shortages in lower skilled occupations. The proposed amendments concerning this stream include the addition of three new National Occupational Classification (NOC) codes including NOC 7511 - Transport Truck Drivers, NOC 3413 - Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates and NOC 4412 - Home support workers and related occupations, excluding housekeepers.

Along with changes to the In-Demand Skills stream, another important change would be the termination of the OINP Corporate stream. This stream was designed to assist established international corporations looking to expand in Ontario or buy an existing Ontario business. The Government of Ontario motivates its decision to terminate the Corporate stream on the view that “it has not achieved its intended objective of bringing international businesses to Ontario.”

The amendments are posted on Ontario’s Regulatory Registry for public consultation for a period of 45 calendar days, until May 30, 2019.