Ontario’s Expression of Interest system is now open to In-Demand Skills applicants

Ontario’s In-Demand Skills immigration stream is now accepting applications through the province’s new Expression of Interest (EOI) system.

The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) EOI system is now open for the In-Demand Skills stream under the Employer Job Offer Category.

The stream joins the Foreign Worker and International Student streams in the EOI system. The OINP plans to add the Master’s Graduate and PhD Graduate streams to the EOI system soon.

Now that the stream is added to the EOI system, candidates may register to be considered for Ontario immigration at any time.

The OINP will rank candidate’s profiles based on their scoring matrix. Some qualities that candidates are ranked on are education, work experience, and intended destination in Ontario, among other criteria. The purpose of the ranking is to support candidates who have the skills and experience to succeed in the province’s labour market.

Profiles in Ontario’s EOI pool are valid for twelve (12) months. The OINP may contact candidates at any time to apply for a provincial nomination. However, it is important to keep in mind that registering for the EOI system does not guarantee that candidates will receive an invitation to apply for a provincial nomination.

The In-Demand Skills Stream is for foreign workers with eligible job offers in Ontario. Applicants must have at least nine (9) months of cumulative work experience in the province within the past three (3) years. Seasonal work experience is not eligible to meet the work requirement. Part-time work is only eligible if the candidate completed the required number of work hours.

The required work hours are 1,200. This could mean that the candidate could have worked 1,200 hours of paid employment in one job over eighteen (18) months, or work in more than one job for at least thirty (30) hours of paid work in a week for nine (9) months that amounts to 1,200 hours.

Candidates need to earn their work experience in one of the in-demand occupations listed on the OINP website.

In addition to meeting the work experience requirements there are a number of other eligibility requirements. Generally, candidates need a high school education, a language score of at least 4 in all proficiencies, and sufficient settlement funds, among other criteria.