The Provincial Nominee Programs of Canada have been witnessing an extremely active period ever since the start of the year 2019. Since January 2019, more than 160 draws have already been conducted, compared to the 17 Express Entry draws held so far this year.
Provincial Nominee Programs allow provinces and territories to nominate a certain number of candidates for permanent residence in Canada. Most of the Provincial Nominee Programs have streams and categories aligned to the federal Express Entry. They offer numerous options for immigration candidates with Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score below the cut-off score for the Express Entry draws as well as those who do not have an Express Entry profile.
The minimum CRS scores required to receive an ITA through federal Express Entry draws this year have ranged from 438 to 470. According to available data, only around 13 per cent of Express Entry candidates have CRS scores in this range as on August 15, 2019.
At the same time, the minimum CRS score requirement is comparatively lower in Provincial Nominee Program draws and some of the streams do not take into consideration the CRS score of the candidates. The increased number of Provincial Nominee Program draws simply show that a low CRS score is not the end of the road for Canada immigration aspirants and they still hold a good chance to make Canada their permanent home.
Canada Provincial Nominee Programs
Canada Provincial Nominee Programs are of two types, one which is aligned to the federal Express Entry and the other called the base nomination streams, which are not aligned to the Express Entry system. The minimum required CRS score in the draws conducted for Express Entry-aligned PNP streams is often lower than federal Express Entry draws. The best example is the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) that invited Express Entry candidates with CRS score as low as 300 in a few draws this year. The Provincial Nominee Programs of Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia do not even consider the CRS score of the candidate. The Express Entry candidates who receive provincial nomination will obtain 600 additional CRS score points that would effectively guarantee an invitation to apply for permanent residence in Canada in the subsequent Express Entry draw.
At the same time, base streams of Provincial Nominee Programs are meant for candidates who may not be eligible for Express Entry but have skills or education aligned to the labor market of a province. While some of these base streams value specific qualifications or occupations such as physicians, daycare workers or long-haul truck drivers, some other base streams favor candidates who have spent time in the province as a student or visitor or have a relative or friend residing in the province.
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