A recent Statistics Canada study shows that Provincial nominee program revolutionizes Canadian immigration significantly since the introduction of the PNP.
With the exception of Quebec and the Yukon, all provinces implemented the PNP between 1998 and 2009. In addition to dispersing economic immigrants outside the country’s major cities. It met the labor needs of each province and territory.
Provincial and territorial governments are responsible for planning and administering PNPs. There are several different streams to which the applicant can apply. While there are a few key categories among the streams in each province and territory, including foreign student streams, entrepreneur streams, employees with employment offers, and workers without offers of employment.
With 68,000 provincial nominees throughout Canada in 2019, the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) has experienced extraordinary growth. It increased significantly from just 1% in 2000 to account for 35% of all new immigrants, making it the largest selection program for economic immigrants.
A new Immigration Levels Plan is unveiled by IRCC each year to serve as a framework for its operations. The goal for Canada is to accept 465,000 new permanent residents in 2023, and this figure rises to 500,000 in 2025. Notably, the Immigration Levels Plan seeks to exceed the number of permanent residents admitted through Express Entry, the principal economic class pathway for the federal government. Through the PNP, 117,500 permanent residents are anticipated by IRCC by 2025.
The allocation of economic immigrants throughout Canada
A study conducted by Statistics Canada found that economic immigration in Canada became less centralized with an increase in the PNP, and this decentralization coincided with its expansion. Provincial nominations for new economic immigrants have changed dramatically since 2000, when there were essentially no provincial nominations.
Particularly, over that time, the percentage of immigrants planning to settle in Ontario (mostly Toronto) fell from 61% to 42%. British Columbia received a smaller portion, down from 17% to 15%.
The Prairie provinces, namely Manitoba and Saskatchewan, saw significant increases in their ability to draw immigrants. Their relative proportions of immigrants increased dramatically, from almost nil to almost 7%. Similar to Ontario, Alberta and the Atlantic provinces saw a growth in the proportion of immigrants, going from 1% to 7% overall. With these areas becoming more desirable for newcomers, this trend denotes a considerable redistribution of immigrant settlement across Canada.
The characteristics of provincial nominees are evolving
With the growth of the program, the characteristics of the participants have changed significantly.
Economic immigrants, or temporary foreign employees, were favored more frequently than immigrants without previous income earned in Canada prior to arrival. The proportion of provincial nominees aged 20 to 54 who were previously temporary foreign workers increased from 6% in 2002 to 61% in 2019 and then to 72% in 2021.
Both short- and long-term labor market outcomes are better for immigrants with previous temporary foreign work experience.
Additionally, the proportion of PNP immigrants with prior Canadian study experience increased significantly. Prior to their immigration to Canada, 38% of new PNP immigrants in 2019 and 7% in 2010 studied in the country.
Another important factor was age. Over time, provincial nominees have become younger upon immigration. Between 2005 and 2019, the proportion of immigrants aged 20 to 29 increased from 24% to 38%. A study found that younger immigrants tend to perform better economically than older immigrants, particularly over the long run.
The proportion of primary applicants who were single, without a spouse or children likewise climbed as the percentage of nominees in their 20s grew.
There have been considerable changes in the provincial nominees’ proficiency in the official language. A fifth or so of the 2005 nominees did not speak either English or French. 2019 saw a nearly complete erasure of this number, most likely as a result of the language requirements placed on the majority of PNP programs.
Additionally, between 2005 and 2019, the percentage of nominees whose native tongue is neither English nor French. But who can speak one of these languages rose from 64% to 91%.
Additionally, the nations from which economic immigrants originated have shifted. In contrast to the past, when economic immigrants came from a variety of places, in 2019 three Asian regions—Southern Asia, Eastern Asia, and Southeast Asia—accounted for 70% of new province nominees.
Looking ahead
As a result of the PNP’s founding, much decentralization has taken place among new economic immigrants. Moreover, new provincial nominees have taken on a variety of traits that may improve economic performance.
As the PNP continues to grow, it could feed the trend towards increasing regional decentralization of immigration. It will allow different parts of the country to better address population and labor market concerns.
Throughout history, changes in the number of provincial nominees and patterns of settlement. And personal traits have influenced their demographic and labor responsibilities.
