Permanent Residence
in Canada (PNP)
Canada’s provincial nominee programs (PNPs) offer a pathway to Canadian permanent residence for individuals who are interested in immigrating to a specific Canadian province or territory.
Each Canadian province and territory operates its own PNP designed to meet its specific economic and demographic needs.
What are Provincial Nominee Programs?
Each province, apart from Quebec and Nunavut, operates several PNP streams. These streams are designed by the provinces to help meet their unique immigration goals, so the eligibility criteria and application procedures vary. However, PNPs are a popular option because they can be the easiest pathway to Canadian permanent residence.
All decisions regarding Canadian permanent residence must be approved at the national level by the federal government, so Canada’s provinces cannot approve permanent resident status on their own. This is why the provincial programs are considered “nominee” programs.
A successful applicant to a PNP will be nominated by the province to apply to the federal government for permanent residence. This means that immigrating to Canada through a PNP is always step one in a two-part process. First, an interested immigrant is approved at the provincial level and then they must apply to the federal level.
Provinces and Territories
Each of Canada’s provinces and territories, apart from Nunavut and Quebec, operates its own unique Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) designed to meet its economic and demographic needs. Program requirements and application procedures vary greatly between provinces, so interested applicants should consult each of the provinces to determine their eligibility.
- - Alberta
- - British Columbia
- - Manitoba
- - New Brunswick
- - Newfoundland and Labrador
- - Northwest Territories
- - Nova Scotia
- - Ontario
- - Prince Edward Island
- - Quebec
- - Saskatchewan
- - Yukon