Are you hoping to settle permanently in Ontario, Canada? There’s a new immigration pathway you should know about. Ontario has officially opened its Ontario Workforce Priority Stream (OWPS), giving eligible foreign nationals a new way to seek provincial nomination through the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP).
The opening was announced on August 4 on the province’s program updates page. It explain that for a foreign national to be considered, an Expression of Interest (EOI) must be created on Ontario’s e-Filing Portal.
Which pathway should you pursue? The province offers three options:
- One for higher-skilled workers
- One for lower-skilled workers
- One for self-employed physicians who are officially registered to practice in Ontario — physicians must also be eligible to bill the province’s public health insurance program, OHIP
If you’re applying through one of the job offer streams, you’ll need to link your Expression of Interest (EOI) to a qualifying job offer created by an eligible Ontario employer through the Employer Portal. For self-employed physicians, the process is slightly different: You must submit a webform to kick-start it. You can only be considered by the OINP if you create and officially register your Expression of Interest.
Although Ontario’s website states that the OWPS opened on August 4, the program was originally launched on June 26, 2026. However, the online portal wasn’t available at the time, which meant foreign nationals couldn’t yet be considered for provincial nomination.
How It Works
After your Expression of Interest is submitted, it will stay valid for up to 1 year. The OINP will be selecting candidates from the active EOI pool, inviting them to respond with their full applications for provincial nomination. If you don’t get an invitation to apply for nomination within a year, the next step is to re-register a new Expression of Interest.
