Starting May 30, 2026, all nine Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) streams will be replaced under new immigration regulations taking effect that date.
The revocation affects all existing pathways for obtaining a provincial nomination in Ontario. It’s the biggest update to the OINP since the program was launched.
Ontario’s provincial government hasn’t announced any details yet on what will replace the nomination categories or what will happen to the candidates in the Expression of Interest (EOI) pool.
Additionally, new regulations that support targeted draws across all new EOI streams, along with the criteria for selecting candidates in those draws, will take effect on May 30.
What Is Being Revoked?
Under the changes to Ontario Regulation 421/17, the nine streams mentioned below (also referred to as categories in the regulations) will be cancelled on May 30:
- In-demand skills category
- PhD graduate category
- Foreign worker category
- Master’s graduate category
- International student with a job offer category
- French-speaking skilled worker category
- Human capital priorities category
- Entrepreneur category
- Skilled trades category
After May 30, those who currently qualify will no longer be eligible under the existing rules.
Other Changes That Will Take Effect May 30
The new regulation also announces two major changes. First, the OINP director can now issue general and targeted Invitations to Apply (ITAs) for all categories. Under the new targeted draws, the director sets the human capital and labour market attributes and the candidates will be ranked only if they meet those requirements. ITAs will then be issued only to the highest-ranking candidates who meet the criteria.
The second change is employee verification. If your category needs a job offer, the offer must come from an employer registered with the OINP director. You won’t be able to apply if the employer is unregistered.
Employers will be required to register first and officially provide a job offer the candidate can apply for. While this is a current part of operational procedures, it’s now been formally added to the regulations.
