Ontario Immigration Act, 2015
APPROVALS UNDER THE ONTARIO IMMIGRANT NOMINEE PROGRAM AND OTHER MATTERS
Consolidation Period: From November 4, 2024 to the e-Laws currency date.
Last amendment: 438/24.
Legislative History: 244/19, 191/21, 484/21, 779/21, 527/22, 438/24.
This is the English version of a bilingual regulation.
Certificates of nomination
Types of approval
1. (1) The following types of approval are prescribed under subsection 12 (2) of the Act as approvals for the purposes of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program:
1. A certificate of nomination.
2. An approval of an employment position.
(2) If a foreign national applies for approval under the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program, the economic connection with Ontario that subsection 12 (3) of the Act requires the person to have in order for the director to grant the application is the compliance by the person with the criteria prescribed in Ontario Regulation 422/17 (General) made under the Act with respect to the application.
Categories of applicants
2. (1) The following categories of applicants for a certificate of nomination are established:
1. The foreign worker with a job offer category.
2. The international student with a job offer category.
3. The in-demand skills category.
4. The master’s graduate category.
5. The Ph.D. graduate category.
6. The human capital priorities category.
7. The French-speaking skilled worker category.
8. The skilled trades category.
9. The entrepreneur category.
Note: On July 1, 2026, paragraph 9 of subsection 2 (1) of the Regulation is revoked. (See: O. Reg. 438/24, s. 1)
10. Revoked: O. Reg. 244/19, s. 1.
O. Reg. 421/17, s. 2 (1); O. Reg. 244/19, s. 1.
(2) An applicant for a certificate of nomination in one of the categories mentioned in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of subsection (1) shall, at the time of applying for the certificate, also submit an application for approval of an employment position on behalf of an employer.
(3) The eligibility criteria for applicants for certificates of nomination in each of the categories mentioned in subsection (1), and for approval of an employment position mentioned in subsection (2), are set out in Ontario Regulation 422/17 (General) made under the Act.
Certificate of nomination: Entrepreneur
3. (1) An application for a certificate of nomination in the entrepreneur category consists of two stages:
1. Stage 1: application for certificate of nomination and issuance of letter of confirmation in support of a temporary work permit.
2. Stage 2: issuance of certificate of nomination. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 3 (1).
(2) The steps in stage 1 are as follows:
1. Prior to applying for a certificate of nomination, an applicant must first register an expression of interest attesting that the eligibility criteria listed in subsection 13 (2) of Ontario Regulation 422/17 (General) made under the Act, are or will be satisfied, and providing supporting information.
2. The director shall rank an expression of interest according to the information provided in the expression of interest regarding the eligibility criteria, and shall decide whether to issue the applicant an invitation to apply for a certificate of nomination based on the ranking.
3. An applicant who, upon being invited under paragraph 2, submits an application for a certificate of nomination, shall provide any evidence required by the director supporting the application, and the applicant shall attend an interview to discuss the application.
4. If, in the director’s opinion, the eligibility criteria are or will be satisfied, the director shall issue the applicant a letter of confirmation in support of a temporary work permit. If the applicant has a business partner, the director shall not issue a letter of confirmation to the applicant or to their business partner unless the director also issues it to the other person. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 3 (2); O. Reg. 484/21, s. 1.
(3) For stage 2, if in the director’s opinion, the eligibility criteria set out in subsection 13 (3) of Ontario Regulation 422/17 for the issuance of a certificate of nomination in the entrepreneur category are or will be satisfied, the director shall issue the applicant a certificate of nomination. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 3 (3); O. Reg. 438/24, s. 2 (1).
Note: On July 1, 2026, section 3 of the Regulation is revoked. (See: O. Reg. 438/24, s. 2 (2))
Certificate of nomination: expression of interest categories
3.1 The following process applies to applicants in the foreign worker with a job offer category, international student with a job offer category, in-demand skills category, master’s graduate category and Ph.D. graduate category:
1. Prior to applying for a certificate of nomination, an applicant must first register an expression of interest by attesting that the applicable eligibility criteria listed in Ontario Regulation 422/17 (General) made under the Act are satisfied and that the applicant has the qualifications set out in their expression of interest, and providing supporting information.
2. The director shall decide for each category whether to issue general or targeted invitations to apply for a certificate of nomination in respect of the category.
3. If the director decides to issue general invitations to apply in respect of a category, the director shall rank applicants in the category and issue invitations to apply to the highest ranking applicants in that category.
4. If the director decides to issue targeted invitations to apply in respect of a category, the director shall rank only the applicants who have one or more labour market or human capital attributes that would satisfy the targets established by the director for the category, and shall issue invitations to apply only to the highest ranking applicants in that category who have those attributes.
5. The ranking referred to in paragraphs 3 and 4 shall be done within each category by awarding points to applicants, as published on the Ministry’s website, based on the following attributes:
i. The person’s level and field of education and where they completed their studies.
ii. The person’s proficiency in English or French.
iii. Whether the person intends to settle outside of the Greater Toronto Area.
iv. The person’s skill and work experience level, earnings history, and any other factor relevant to their employment prospects in the Ontario labour and employment market.
v. Immediate labour market needs in the province or region of the province. O. Reg. 191/21, s. 1.
Certificate of nomination: Express Entry categories
3.2 The following process applies to applicants in the human capital priorities category, the French-speaking skilled worker category and skilled trades category:
1. Prior to applying for a certificate of nomination, the person must first create a profile in the Express Entry system established by the Government of Canada and be accepted into the Express Entry system pool.
2. The director shall decide for each category whether to issue general or targeted notifications of interest in respect of the category.
3. If the director decides to issue general notifications of interest in respect of a category, the director shall rank candidates in the category according to their Comprehensive Ranking System score assigned by the Government of Canada and shall issue notifications of interest to all candidates in that category whose Comprehensive Ranking System score is within the range determined by the director.
4. If the director decides to issue targeted notifications of interest in respect of a category, the director shall rank only the candidates whose Express Entry system profile indicates that they have one or more labour market or human capital attributes that would satisfy the targets established by the director for the category, and shall issue notifications of interest only to all candidates in that category who have those attributes and whose Comprehensive Ranking System score is within the range determined by the director. O. Reg. 191/21, s. 1; O. Reg. 527/22, s. 1.
4. Revoked: O. Reg. 244/19, s. 2.
Procedure for Applications, Cancellations and Internal Reviews
Applications
5. (1) In an application for an approval, the applicant shall provide information that is accurate, correct and not misleading. O. Reg. 191/21, s. 2.
(2) A representative who assists or advises an applicant in making an application shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that the information provided in the application is accurate, correct and not misleading. O. Reg. 191/21, s. 2.
(3) Upon receiving an application for an approval, the director shall determine whether the application is complete. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 5 (3).
(4) If the director determines that an application for an approval is incomplete, the director shall return the application, including the application fee, if any, to the applicant, and shall give written notice to the applicant of the reasons for determining the application is incomplete. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 5 (4).
(5) If the director determines that an application for an approval is complete, the director shall acknowledge the completeness of the application in writing. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 5 (5).
(6) After making the determination under subsection (5), the director shall decide whether or not to grant the application. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 5 (6).
(7) Once the director determines that an application for an approval is complete, the application fee is non-refundable even if the director refuses to grant the application. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 5 (7).
(8) If the director intends to refuse to grant the application, the director shall give written notice to the applicant of the intent to do so and shall include in the notice,
(a) the reasons for the intended refusal; and
(b) a statement that the applicant is entitled to respond in writing within 30 days of receiving the notice. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 5 (8).
(9) The director shall consider the response, if any, that the applicant provides within the time period specified in clause (8) (b), consider any relevant information that existed before giving the notice and shall decide whether to grant the application or to refuse to grant the application. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 5 (9).
(10) A notice required by subsection 16 (5) of the Act with respect to an application shall include information about whether the applicant may request an internal review under the Act. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 5 (10).
Transition
6. If an applicant applies for an approval immediately before the day this Regulation comes into force, the process that the director is required to follow to deal with the application and the rights of the applicant under the application are those that governed the application immediately before that day.
Suspension of receiving applications
7. The director may suspend receiving applications from applicants in any or all of the categories set out in section 2 for the time period that the director specifies if the director believes the suspension is warranted, having regard to the following factors:
1. The allocation of nomination spots provided by the Government of Canada for the calendar year under the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program.
2. The number of applications that the director has received where the director has not yet decided whether or not to grant the application.
3. The number of approvals that the director has issued in the calendar year as compared to the target number that the director has for approvals in the calendar year.
4. Whether the Government of Canada is currently accepting applications for permanent residence from persons who hold a certificate of nomination.
Cancellation of approval
8. (1) Before the director cancels an approval under section 18 of the Act, the director shall give written notice to the holder of the approval of the intention to cancel the approval, including,
(a) the reasons for the intended cancellation; and
(b) a request for the applicant to respond in writing within 30 days of receiving the notice.
(2) Before cancelling an approval under section 18 of the Act, the director shall consider the response, if any, that the holder of the approval provides within the time period specified in clause (1) (b).
(3) If, after considering a response from the holder of the approval, the director decides not to cancel the approval, the director shall give written notice of the decision to the holder of the approval.
(4) A notice given under subsection 18 (2) of the Act shall include information about whether the applicant may request an internal review under the Act.
Service of director’s notices
9. A notice that the director sends to a person under section 5 or 8 is sufficiently served if the director can prove receipt of the notice.
Internal reviews
10. (1) A requester of an internal review under section 34 of the Act of a decision or an order,
(a) shall identify in the request an error in the decision or order that, if not made, would have resulted in the decision or order being decided differently; and
(b) shall not include in the request any evidence that was not adduced before the decision or order was made unless the evidence was not reasonably available at that time.
(2) The individual conducting an internal review under subsection (1) shall consider only,
(a) any error that clause (1) (a) requires the requester to identify; and
(b) the evidence that the requester is entitled to include in the request.
Arrangements or agreements with respect to personal information
11. The Law Society of Ontario and the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants are prescribed for the purposes of paragraph 5 of subsection 21 (3) of the Act. O. Reg. 421/17, s. 11; O. Reg. 244/19, s. 3; O. Reg. 779/21, s. 1.
Administrative Penalties
Contravention of prescribed provisions
12. The following provisions are the prescribed provisions for the purposes of subsection 26 (1) of the Act:
1. Subsection 13 (5) of the Act (Application for approval).
2. Subsection 14 (1) of the Act (Authority for acting as a representative).
3. Section 15 of the Act (Disclosure by applicants, recruiters and representatives).
4. Subsection 17 (2) of the Act (Conditions of approval).
5. Subsection 23 (5) of the Act (Inspections without warrant).
6. Subsection 24 (10) of the Act (Investigations with warrant).
7. Subsection 5 (1) of this Regulation (Applications).
8. Subsection 5 (2) of this Regulation (Applications).
Delegation of Regulation-Making Authority
Delegation to the Minister
13. The authority to make a regulation under subclause 37 (1) (e) (ii) of the Act establishing eligibility criteria for applicants for certificates of nomination is delegated to the Minister.
Transition
Enforcement
14. Sections 19, 20 and 23 to 33 of the Act do not apply to an individual who acted as a representative in connection with an application for which an approval was issued immediately before the day this Regulation comes into force.
15. Omitted (provides for coming into force of provisions of this Regulation).