The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) has received its official nomination allocation for 2026 — and it’s higher than the level Ontario received in the previous year. This means the province has more spots to nominate skilled workers and other eligible candidates for Canadian permanent residence in 2026.
📈 Ontario’s 2026 Nomination Numbers
For 2026, the federal government has granted Ontario a total of 14,119 nominations under the OINP. This represents a roughly 31% increase compared with the 10,750 nominations Ontario received for 2025.
The larger number of nominations reflects higher overall targets for permanent resident admissions under Canada’s new Immigration Levels Plan, which increased permanent residence opportunities through Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) in 2026.
📌 How Ontario’s New Allocation Compares
Here’s how Ontario’s 2026 nomination allocation stacks up with recent years:
- 2026 — 14,119 nominations allocated
- 2025 — 10,750 nominations allocated
- 2024 — 21,500 nominations allocated
Even though Ontario’s nominations are significantly higher than in 2025, the 2026 allocation has not fully returned to the levels seen in 2024 — meaning Ontario is still at about 67% of its 2024 nomination capacity.
📍 What This Means for Candidates
An increased allocation means:
✔️ More nomination spots available for skilled workers, international graduates, and other eligible applicants
✔️ Greater opportunity for Ontario to address labour market needs, especially in priority sectors
✔️ Improved chances for eligible candidates to receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for a provincial nomination, which can significantly boost permanent residence prospects
A provincial nomination also gives eligible candidates 600 additional points toward their Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score if they have an Express Entry profile, effectively guaranteeing an invitation to apply for permanent residence once nominated.
📌 Ontario’s PNP Pathways & Recent Adjustments
While Ontario has not yet released a detailed breakdown of how nominations will be divided among individual streams in 2026, the province has been active in shaping its immigration pathways:
🔹 Major OINP Changes in 2025–2026
- Ontario broadened eligibility for certain physicians in the Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker stream.
- The Express Entry Skilled Trades stream was suspended in 2025 due to compliance concerns.
- Ontario has implemented expanded authority to return or suspend applications based on compliance and labour market fit.
- An electronic Employer Portal was introduced to streamline Employer Job Offer streams.
These changes reflect Ontario’s effort to balance quality, compliance, and labour market responsiveness while using its increased nomination spaces effectively.
📍 Why the Increase Happened
The increase aligns with Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan for 2026–2028, which raised PNP nomination targets nationally. Under that plan, Canada set a target of 91,500 permanent residents through PNPs in 2026, up significantly from the previous year’s target of 55,000.
With provinces now receiving more nomination spaces overall, Ontario — like several other provinces — is able to nominate more candidates in 2026 than it did in 2025.
📌 Looking Ahead
Although the increase is welcome, Ontario’s 2026 allocation still falls short of its pre-2025 levels, meaning the province may remain selective in how it issues nominations across its streams. Candidates should continue to monitor updates from the OINP regarding:
🔹 Priority occupations or sectors
🔹 Draw schedules and score requirements
🔹 Updated eligibility criteria for specific streams
🧠 Final Thoughts
Ontario’s announcement that it received 14,119 nomination slots for 2026 — higher than the previous year — is a promising sign for immigration hopefuls, especially those targeting the OINP as their pathway to Canadian permanent residence. While still not back at its 2024 high, this increase reflects a broader trend of expanding opportunities through provincial programs as Canada implements its updated immigration strategy.
