OINP plans to launch new immigration streams

Foreign nationals seeking Canadian permanent residence through Ontario government nomination may soon have new pathways available.

As a first step, Ontario Minister of Immigration David Piccini intends to create a new talent stream under the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), which he stated will “recognize excellence” by providing a provincial nomination pathway for new arrivals in fields such as research, culinary arts, and entrepreneurship.

Piccini made the announcement on 25 November, during the third reading of Ontario’s Bill 30, stating that he looks forward to “introducing some new immigration streams soon”.

The bill received royal assent on 27 November. No further details about these streams have been released as of the time of writing.

Trends supporting Ontario’s ability to introduce new immigration streams

Recent changes to Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) and the broader provincial immigration space support the OINP’s ability to create new streams for its provincial immigration programs.

Closing of the Express Entry stream: Ontario Human Capital Priorities

The decision of Ontario to pause intake for the OINP Express Entry: Human Capital Priorities stream is the primary context for the creation of new pathways.

On 14 November 2025, the province paused intake for this stream and began returning all pending applications after a program review “identified system compliance and enforcement issues” and “systemic fraud and/or misrepresentation related to the Human Capital Priorities stream eligibility criteria”.

As a result, the program director “paused intake for the Human Capital Priorities stream” and “will return all pending Human Capital Priorities stream applications”, with fees refunded.

This closure frees up a portion of Ontario’s nomination allocation and creates political and operational pressure to redesign how the province selects tradespeople and other workers.

The new powers of Bill 30—allowing the minister to create, change, or close OINP streams faster and return applications sooner when there are integrity or labor market suitability issues—give Ontario the tools to replace the paused stream with more tightly targeted options.

The OINP has also refrained from holding draws in three of its immigration streams this year (Masters Graduate stream, PhD Graduate stream and Entrepreneur stream), a further sign that the province may be reallocating nominations toward more purposeful alignment with key immigration goals and labor market needs.

Higher nomination allocation for OINP through federal PNP allocation in the 2026 Immigration Plan

In 2025, the OINP saw its nomination allocation cut to just 10,750, a 50% decrease from the 21,500 positions allocated in 2024.

This change stems from the 2026 – 2028 Immigration Plan, under which the provincial immigration intake target for 2025 was reduced by 50%—from 110,000 intakes in 2024 to just 55,000 in 2025.
Provincial governments, including Ontario, must design and operate their nomination programs within those relatively tight national limits.

Since then, Ottawa has reversed course—increasing the PNP target to 91,500 intakes in the most recent Immigration Plan—an increase of 66% compared to 2025.

Although Ontario’s specific allocation for these positions in 2026 has not yet been announced, a larger national PNP envelope may provide the province with additional room to launch new OINP streams and rebalance nominations across existing categories.