Immigration.ca - Canada Immigration News - May 2007
The Ontario Government unveiled the Ontario Pilot Provincial Nominee Program, 1.5 years after first announcing plans of its long awaited immigration program. The program for the first time, gives Ontario a role in the selection of immigrants with skills that will help alleviate some of the province’s critical labour shortages in the health care, manufacturing, construction and education industries. Policies have also been implemented to retain international graduate students from Ontario universities and colleges. An investor program aims to attract significant investment from multinational companies abroad.
Under the terms of the pilot program, Ontario will nominate 500 individuals each year. The majority of Ontario’s nominees will be from the employer category for highly skilled workers such as industrial electricians, specialized professionals such as researchers, and international students. Approximately half of the nominations will be targeted to communities outside the Greater Toronto Area, to support growth in regional economies.
Ontario, which attracts 60% of the 250,000 immigrants admitted to Canada each year, was the last province to implement its own provincial nominee program.
Source:
Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration, Friday May 25, 2007
