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1. Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP)
Located between the provinces of Ontario and Saskatchewan, the province of Manitoba is in many ways the gateway to western Canada.
With an economy based largely on natural resources and agriculture, the province of Manitoba is a major driver of Canada’s wealth. Manitoba’s population of approximately 1.2 million is located largely in and around the capital city of Winnipeg. Manitobans benefit from tight-knit communities, a stable labour market, and sweeping natural wilderness.
The MPNP is Manitoba’s Provincial Nominee Program. Through this program, prospective immigrants with skills and experience targeted by the province may receive a Manitoba Provincial Nomination Certificate.
The following are streams that are currently active and/or ones that are being restructured as part of the MPNP renewal process:
- Skilled Worker Immigration Stream – including those in Manitoba and Overseas
- The Skilled Worker in Manitoba Stream will consist of two pathways:
- The Skilled Worker Overseas Stream will consist of two pathways:
- Manitoba Business Investor Stream
- Morden Community Driven Immigration Initiative – through the MPNP
- International Education Stream
Find Which Program Fit you most!
In Manitoba
Work Experience | Employer Direct Recruitment |
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Overseas
Express Entry | Human Capital |
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Career Employment | Graduate Internship | Student Entrepreneur |
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2. Skilled Worker in Manitoba Category
Under the Skilled Worker in Manitoba category, applications are accepted from qualified temporary foreign workers and international student graduates who are currently working in Manitoba and have been offered a permanent job with their Manitoba employer. Candidates must meet the minimum requirements listed below to be entered into the Expression of Interest pool where they will be ranked according to a number of factors.
In order to be eligible under the Skilled Workers in Manitoba category of the MPNP, candidates must:
- Be either a qualified temporary foreign worker OR an international student graduate;
- International student graduates must have attended an authorized education or training program at a public, or registered private vocational, post-secondary institution in Manitoba. (Language programs are specifically excluded.)
- The academic/vocational program must have been full-time and at least one academic year in length.
- The candidate must have successfully completed the program and have been awarded a diploma, degree, or certificate.
- Have a permanent, full-time job offer from their current Manitoba employer;
- Have worked for their current Manitoba employer continuously for at least six months;
- Any periods of self-employment, unauthorized work or periods of employment during which candidates were engaged in full-time study (e.g. work experience gained on a co-op permit) will not be included when calculating the period of qualifying work experience in Manitoba.
- Hold a valid Work Permitor Post-Graduation Work Permit from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC);
- Have all qualifications for the position including training/education and any required licence or certification;
- Have job-ready English; specifically, candidates must demonstrate the English or French proficiency to fulfill the duties of their job description;
- Have a connection to Manitoba through employment that is stronger than ties they may have to another province;
- Demonstrate in a Settlement Plan intention and ability to live, work and establish their work and family life in Manitoba as a permanent resident; and
- Demonstrate they have sufficient settlement funds — generally $10,000 CAD for the principal applicant, plus $2,000 CAD for each dependent included in the application.
NOTE: A candidate who has graduated from a post-secondary program in a Canadian province other than Manitoba and who wants to apply to the MPNP under this category because he or she has been offered a job in Manitoba must first have been working for that Manitoba employer for at least one year in order to be eligible.
Additionally, employers making job offers must:
- Be incorporated or registered by or under an act of the legislature of a province or the Parliament of Canada;
- Be operating as a business that has an established production capability, plant or place of business in Manitoba;
- Demonstrate to the satisfaction of the MPNP that they are an established business with an ability to offer the candidate full-time and long-term employment in Manitoba;
- Provide an offer of employment letter to the candidate that:
- is signed,
- is on company letterhead,
- specifies salary/wage and any other details of the position.
Manitoba’s Expression of Interest (EOI) system involves a three-step process.
- In step one, potential candidates make an expression of interest in immigrating to Manitoba by answering a series of questions and creating an online profile. The profiles of eligible candidates are assigned a score based on the answers provided and placed in the Manitoba EOI pool with other eligible candidates. Candidates are ranked according to the unique MPNP Ranking Points system and given a score out of a maximum of 1,000.
- In step two, the highest-scoring candidates may be invited to apply to the MPNP. When a candidate is drawn from the EOI pool, he or she receives a Letter of Advice to Apply (LAA). After receiving an LAA, candidates will have only 60 days to submit a complete and accurate application to the province of Manitoba.
- In step three, after obtaining a nomination from the province of Manitoba, a candidate then submits his or her complete paperwork to IRCC and applies for Canadian permanent residence.
Candidates will not be considered under the Skilled Worker in Manitoba category if they are:
- Self-employed individuals, business owners, owner-operators, or individuals providing services as independent contractors to the business supporting their application;
- Exempt from requiring a work permit to work in Manitoba (e.g. Ministers of Religion);
- Submitting an application based on an employment offer that is part of a work-study program.
- Refugee claimants, or individuals involved in a federal appeal or removal process;
- Live-in Caregivers currently living in Canada;
- Temporary Foreign Workers currently working and residing in a province other than Manitoba;
- Spouses of Canadian Citizens or permanent residents;
- Individuals who have been refused by the MPNP within the last six months and who are not able to address the reason(s) for refusal; and
- Individuals who have an active immigration application with any other provincial immigration program in Canada.
Date when Letters of Advice To Apply Were Issued | Number of Letters Issued | Minimum Points Required | |
90th MPNP Expression of Interest Draw | May 21, 2020 | 72 | 485 |
3. Skilled Worker Overseas Category
The Manitoba Skilled Workers Overseas category is for qualified skilled workers who may be outside of Canada but who can demonstrate a strong connection to the province. This program uses a points-based system to assess candidates according to factors such as age, language proficiency, work experience, education and adaptability.
To be eligible under this category, candidates must:
- Obtain a minimum score of 60 out of 100 points on the points assessment grid; and
- Demonstrate an established connection to Manitoba through the support of friends or family, previous work experience or education in the province, or an Invitation to Apply issued by the MPNP,
Each form of connection to the province has specific requirements.
In order to be a Manitoba Supporter, an individual must be:
- Able to provide documents proving that he or she has been living in Manitoba continuously for a minimum of one year;
- A Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
- Able to demonstrate sufficiently close ties to the applicant and the province;
- For close relatives, both the applicant and the supporter must provide documents proving their familial relationship.
- Close relatives are considered to be those related to the applicant (or the applicant’s spouse) in one of the following ways:
- Sister or brother,
- Niece or nephew,
- Aunt or uncle,
- First cousin,
- Mother or father,
- Grandmother or grandfather.
- Able to demonstrate that any applications they previously supported resulted in successful, permanent economic establishment in Manitoba;
- Able to support the applicant’s Settlement Plan.
Paid immigration representatives and Canadian elected officials and their staff cannot be Manitoba Supporters. Children living in Manitoba cannot support their parents; instead, it is recommended they refer to Parent and Grandparents Sponsorship.
In order to apply with the connection of Manitoba Experience, candidates must have lived in the province in the past as either a temporary foreign worker or as an international student.
To be eligible, those with previous work experience in Manitoba must:
- Have worked full-time for a Manitoba employer for a minimum of six consecutive months;
- Submit a signed employer letter of reference on company letterhead; and
- Submit a copy of their work permit proving they worked in the province.
Those with previous educational experience in Manitoba must:
- Have attended and completed an authorized education or training program at a public, or registered private vocational, post-secondary institution in Manitoba; and
- Submit their study permit(s), academic transcripts and certificate, diploma or degree they received upon completion of the program.
Invitations to apply for permanent residence are issued regularly by the MPNP to qualified candidates identified as part of one of its Strategic Recruitment Initiatives. Invitations to Apply are issued at the discretion of the MPNP, therefore applicants may not choose to use this connection to Manitoba on their own.
Candidates are required to submit the Letter of Invitation they received from the MPNP following their interview during a recruitment mission or exploratory visit. The MPNP conducts overseas recruitment missions regularly, often in partnership with Manitoba employers, during which they search for prospective immigrants.
During set periods, the MPNP accepts requests to make an exploratory visit to Manitoba. This visit enables potential MPNP applicants to research communities and employment opportunities in order to decide whether they have genuine intention and ability to settle in Manitoba as permanent residents. Exploratory visits must be approved by and arranged through the MPNP only by invitation.
Factor 1: Language Proficiency | Points |
First language (English or French) | |
CLB 8 or higher / native speaker | 20 |
CLB 7 | 18 |
CLB 6 | 16 |
CLB 5 | 14 |
CLB 4 * | 12 |
CLB 3 or lower | 0 |
Second language (English or French) | |
CLB 5 or higher | 5 |
Factor 2: Age | |
18 | 4 |
19 | 6 |
20 | 8 |
21 to 45 | 10 |
46 | 8 |
47 | 6 |
48 | 4 |
49 | 2 |
50 or older | 0 |
Factor 3: Work Experience (in the past five years) | |
Less than one year | 0 |
One year | 8 |
Two years | 10 |
Three years | 12 |
Four years or more | 15 |
Factor 4: Education | |
Master’s or Doctorate | 25 |
Two post-secondary programs of at least two years each | 23 |
One post-secondary program of two years or longer | 20 |
One one year post-secondary program | 14 |
Trade certification | 14 |
No post-secondary education | 0 |
Factor 5: Adaptability ** | |
Close relative in Manitoba | 20 |
Invitation to Apply received from MPNP as part of recruitment mission or exploratory visit | 20 |
Previous work experience in Manitoba (at least six months) | 12 |
Completed post-secondary program of two years or more in Manitoba | 12 |
Completed post-secondary program of at least one year in Manitoba | 10 |
Friend or distant relative living in Manitoba | 10 |
Bonus: Intention to reside outside Winnipeg | 5 |
Total | 100 |
The MPNP provides instructions on what to do during the visit and what documents candidates are required to bring with them.
In order to be eligible for an exploratory visit candidates must:
- Be between the ages of 21 and 45;
- Be able to demonstrate the employability and adaptability required of all MPNP applicants;
- Have completed, at minimum, a one-year, post-secondary education or training program for which they received a diploma, degree or certificate;
- Have at least two years of full-time work experience in the past five years;
- Demonstrate their ability to find a job in Manitoba in the same occupation in which they have two years of experience;
- This includes plans to achieve the appropriate licence or certification required in the case of regulated occupations.
- Submit a Settlement Plan that demonstrates their genuine intention and ability to economically establish and settle in Manitoba as a permanent resident; and
- Submit official results of an approved language test taken within the past two years showing they achieved scores equivalent to at least CLB 6 in each component as well as overall.
In addition to the above requirement of demonstrating a connection to Manitoba, candidates must score at least 60 out of 100 points on the points assessment grid. Points are assessed based on five factors: language proficiency, age, work experience, education and adaptability.
* Candidates with a job offer of National Occupation Classification (NOC) C or D are required to demonstrate a language level of at least Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 4 in English, or niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) 4 in French, in order to be eligible to apply.
** A connection to Manitoba is required of all applicants, regardless of their points score in other factors. Points may only be awarded for one type of connection.
Date when Letters of Advice To Apply Were Issued | Number of Letters Issued | Minimum Points Required | |
90th MPNP Expression of Interest Draw | May 21, 2020 | 15 | 613 |
Past Draws (Skilled Workers Overseas)
Factor 1: Language Proficiency | Points |
First language (English or French) | Up to 125 |
CLB 8 or higher / native speaker | 25 per band |
CLB 7 | 22 per band |
CLB 6 | 20 per band |
CLB 5 | 17 per band |
CLB 4 | 12 per band |
CLB 3 or lower | 0 |
Second language (English or French) | |
CLB 5 or higher | 25 overall |
Factor 2: Age | Up to 75 |
18 | 20 |
19 | 30 |
20 | 40 |
21 to 45 | 75 |
46 | 40 |
47 | 30 |
48 | 20 |
49 | 10 |
50 or older | 0 |
Factor 3: Work Experience (in the past five years) | Up to 175 |
Less than one year | 0 |
One year | 40 |
Two years | 50 |
Three years | 60 |
Four years or more | 75 |
Bonus: Fully recognized by provincial licensing body | 100 |
Factor 4: Education | Up to 125 |
Master’s or Doctorate | 125 |
Two post-secondary programs of at least two years each | 115 |
One post-secondary program of three years or more | 110 |
One post-secondary program of two years or longer | 100 |
One one year post-secondary program | 70 |
Trade certification | 70 |
No post-secondary education | 0 |
Factor 5: Adaptability | Up to 500 |
Close relative in Manitoba | 200 |
Previous work experience in Manitoba (6 months or more) | 100 |
Completed post-secondary program in Manitoba (2 years or more) | 100 |
Completed post-secondary program in Manitoba (one year) | 50 |
Close friend or distant relative in Manitoba | 50 |
Ongoing employment in Manitoba for 6 months or more with long-term job offer from the same employer | 500 |
Invitation to Apply under a Strategic Initiative | 500 |
Immigration destination in Manitoba is outside Winnipeg | 50 |
Factor 6: Risk Assessment | Up to minus 200 |
Close relative in another province and no close relative in Manitoba | 0 |
Work experience in another Canadian province | Minus 100 |
Studies in another province | Minus 100 |
Previous immigration application to another province | 0 |
4. Expression of Interest
By completing an Expression of Interest, eligible candidates are automatically ranked according to a score based on six criteria. The highest-scoring candidates in the pool will be invited on a regular basis to provide a full application to the MPNP. The criteria are as follows: language proficiency, age, work experience, education, adaptability, and risk assessment.
Candidates should take note that factor 6 (Risk Assessment) is applied negatively. Candidates may be deducted points for any one of the four reasons listed.
5. Manitoba In-Demand Occupations List
Note that certain occupations listed here are considered in-demand under the Skilled Workers in Manitoba Stream (SWM) and International Education Stream (IES) but are not considered in-demand under the Skilled Workers Overseas (SWO) Stream.
- Business, finance, and administration occupations
- Natural and applied sciences and related occupations
- Health Occupations
- Occupations in social science, education, government service and religion
- Occupations in art, culture, recreation and sport
- Sales and service occupations
- Trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations
- Occupations unique to primary industry
- Occupations unique to processing, manufacturing and utilities
* Regulated Occupation
** Compulsory Trade
6. Rural In-Demand Occupations List
NOC | Occupation Title | Skill Level | Minimum CLB | Eligible streams |
3413 | Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates | C | 7 | International Education Stream |
9462 | Industrial butchers and meat cutters, poultry preparers and related workers | C | 7 | International Education Stream |
7. Career Employment Pathway
This pathway prioritizes international graduates who find long-term employment in Manitoba in an in-demand occupation that aligns with their educational credentials and training.
Eligibility Requirements for the Career Employment Pathway
Criteria | Minimum Requirement |
Education | Graduated in the past 3 years from a designated post-secondary institution (minimum one year, two semesters, full-time coursework); |
Official Languages Proficiency | Minimum CLB 7 |
Current Employment in Manitoba | Must have a full-time job offer from an eligible current employer, with a minimum 1-year contract on Manitoba’s published In-Demand Occupations list that is consistent with the applicant’s completed training. The applicant must be working full-time in Manitoba at the time their application is assessed. Note:
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Settlement Funds | The applicant must demonstrate liquid funds equivalent to Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) requirements for independent financial resources for a six-month period. OR The applicant must be employed in a full-time, long-term position in Manitoba |
Adaptability | Applicants must be residing in Manitoba at the time of application. They must show the intent to continue to reside in Manitoba after the nomination, including the submission of a Career Employment Plan demonstrating opportunities for a successful career track in Manitoba. |
8. International Student Entrepreneur Pilot
This IES pilot provides up to 20 international students (each calendar year) who have graduated in Manitoba the opportunity to pursue and establish a business in Manitoba on a temporary work permit. If the applicant meets the conditions of their Business Performance Agreement, the applicant will be nominated by Manitoba for Canadian permanent residence.
All interested candidates must first attend an information session prior to submitting any forms to the MPNP.
Eligibility Requirements for the Student Entrepreneur Pathway
Criteria | Minimum Requirement |
Business Experience | A business plan is required as part of the application to MPNP. The applicant must operate the business as a senior manager on a daily basis from the place of business in Manitoba for at least 6 months prior to nomination while on a valid temporary work permit, consistent with the requirements of the Business Performance Agreement (BPA). Business equity ownership of at least 51%. |
Official Languages Proficiency | Minimum CLB 7 (For this pathway only, IELTS – Academic is accepted in addition to other language proficiency tests) |
Education | Complete a full-time post-secondary program in Manitoba that is at least two (2) years in duration. (distance learning or compressed academic programs are not eligible) Studies and/or work/business experience outside of Canada will be considered as beneficial but not are not an eligibility requirement |
Age | 21-35 |
Adaptability | Applicant must:
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Net Worth / Settlement Funds | A deposit is not required. Minimum net worth is not an eligibility criterion; however, net worth/ source of funds will be considered for the purpose of evaluating the potential to successfully execute the business plan. The applicant must demonstrate liquid funds equivalent to Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) requirements for independent financial resources for a six-month period. Personal net worth will be verified by a third-party supplier approved by the MPNP. A verification report, along with the application, must be submitted to the MPNP within 120 days of receiving the LAA. |
Business Performance Agreement | After an application is approved, a Business Performance Agreement (BPA) must be signed prior to the MPNP issuing the applicant a letter of support for applying for a temporary work permit. |