Ontario's immigration landscape shifted on August 4, 2026. The province officially launched its Ontario Workforce Priority (OWP) stream under the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), and confirmed that all other OINP streams are now closed. The expression of interest (EOI) portal opened for submissions on the same date.

The primary source is the Government of Ontario's official OINP page, which now reads: "The new Ontario Workforce Priority stream has now launched, and all other streams are now closed."

What the Ontario Workforce Priority Stream Is

The OWP stream offers eligible skilled foreign workers with a qualifying job offer a pathway to permanent residence in Ontario. It covers positions across all National Occupational Classification (NOC) TEER categories, from senior managers and engineers to trades, healthcare workers, and service occupations. A separate pathway exists for self-employed physicians who do not have a job offer.

The process is employer-initiated. Ontario employers must first register and submit an application for approval of the employment position through the OINP Employer Portal. Only after employer approval can the foreign worker register an expression of interest. Invitations to apply are then issued from the EOI pool based on a points-based scoring system.

Core Eligibility Requirements

Requirements vary by TEER category of the job offer:

• TEER 0-3 positions: At least 6 months of consecutive, paid, full-time work experience in the job offer employment position within the 12 months before application. Recent Ontario graduates need only 3 months. Alternatively, 2 years of cumulative experience in the same NOC within 5 years. Language: CLB 6 or higher in all four proficiencies (CLB 5 for skilled trades). Education: post-secondary diploma or degree (at least one year).
• TEER 4-5 positions: At least 9 months of cumulative, paid, full-time experience in the job offer employment position within 2 years before application. Language: CLB 4 or higher. Education: secondary school diploma equivalent.

Applications must demonstrate the qualifications attested to in the EOI at the time of submission. Candidates who do not meet all stream criteria at the time of EOI registration should not apply.

What This Means for Business Immigration Practitioners

Ontario's Entrepreneur stream, Exceptional Talent stream, and Priority Healthcare stream are not yet available under the new OINP structure. The ontario.ca page notes these are among the "changes coming soon" under the new framework. For advisors whose clients are seeking a provincial entrepreneur nomination in Ontario, that pathway remains unavailable as of August 4, 2026.

The OWP stream does, however, create a relevant intersection for several client profiles common in business immigration files:

• C11 and ICT holders employed in Ontario: Foreign nationals on significant-benefit work permits with qualifying Ontario employers now have a provincial PR pathway that did not functionally exist under the previous closed-EOI structure. For clients in year two or three of a C11 or ICT permit, this is worth assessing against the Express Entry CEC pathway.
• Ontario employer clients in workforce planning: Businesses using C11 or ICT pathways to bring in executives or specialized workers can now also look at whether their Ontario operations create an OINP eligibility opportunity for those workers or others on their teams.
• Clients who were waiting for OINP Entrepreneur: The Workforce Priority stream is not a substitute for the entrepreneur stream. Clients in the entrepreneur pipeline for Ontario need to remain on a federal pathway (C11, ICT) or another province until the OINP Entrepreneur stream launches.

What Our Files Show

In our review of C11 and ICT files with Ontario operations, approximately 14 of 31 active files involve businesses incorporated in Ontario, primarily in the Greater Toronto Area and Ottawa-Kanata corridor. Before the OWP stream's EOI portal opened, those clients had limited provincial PR optionality, the pathway to Ontario nomination essentially required waiting for streams that were closed.

The EOI portal opening changes the planning conversation for those files. Whether a C11 holder qualifies under OWP depends on whether their employment position maps to an eligible NOC and whether their employer is prepared to sponsor through the OINP Employer Portal. These are now active questions to raise at the next file review.

Scoring and Invitation Process

The OWP stream uses a points-based EOI scoring system. Ontario published the scoring criteria in July 2026, awarding points across region of employment, TEER category, wage level, Ontario work experience, and language proficiency. IRCC makes the final permanent residence determination after OINP nomination.

Practitioners can review the current OWP stream requirements and EOI registration process directly at ontario.ca/page/ontario-workforce-priority-stream.

Next Steps for Advisors

For practitioners with Ontario-employed clients on temporary status, the immediate action items are:

1. Confirm whether the client's employment position NOC and employer meet OWP stream criteria.
2. Determine whether the Ontario employer is willing to register in the OINP Employer Portal and seek approval of the employment position.
3. Compare the OWP PR timeline against the client's CRS score and CEC pathway viability.
4. Note that the OINP Entrepreneur stream and Exceptional Talent stream are still not available, do not advise clients to hold for those streams without a clear timeline.

For clients whose Ontario business immigration strategy depends on the OINP Entrepreneur stream, the federal pathways (C11, BC PNP, AAIP) remain the active options while Ontario's entrepreneur stream timeline remains unconfirmed.

GenesisLink supports business immigration practitioners with the business documentation and compliance work underlying federal significant-benefit applications. For C11, ICT, and PNP files currently in progress, contact us to discuss how the updated Ontario landscape affects your client's pathway sequencing. Book a consultation here.

For a full breakdown of what qualified as significant benefit under federal pathways and how Ontario's entrepreneur stream fits into the broader PNP picture, see our OINP Workforce Priority Stream Eligibility Breakdown.