This week, Monte McNaughton, Ontario’s Minister of Labour, issued a statement to mark Labour Day. In the statement, the Minister paid tribute to all the hardworking men and women who keep Ontario moving. However, he also pointed out that nearly 400,000 jobs continue to go unfilled in Ontario.

This generational labour shortage is holding back our economy and raising costs for families… Each unfilled job is a paycheque waiting to be collected and a path to a better life.

Due to the labour shortage, Ontario is continuing to invest in innovative training programs that give workers the skills needed for new in-demand careers. In the coming months, Ontario has an ambitious Plan to Build. This plan includes measures to support immigrant entrepreneurs and enhance the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP).

Table of contents
Supporting Immigrant Entrepreneurs
Enhancing the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program
About the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program
About the Ontario Entrepreneur Stream
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Supporting Immigrant Entrepreneurs
The government is attracting 100 international entrepreneurs to start or grow businesses in regions outside of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) through the Entrepreneur Stream of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP).

Each entrepreneur must invest a minimum of $200,000 into their business. They must also generate at least $20 million for Ontario’s economy. Applicants will be able to be nominated for permanent residence once their business has been operating in Ontario for 18-20 months. To read more about this announcement, please visit the following article:

In addition to this initiative, Ontario has been removing discriminatory barriers that prevent foreign-trained professionals from working in the sectors they were trained in.

Enhancing the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program

Ontario is investing $15.1 million to improve and expand the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP). The OINP nominates applicants for permanent residence who have the skills and experience to match the province’s labour market needs.

The new investment will allow the program to:

improve the nomination process for applicants to the OINP with an expression of interest system,
grow and enhance security and fraud detection,
perform other IT updates to ensure the system can handle increased capacity,
keep helping businesses in small and rural communities attract and retain skilled workers.

According to the Minister of Labour, the province is lowering the barriers that newcomers face. Moreover, they continue to call on officials in the federal government to double the number of newcomers Ontario can select in 2022.

About the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program

The OINP allows the province to nominate, for permanent residence, individuals who have the skills and experience to contribute to Ontario’s economy. With an Ontario nomination, individuals then apply to the federal government, through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada for permanent residence.

About the Ontario Entrepreneur Stream

The Ontario Entrepreneur Stream (OINP) targets senior managers and business owners interested in starting a business in Ontario. The stream allows international entrepreneurs to be nominated for Canadian permanent residency once the company is established in the province.

Although this stream was initially established in 2015, only two nominations have been made to date. To improve this program, Ontario will better support entrepreneurs that apply and help connect them with business opportunities that best fit them.