Canada asks provinces to use extra worker nomination places by March 31

What the March 31 target means for workers

Workers already established in Canadian communities should check their province’s nomination instructions after Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced more details on 12 November. Provinces and territories can choose how much additional nomination space to use under the 2027 worker measure. The federal department says it intends the allocations to be used by 31 March 2027. The measure aims to transition up to 100,000 workers and family members to permanent residence during 2027.

March 31 is an intended date for governments to use the additional allocations. An applicant’s deadline comes from the province or their case instructions. The release identifies no separate application for the measure and gives no province-specific allocation or invitation date. Workers waiting on an existing eligible federal file should continue to monitor that case.

Use the province’s own application instructions for nomination

IRCC’s provincial nomination guide links to the participating provincial and territorial authorities. Use the website for the jurisdiction where you actually intend to live and identify the stream for which you meet the published requirements. The province assesses its needs, the stream criteria and the applicant’s intention to settle there. A province may have different intake arrangements for different streams. Check the instructions for the particular stream, including whether it accepts a direct application or uses invitations.

If a province nominates you in a non-Express Entry stream, use IRCC’s separate document guide for the federal stage. It asks for the nomination confirmation and applicable identity and family records. For instance, prepare the passport identity pages for each person and civil status documents relevant to the family. Record the expiry dates on the actual nomination and supporting papers. A person nominated through Express Entry should use the instructions for that process.

File through the correct federal route and budget for the fees

The non-Express Entry application guide directs nominees to the Permanent Residence Portal. Complete and sign the forms, upload the nomination and other evidence, and save the official payment receipt to upload as requested. The portal is for the federal application after nomination. Use the instructions in the nomination record and the federal guide to ensure that the nomination and submission correspond.

The federal document guide also asks for police certificates for qualifying stays outside Canada. Check the country-specific instructions early if you lived overseas for six consecutive months or more after turning 18. If a required document cannot be obtained, the guide directs you to upload an explanation of the steps taken and when it is expected. That explanation gives the officer the facts needed to assess the missing evidence.

IRCC’s fee list shows CAD 990 in processing and CAD 600 for the right of permanent residence for the principal economic applicant, a combined CAD 1,590. It lists CAD 1,590 including the right-of-residence fee for an accompanying spouse or partner, and CAD 270 for each dependent child. Biometrics and any third-party document charges are separate. The application guide gives the payment steps and describes which fees must be paid as the file progresses.

Keep pending applications and permission up to date

The minister said provinces and territories can also identify certain workers with permanent residence applications already submitted, including people in the Atlantic Immigration Program and some programs now closed. An Atlantic program applicant can use the IRCC filing guide to identify that file by its provincial endorsement and application documents. For example, the Atlantic checklist is IMM 0155 and includes the provincial endorsement. A provincial nomination and an Atlantic endorsement support different federal filing routes.

For a pending non-Express Entry nomination case, the after-application guide explains how to track it after receiving the acknowledgement of receipt and how to report changes such as a withdrawn nomination, a new address or a change in plans to settle in the nominating province. The same guide says a pending residence application and permission to work are separate. Check the current permit’s validity and any work permit instructions while waiting.