Provincial Nominee Program Update — August 31, 2026
Monday, August 31, 2026
Ontario launched its new Ontario Workforce Priority Stream on August 4, 2026, opening the expression of interest (EOI) portal for candidates with job offers in any NOC TEER category, including self-employed physicians.
Recent PNP-specific Express Entry draws show rising CRS cutoff scores: the August 17 draw required 760 (442 ITAs), August 4 required 768 (507 ITAs), up from 708 on July 6 — indicating increasing competition for PNP slots in the Express Entry pool.
507 ITAs were issued in the August 4 PNP Express Entry draw, with candidates needing a profile created before May 15, 2026 at 3:58 p.m. UTC to be eligible.
What You Should Do
- If you have a job offer in Ontario in any NOC TEER category (or are a self-employed physician), visit ontario.ca/page/2026-ontario-immigrant-nominee-program-updates to review the Ontario Workforce Priority Stream eligibility criteria and submit an expression of interest through the OINP EOI portal, which opened August 4, 2026.
- If you are in the Express Entry pool and hold a provincial nomination, confirm your CRS score meets recent PNP draw cutoffs (760–768 range as of August 2026) by logging into your IRCC account at canada.ca/express-entry. Ensure your profile is up to date and active.
- If your Express Entry profile was created after May 15, 2026, note that the August 4 PNP draw excluded those profiles. Monitor future draw tie-breaker dates at canadavisa.com/express-entry-invitations-to-apply-issued.html and update your profile promptly to maximize eligibility windows.
Sources
Topics Covered
PNP Express Entry Draw Trends: PNP-specific Express Entry draws in August 2026 show CRS cutoffs rising to 760–768, up from 708 in early July, with ITAs ranging from 442 to 511 per draw.
Category-Based Selection System: Recent Express Entry draws in August 2026 include category-based draws for French-language proficiency (382–391 cutoff, 5,000 ITAs each) and Canadian Experience Class (516–523 cutoff), alongside PNP-specific draws.
PNP Federal-Provincial Authority Transfer: Ontario formally redesigned its PNP in June 2026 and launched the new Ontario Workforce Priority Stream on August 4, 2026, opening EOIs for all NOC TEER categories and self-employed physicians.
More Provincial Nominee Program Updates
Provincial Nominee Program Update — August 27, 2026
Aug 27, 2026
Provincial Nominee Program Update — August 24, 2026
Aug 24, 2026
Provincial Nominee Program Update — August 17, 2026
Aug 17, 2026
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