In a late-day bulletin on October 30, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada quietly confirmed increased 2025 Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) allocations for Alberta, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland & Labrador, and New Brunswick. The top-ups follow months of negotiations after the federal 2025-2027 Immigration Levels Plan halved overall PNP spaces to 55,000.
Exact figures were not released, but provincial officials say Alberta will receive 4,000 additional nomination certificates, Saskatchewan 2,500, while Atlantic Canada’s Newfoundland & Labrador and New Brunswick gain 1,000 each. The added spots are earmarked for health care, construction trades and agri-food—sectors struggling to recruit under the new temporary-resident cap.
The compromise allows Ottawa to maintain national admissions ceilings while giving provinces flexibility to plug acute labour gaps, particularly outside major urban centres. Employers should watch for expedited targeted draws and lower minimum scores in affected streams over the next two months.
Analysts note that the move may foreshadow a broader “regional balance” chapter in the 2026-2028 Levels Plan, recognizing that one-size-fits-all caps risk hurting jurisdictions with smaller populations and fast-growing industries.
Candidates already in provincial expression-of-interest pools are encouraged to update their profiles, as many provinces apply first-in, first-out principles when additional allocation arrives.
Exact figures were not released, but provincial officials say Alberta will receive 4,000 additional nomination certificates, Saskatchewan 2,500, while Atlantic Canada’s Newfoundland & Labrador and New Brunswick gain 1,000 each. The added spots are earmarked for health care, construction trades and agri-food—sectors struggling to recruit under the new temporary-resident cap.
The compromise allows Ottawa to maintain national admissions ceilings while giving provinces flexibility to plug acute labour gaps, particularly outside major urban centres. Employers should watch for expedited targeted draws and lower minimum scores in affected streams over the next two months.
Analysts note that the move may foreshadow a broader “regional balance” chapter in the 2026-2028 Levels Plan, recognizing that one-size-fits-all caps risk hurting jurisdictions with smaller populations and fast-growing industries.
Candidates already in provincial expression-of-interest pools are encouraged to update their profiles, as many provinces apply first-in, first-out principles when additional allocation arrives.
