Manitoba Immigration

On This Page, You Will Find:

• What is the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program?
• Manitoba’s 2026 nomination allocation
• How the Expression of Interest system works
• Current draw practice
• The Skilled Worker Stream
• The International Education Stream
• The Business Investor Stream
• Employer-driven routes
• What changed in 2026
• Frequently asked questions

Manitoba runs one of Canada’s oldest provincial immigration programs. The Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) selects candidates from around the world and nominates them for Canadian permanent residence, based on their ability to become economically established in the province.

The program changed noticeably in 2025 and 2026. Nomination space is tighter, selection is far more targeted, and the province leans heavily on current Manitoba employment, employer referrals and community partners rather than open, score-only draws.

This page explains how the MPNP is structured today, what Manitoba’s 2026 allocation looks like, and how candidates are actually being invited.

What Is the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program?

The MPNP is an economic immigration program administered by the Province of Manitoba. It is one of the provincial nominee programs operating across Canada.

Manitoba describes the MPNP as having three streams:

• The Skilled Worker Stream, for skilled workers in Manitoba and overseas
• The International Education Stream, for graduates of Manitoba institutions
• The Business Investor Stream, for entrepreneurs and farm investors

A provincial nomination does not by itself grant permanent residence. It supports an application to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), either as a “base” nomination outside Express Entry or as an “enhanced” nomination linked to an Express Entry profile. Manitoba adjusts the base-to-enhanced mix during the year based on its inventory and labour needs.

Manitoba’s 2026 Nomination Allocation

Every province receives a fixed number of nomination spaces from IRCC each year. For 2026, Manitoba was allocated 6,239 nominations in total.

That allocation is the ceiling on how many people the province can nominate in the calendar year, which in turn governs how many Letters of Advice to Apply (LAAs) the MPNP can issue. Manitoba states that the number of LAAs issued in each draw depends on annual processing targets and capacity.

How the Expression of Interest System Works

Everyone applying under the Skilled Worker Stream or the International Education Stream must first submit an Expression of Interest (EOI). An EOI is an online profile, not an application. It stays valid for one year, you may only hold one active profile at a time, and you can update it after submission if your circumstances change.

Profiles sit in a pool and are ranked under the MPNP’s EOI ranking system, which uses six factors:

• Language proficiency – up to 125 points, awarded per Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) band, including 25 points for a second official language at CLB 5 or higher
• Age – up to 75 points, with full points for candidates aged 21 to 45
• Work experience – up to 175 points, including 100 points for full recognition by a Manitoba licensing body
• Education – up to 125 points, with a master’s degree or doctorate scoring highest
• Adaptability – up to 500 points, dominated by the “Manitoba Demand” factor
• Risk assessment – deductions for work experience or studies in another province

The adaptability factor is where most draws are effectively decided. Two situations attract 500 points each: ongoing employment in Manitoba for six months or more with a long-term job offer from the same employer, and an Invitation to Apply issued under a strategic recruitment initiative. A close relative in Manitoba is worth 200 points; previous authorized work experience or a two-year Manitoba post-secondary program is worth 100.

The 60-point eligibility test for Skilled Worker Overseas

The EOI ranking score is not the only scoring system in the MPNP. Candidates applying under the Skilled Worker Overseas pathway must also meet a separate, current eligibility requirement: they must score at least 60 points out of 100 on the MPNP’s points assessment, in addition to having an eligible connection to Manitoba. The two systems do different jobs:

• The 60-point assessment is a pass/fail eligibility test. If you do not reach 60 points, you are not eligible for Skilled Worker Overseas, whatever your EOI ranking. Equally, without a connection to Manitoba you are ineligible regardless of your points total.
• The EOI ranking score (out of roughly 1,000 points) determines your position in the pool and whether you are drawn.

The 60-point assessment scores five factors, each with a maximum:

• Language proficiency – up to 25 points (first official language from 12 points at CLB 4 to 20 points at CLB 8 or higher, plus 5 points for a second official language at CLB 5 or higher)
• Age – up to 10 points (full points at ages 21 to 45)
• Work experience – up to 15 points (full-time experience in the past five years)
• Education – up to 25 points (master’s degree or doctorate)
• Adaptability – up to 25 points (for example 20 for a close relative in Manitoba or an Invitation to Apply under a strategic recruitment initiative, 12 for six months of previous Manitoba work or a two-year Manitoba program, 10 for a friend or distant relative, plus 5 supplemental points for regional immigration outside Winnipeg)

Manitoba’s assessment of a full application scores each applicant on these factors against the supporting documents provided. Note also that Manitoba reserves the right to limit intake or exclude specific occupations from draws where submission volumes are high or the employment outlook is weak.

Current Draw Practice

Manitoba typically holds EOI draws roughly twice a month, and each round is made up of several separate components rather than a single cut-off score. Draw sizes in 2026 have ranged from a few dozen LAAs to well over two thousand, depending on which components are included.

The first component is the strategic recruitment selection. It invites candidates who declared that the MPNP directly invited them under a named initiative – Employer Services, Francophone Community, Regional Communities or Ethnocultural Communities, along with residual selections tied to the federal Temporary Public Policy (TPP) that facilitated work permits for prospective PNP candidates. These components are usually small: Draw #262 on 15 January 2026 issued 55 LAAs, and in Draw #281 on 8 October 2026 the strategic recruitment component issued 83 (Employer Services 45, Francophone Community 16, Regional Communities 12, Ethnocultural Communities 9, TPP 1).

The second is the occupation-specific selection under the Skilled Worker in Manitoba pathway, aimed at people already employed in the province in targeted National Occupational Classification (NOC) unit groups or broad occupational categories. Draw #279 on 10 September 2026, for example, considered all profiles declaring current Manitoba employment in health occupations (broad occupational category 3) and issued 233 LAAs on that basis.

The third is a broad selection of top-scoring profiles in a particular group – for example candidates employed in a broad occupational category, or candidates who (or whose spouse) completed post-secondary study in Manitoba. These components are what make some rounds large. Recent rounds include:

• Draw #275, 16 July 2026 – 2,146 LAAs, the largest of the year
• Draw #279, 10 September 2026 – 793 LAAs, including 508 to top-scoring profiles with Manitoba post-secondary study (lowest score 825), 233 health workers, 11 in a Francophone selection and 41 strategic recruitment
• Draw #280, 24 September 2026 – 474 LAAs, including 417 to top-scoring profiles employed in Manitoba in broad occupational category 2, natural and applied sciences (lowest score 760)
• Draw #281, 8 October 2026 – 340 LAAs across occupation-specific selections (46 and 211) and strategic recruitment (83)
• Draw #282, 22 October 2026 – 1,304 LAAs, built mainly around Manitoba post-secondary graduates and other top-scoring profiles
• Draw #283, 5 November 2026 – 526 LAAs, including 448 to Skilled Worker in Manitoba candidates employed in broad occupational categories 8 and 9 (natural resources, agriculture and related production; manufacturing and utilities) and 78 strategic recruitment

Most draws now also include a small Francophone selection for profiles that communicate with the MPNP in French and hold a valid French test result.

Two practical consequences follow. Candidates without an employer, community, study or program connection to Manitoba are rarely invited in the current cycle – almost every component requires current Manitoba employment, Manitoba study or a direct provincial invitation. And a share of every draw goes to candidates who declared a valid Express Entry profile number and job seeker validation code (103 of the 340 LAAs in Draw #281), which is what allows a nomination to add 600 CRS points.

EOI draws for the Business Investor Stream are not currently being conducted. Business EOIs are instead reviewed within four weeks and receive either an LAA or a feedback letter.

The Skilled Worker Stream

The Skilled Worker Stream has two pathways.

Skilled Worker in Manitoba is for people already working in the province on a valid work permit. You need a full-time, long-term job offer from a Manitoba company after at least six months of continuous full-time employment with that company (or at least one year if you graduated from a post-secondary program in another province or territory). Self-employment, work-permit-exempt work and work done during full-time study do not count. This is the pathway targeted by occupation-specific draws.

Skilled Worker Overseas is for candidates who hold a demonstrable connection to Manitoba – a close relative or friend settled in the province (Manitoba Support), prior study or authorized work in Manitoba (Manitoba Experience), or an Invitation to Apply issued through a strategic recruitment initiative (Manitoba Invitation). In addition to the connection, applicants must score at least 60 points on the five-factor assessment described above. In practice, the strategic-initiative route generates most overseas invitations.

Candidates who studied or worked in another Canadian province should note the risk factor, which deducts points in the EOI ranking.

The International Education Stream

The International Education Stream serves graduates of Manitoba post-secondary institutions and has three pathways.

• Career Employment Pathway – for recent Manitoba graduates working in the province in an in-demand occupation
• Graduate Internship Pathway – for master’s and doctoral graduates who completed a Mitacs Elevate or Accelerate internship, at CLB 7 or higher, with no job offer required
• International Student Entrepreneur Pilot – capped at 20 nominations per calendar year, requiring a business plan and at least six months operating the business as a senior manager in Manitoba before nomination

In June 2026 Manitoba changed how it selects graduates. Candidates with active EOI profiles under the Career Employment Pathway who have gained at least six months of Manitoba work experience are being invited to move into the Skilled Worker in Manitoba pathway, where they are considered on a priority basis alongside other skilled workers.

The Business Investor Stream

The Business Investor Stream covers experienced owners and senior managers. The province operates a temporary-to-permanent model: applicants receive a business approval, come to Manitoba on a work permit, meet the terms of a Business Performance Agreement, and are nominated afterwards. Provincial routes of this kind are compared on our overview of provincial entrepreneur programs.

Current Entrepreneur Pathway requirements include:

• Three years of full-time experience in the past five as a business owner or senior manager, with owners needing at least 33⅓ per cent ownership to score points
• CLB or NCLC 5 minimum language proficiency
• Canadian high school equivalency
• Verified personal net worth of at least CAD $500,000, confirmed by an MPNP-approved third party within 120 days of the LAA
• Minimum investment of CAD $250,000 in the Winnipeg Metropolitan Region, or CAD $150,000 outside it
• Creation or maintenance of at least one job for a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, excluding the owner and close relatives

There is no age limit, though ranking points favour candidates aged 25 to 49. A business research visit within the year before submitting an EOI is recommended rather than mandatory. A separate Farm Investor Pathway applies to applicants establishing and operating a farm business in Manitoba.

Employer-Driven Routes

Manitoba now channels a large share of invitations through Employer Services. Two mechanisms matter.

Employer Direct allows approved Manitoba employers to refer candidates they are recruiting, who then receive an Invitation to Apply and the associated 500 adaptability points.

The Temporary Resident Retention Pilot (TRRP) lets approved employers retain temporary residents already working for them. Employers must have operated the business for three consecutive years, hold at least CAD $350,000 in gross annual revenue in each of the past three years, demonstrate a 50 per cent retention rate for temporary residents, and pay IRCC’s $230 employer compliance fee. Eligible sectors are agriculture, construction and trades, information technology, food processing, education, healthcare, manufacturing, and approved trades in otherwise excluded sectors.

Employees must have worked full time for the employer for at least 18 months, reside in Manitoba, hold a work permit expiring within a year or be on maintained status, be aged 21 to 45 unless the employer requests otherwise, and meet CLB 5 for TEER 0–3 occupations or CLB 4 for TEER 4 and 5. You can check band equivalencies with our language tests converter.

Separately, the federal Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge Temporary Public Policy, signed on July 6, 2026, lets the MPNP issue up to 2,700 new work permit support letters to people who already received a Manitoba Support Letter under the expired 2024 or 2025 TPP, are working full time in Manitoba, have an active EOI and have not yet been nominated. It extends their nomination deadline from December 31, 2026 to December 31, 2027. It is not open to new candidates.

What Changed in 2026

• Manitoba’s allocation for the year is 6,239 nominations
• Hospitality and food services was removed from the TRRP eligible sector list as of 4 February 2026, while a number of skilled trades occupations were added for employers in otherwise excluded sectors
• From 2 March 2026 the MPNP no longer answers enquiries sent directly by email; webforms must be used instead
• Career Employment Pathway candidates with six months of Manitoba work experience are being transitioned into the Skilled Worker in Manitoba pathway
• The Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge public policy (July 2026) gives earlier TPP support-letter holders until the end of 2027 to be nominated
• Draw sizes grew sharply from mid-year, driven by broad selections for candidates already working or educated in Manitoba, while strategic recruitment components stay small and targeted

Anyone tracking selection rounds can follow our running record of Manitoba immigration draws, and review the province’s current priorities on our page covering Manitoba in-demand occupations.

Frequently Asked Questions