It’s never been seen before but the Northwest Territories’ Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) maxed out in July with it reaching its maximum number of allocations and now no longer able to accept new applications this year.
“For the first time ever, the Northwest Territories has reached and exceeded its federal allocation of 300 nominees for a calendar year,” said territorial Education, Culture and Employment Minister Caitlin Cleveland.
“The growing interest in the territory is welcome news that will allow us to strengthen our workforce and build vibrant and diverse communities.”
NTNP applications have been trending upwards in recent years
The total number of nominations issued under the Northwest Territories Nominee Program’s (NTNP) employer-driven and francophone streams have spiked in recent years, from only 62 in 2021 to 139 last year and 300 for 2024.
As of July 22, 2024, the GNWT had processed 144 nominations of more than 300 applications received and was working as quickly as possible to process the rest.
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Those applications received this year that fall outside the federally-regulated nomination allocation of 300 are being automatically pushed back and will be counted as part of next year’s allocation when the program is poised to reopen for full application intake in January.
Cleveland is vowing to push for even higher allocations.
“I will continue to advocate to the government of Canada to increase our nomination allotment and expand the availability of settlement services in the Northwest Territories,” said Cleveland.
“I also remain committed to working alongside employers to build and sustain a resilient workforce by investing in both local and foreign workers.”
Decisions on applications already submitted under the NTNP are expected sometime this autumn and any applications received prior to July 22 will not be affected by this temporary pause in intake now that the territory has reached its maximum number of allocations.
Applications received to date will be processed in the following priority:
- Applicants whose work permits have fast approaching expiry dates
- Applicants whose work permits will expire in 2024
- Applicants in the NWT (whose work permits are expiring 2025 or later)
- Applicants outside of the NWT (including international applications)
The francophone stream of the NTNP was only launched two years ago.
Francophone stream of the NTNP was launched in 2022
Francophones can apply to the program themselves if they are currently employed by an employer in the Northwest Territories or live abroad but have a valid job offer from such a territorial employer.
By nominating foreign nationals through the NTNP, employers can maintain or grow their businesses by hiring and retaining quality staff members for jobs they are unable to fill with the available workforce in the territory.
Through the online application process, foreign nationals must:
- Have a valid, full-time permanent job offer in the Northwest Territories;
- Have at least one year of full-time experience in the occupation for which they’re being nominated, or six months of full-time experience in the territory in the occupation for which they’re being nominated;
- Have required territorial certification, licensing or accreditation of the specific trade or occupation for which they’re being nominated;
- Meet the language requirements in both English and French (Canadian Level Benchmark), and;
- Not be a refugee claimant.
“The francophone community is an important component of our society and contributor to the territory’s social, economic and cultural development,” said R.J. Simpson, the minister of education, culture and employment, when that stream was launched in 2022.
“Given the challenges of the pandemic and the need for workers locally, nationally and internationally, the new francophone stream of the NWNP will help … employers fill critical gaps by accessing and retaining francophone talent. By supporting immigration, we are also supporting economic development in the Northwest Territories, which benefits all residents.”
Under the territory’s business stream, applicants must commit to investing:
- A minimum of $200,000 equity into starting or buying a business within the corporate boundaries of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, or;
- A minimum of $100,000 equity into starting or buying a business outside of the corporate boundaries of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.
Applicants must also demonstrate that they own at least a third of the business, unless their personal equity investment is at least $1 million in which case they may own less.
Business stream applicants must have a personal net worth of at least $500,000 if starting or buying a business within the corporate boundaries of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories or at least $250,000 if starting or buying a business outside the corporate boundaries of Yellowknife, the territory’s capital city.
They must also demonstrate a level of proficiency of four against the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB 4) in English or the equivalent language level against the Niveaux de competence linquistique Canadiens (NCLC) in French and the test results must be no older than two years at the time of application.
