Qualification Requirements

To apply through the In-Demand Skills Stream system, you must have an offer of employment from an employer recognized by the province of Ontario. The employer must meet the following requirements:

• must provide an offer of full-time, indefinite term employment in certain specializations in the agricultural and construction trades (look up the list of specializations in the National Occupational Classification (NOC));
• provides payment for work done at least at the provincial average wage rate for that occupation and location;
• provided that the immigrant applying for this program is already performing professional duties for that employer in a particular position, the payment for the work performed on the offer of employment must meet or be higher than the wage that the employer is paying to the foreign worker at that time;
• the job offer must be in one of the following National Occupational Classification (NOC) occupations and must be at the C or D level:
  • NOC 7441 – residential and commercial installers and servicers;
  • NOC 7521 – heavy equipment operators (except crane);
  • NOC 8431 – general farm workers;
  • NOC 8432 – nursery and greenhouse workers;
  • NOC 8611 – harvesting laborers;
  • NOC 7611 – construction trades helpers and laborers;
  • NOC 9462 – industrial butchers and meat cutters, poultry preparers and related workers.

As an immigrant worker, you must meet the following criteria:

• Work experience: You must have 1 year of work experience in this province, which you have had in the last 3 years before you applied under the OINP system. The experience that you have gained in the paid performance of your professional duties on a full-time basis counts (this equals 1,560 hours). The program also counts the relevant part-time work time in this region for certain occupations (see the list of relevant occupational codes in the National Occupational Classification (NOC) for more information).

Note: The In-Demand Skills Stream does not take into account the experience you have had on seasonal jobs.

• Education: You must have a secondary or higher education level equivalent to a high school in Canada or the highest level of education received. You must provide the appropriate documentation from the educational institution to verify this;
• Active certificate or license:You must have an active license or certificate to perform work in the specialty to which the relevant licensing or certification is assigned when you submit your immigration application;
• Language: The CLB score for English or French must be at least level 4 on all aspects of language skills (writing, reading, listening and speaking);
• Finances for living: You must have the necessary finances and/or income in the province to cover all necessary expenses for your living and the relocation of other family members;
• Intention: You would like to live in Ontario;
• Legal residency status (if applicable): For people who live in Canada, proof of legal residency is required. This means you must have a work permit, study permit, temporary residency status, if you live in the country.

In addition, your provincial employer must also meet the following requirements:

• have been active in their business for at least 3 years;
• own an office in Ontario, where you will work;
• comply with all laws and all local requirements as for the Employment Standards Act and the Occupational Health and Safety Act;

Provided you are employed in the Greater Toronto Area, your employer must meet the following requirements:

• Receive at least $1,000,000 in gross annual income for the most recent fiscal year;
• 5 full-time employees who are citizens or permanent residents in the territory where you will be working.

Provided you are employed outside of the Greater Toronto Area, your employer must meet the following requirements:

• receive at least $500,000 in gross annual income for the most recent fiscal year;
• 3 full-time employees who are citizens or permanent residents in the territory where you will be working.

A full-time, indefinite-duration job offer is a definite job offer without a definite date of employment, and provides for working at least 30 hours per week and from 1,560 hours for a period of 1 year.

A job offer may not be given in order to obtain a position, which:

• is a seasonal or part-time position, despite the number of hours worked;
• is performed by a subcontractor, contractor, and agent.