- Ontario reopened the Skilled Trades Stream on February 15, 2026, after a lengthy 2025 suspension.
- The province received 18,000 nomination allocations for 2026, representing a massive 66% increase from 2025.
- Officials plan four to six draws targeting CRS scores between 380 and 450 through the year.
(ONTARIO, CANADA) — Ontario reopened the Express Entry Skilled Trades Stream on February 15, 2026, restoring a pathway for trade workers under the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program after a 2025 pause that blocked new applications through December 31, 2025.
The province resumed accepting new submissions through the e-Filing portal after federal nomination allocations rebounded for 2026. Ontario received 18,000 nomination allocations for 2026, a 66% increase from the approximately 10,800 spots in 2025.
That increase allowed Ontario to expand intake across multiple streams, including the Express Entry Skilled Trades Stream, which targets workers in occupations such as electricians, welders and roofers. The stream had been suspended after federal cuts forced the province to redirect nominations to other sectors.
The reopening marks a shift from early 2025, when federal authorities halved Ontario’s provincial nominee allocation as Canada moved to trim permanent resident admissions to 395,000 in 2025 from 500,000 in 2024. Ontario then triaged nominations toward healthcare, technology, and other high-demand sectors, leaving the skilled trades pathway on hold despite employer demand in building trades.
No draws took place in 2025. The last draw before the pause came on October 24, 2024, when Ontario issued 1,381 invitations to apply (ITAs) with a minimum Express Entry score of 400.
Applications already in the system continued moving. Ontario completed over 2,500 nominations from pre-2025 files by year-end.
The 2025 pause followed federal directives in the March 2025 budget, which reduced provincial nominee targets. Ontario responded by issuing only 6,500 PNPs in 2025 total, focusing on nurses, IT specialists, and engineers.
Ontario also tightened its administrative controls during that period. On July 10, 2025, the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development expanded the OINP director’s authority to return or suspend applications before nomination, a change aimed at preventing backlogs.
By September 2025, the province had launched an Employer Portal and required in-person interviews for employer-linked streams to verify job offers and curb fraud. Those measures now form part of the 2026 system as the skilled trades pathway resumes.
Ontario tied the restart to federal planning levels in the 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan, which projected a modest recovery in provincial nominee program quotas after the previous year’s reductions. The province said the larger allocation would help it respond to shortages in construction, manufacturing and infrastructure.
On February 15, 2026, OINP confirmed: “Following increased 2026 allocations, the Express Entry Skilled Trades Stream is open for new submissions. We anticipate four to six draws through December, targeting Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores of 380-450.”
That target range comes as Ontario faces over 25,000 unfilled trade jobs as of Q1 2026, according to Statistics Canada data cited by the province. Ontario linked that demand to projects including Toronto’s Ontario Line subway and Highway 413 expansion.
For applicants, the reopened stream sits within the federal Express Entry system and requires an active profile in the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP) pool. Candidates also must receive a valid Notification of Interest from Ontario through the stream before they can apply.
Ontario kept the core rules in place for 2026, with some administrative updates. Applicants must have at least 12 months of full-time (or equivalent part-time) skilled trade experience in a TEER 2 or 3 NOC eligible occupation, and they must have gained that experience in the last 24 months, post-credencial if applicable.
The stream also requires a valid, full-time job offer from an Ontario employer in an eligible trade lasting at least 1 year. The offer must meet or exceed the median wage for the occupation, including $35/hour for electricians in the Toronto region under 2026 Job Bank data.
Language rules remain in place as well. Candidates need CLB 5 in listening, speaking, reading and writing in their first official language, with test results under 2 years old from IELTS, CELPIP, or TEF Canada.
Ontario also requires proof of an intention to reside in the province and that applicants meet federal health, security and financial admissibility rules. Settlement funds follow federal FSTP requirements, including $13,757 single applicant under the 2026 figures.
A new element took effect on March 1, 2026. Ontario introduced a prioritization matrix that favors trades with acute shortages, including industrial electricians and plumbers, based on provincial Labour Market Information.
That change means the stream remains open broadly, but not every trade will face the same odds in every draw. Ontario said CRS cutoffs may rise to 420+ in later draws if demand surges.
Processing times remain one of the stream’s selling points. Ontario listed a processing time of 90-120 days from Invitation to Apply to nomination in its Q1 2026 statistics.
The application process begins with entering or maintaining an Express Entry profile under the Federal Skilled Trades Program. Ontario advises candidates to aim for CRS 400+ through language results and job offer points, then wait for a targeted Notification of Interest.
Once Ontario issues that notice, applicants have 45 days to submit documents through the e-Filing portal. Employers must use the Employer Portal for job offer verification and may need to attend an interview.
A successful nomination adds 600 CRS points to a candidate’s federal profile. After that, the applicant can seek permanent residence through IRCC.
Ontario listed the costs at $1,500 for the provincial application, $85 for biometrics, and $1,525 for permanent residence processing for the principal applicant. It put the Success Rate for complete 2026 applications so far at 92%.
The province has already started draws again. In Q1 2026, Ontario held its first draw on March 10, issuing 1,200 ITAs at a CRS score of 410.
Ontario expects 3-5 more draws from Q2 through Q4 and said it anticipates using its full quota. At the same time, the province said no major policy shifts have been announced and that it is monitoring the federal 2027 Levels Plan due in June 2026.
The reopening also affects employers that struggled to fill jobs during the pause. Ontario said employers in construction and manufacturing can expect 20% faster processing through the Employer Portal.
That faster intake comes with more checks. Employers must prepare for interviews confirming that offers are genuine, part of a fraud crackdown that Ontario says helped cut rejection risks to 8% in Q1 2026.
Competition remains high. Ontario projects 5,000+ NOIs in 2026, and federal Express Entry changes this year are also shifting points toward in-Canada experience.
Those dynamics may shape who gets selected even when the stream stays open. A worker with an eligible trade, an Ontario job offer and a competitive CRS score may still face tighter cutoffs if demand climbs later in the year.
For people still waiting on older files, Ontario said about 800 pending 2025 applications should receive decisions by June 2026. Those files continued processing during the pause and were not shut out when the province stopped taking new cases.
The stream’s return also widens options for trade workers who had to consider other pathways in 2025. Ontario still keeps the Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker Stream open for candidates with 2 years experience and a job offer, while the Human Capital Priorities Stream and the In-Demand Skills Stream remain alternatives for some applicants.
Candidates can also pursue the federal FSTP directly without a provincial nomination, though the province noted that CRS 300+ is rare in that route. Other provincial nominee programs in Alberta and British Columbia also offer trade-focused options.
Ontario framed the resumption as part of a broader labour market push. The province said the provincial nominee program will help address 45,000 trade vacancies projected through 2028.
For many workers, the practical appeal is speed. Ontario said the reopened stream offers a fast-track to PR with a total timeline of 6-12 months for trade workers who already hold the right profile, documents and job offer.
Applicants now face a system that is more open than it was in 2025, but also more selective and more tightly monitored. Ontario’s message, reflected in its draw plans, quota rebound and integrity measures, is that the Express Entry Skilled Trades Stream is back — and that candidates who qualify need to move while the province still expects four to six draws through December.
