Hiring through the OINP: an employer’s guide to the Ontario Workforce Priority stream

Short answer: to support a worker under the OINP’s Ontario Workforce Priority stream, your business needs at least three years of active operation, premises in Ontario, enough revenue and Canadian full-time staff at the work location, and a full-time, permanent job offer at the required wage. When your worker’s expression of interest is selected, you have 14 calendar days to file your application in the Employer Portal.

The worker applies for nomination. You apply separately for approval of the employment position. Both must succeed, and the rules below are set out in section 4 of Ontario Regulation 422/17.

OINP employer requirements for your business

• Three years in active business before you apply.
• Business premises in Ontario where the worker will work.
• No outstanding orders under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 or the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
• The revenue and full-time staff minimums for the work location, below.
• Not the Ontario Public Service or an OPS entity, which does not take part in the OINP.

Trucking and transit employers hiring for NOC 73300 or 73301 also need a valid CVOR certificate with an Excellent or Satisfactory safety rating, shown with a Level 1 CVOR Abstract.

Revenue and staff by location

Location is where the worker works or, for a role across several sites, where they report to work: where their supervisor works, or the office that gives them their assignments.

• Greater Toronto Area (Toronto, Durham, Halton, Peel, York): $1,000,000 in gross revenue and 5 full-time staff who are citizens or permanent residents at that location.
• Ottawa, Waterloo, Hamilton, Simcoe, Middlesex, Niagara, Essex, Wellington, Greater Sudbury, Frontenac, Brant, Peterborough, Hastings and Thunder Bay: $500,000 and 3 full-time staff.
• Anywhere else in Ontario: $250,000 over the last two completed fiscal years, and 3 full-time staff.

Revenue is measured on your most recently completed fiscal year. Full-time means at least 30 hours a week, and the staff count must be met on the day you apply.

Recruiting in Canada first

You must show reasonable efforts to hire a Canadian citizen or permanent resident before offering the job, unless the worker is already authorized to work in Ontario or you hold a positive LMIA for the same NOC and position.

• Use at least two methods: Job Bank, a general job site such as Indeed or LinkedIn, a specialist site, print media, your own careers page, or job fairs.
• Keep each ad public for at least four weeks before you make the offer.
• Each ad must show the business name and address, job title and duties, education and experience required, the wage (if posted, at the required level), the city of work, contact details, and the posting and closing dates.

Do not hand recruitment to your immigration representative. The OINP treats that as a conflict of interest and refuses the application. Run it yourself or through an HR or recruitment firm. We can review your ads for compliance before they go up; we do not run them.

OINP job offer and wage requirements

• Full-time and permanent: at least 30 paid hours a week and 1,560 hours a year, with no end date. Seasonal and contract roles do not qualify.
• Urgently necessary: the role must fit your existing business and be needed on a priority basis to maintain or grow it.
• No labour dispute may be affected by the offer.
• Any NOC, anywhere in Ontario. Nurse aides (NOC 33102) must work mainly in a hospital, nursing home or care facility; in-home roles fall under NOC 44101.
• Wage: at or above the median wage for the region, or the low wage if the worker is a recent Ontario graduate in a TEER 0 to 3 job. If the worker already holds the role, the offer cannot be below what you pay now. Bonuses, commissions, piece work, vacation pay and benefits do not count towards it. Wages set by a collective agreement are exempt.

Not sure whether your worker scores well enough to be selected? Our OINP Workforce Priority calculator screens eligibility first, then scores the profile.

Applying: the 14-day window

1. Register your business in the OINP Employer Portal, through the e-Filing Portal, and create the job offer.
2. Your worker registers an expression of interest using that offer.
3. If the worker is selected, you are emailed and have 14 calendar days to submit your application, with every supporting document scanned and in English or French.

Have your documents ready before your worker enters the pool. You cannot edit a submitted application in the portal; changes go through the OINP webform. Withdrawing the job offer also withdraws your worker’s EOI or application.

After approval

• You receive an employment position approval letter. Your worker receives a nomination certificate and a work permit support letter, and must apply for permanent residence within six months.
• For that work permit, you submit the offer in IRCC’s Employer Portal and pay the employer compliance fee.
• Expect post-nomination follow-ups from the OINP’s verification unit.
• Tell the OINP about a promotion, with a revised offer signed by you and the worker, and tell it if the worker leaves or is let go. Ending the job cancels both the approval and the nomination.

If you are refused

You can request an internal review within 30 days of the refusal, by email only, pointing to the specific error in the decision. New information is not considered unless it was not reasonably available when you applied.

If you are about to support a worker, book a consultation before you create the job offer. Most refusals trace back to revenue, staffing or recruitment evidence that was decided before the application was ever filed.

Sources: Ontario, OINP employer guide (updated October 20, 2026); Ontario Workforce Priority stream (updated October 20, 2026); Ontario Regulation 422/17, s. 4; Ontario Regulation 421/17, s. 10. General information only, not legal advice. Individual files vary; obtain advice on your own circumstances.