As of September 23, 2022, it is now mandatory to apply online. If you can’t apply online, and require accommodations, including for a disability, you can ask for the application in another format (paper, braille or large print).
To request another format:
We will only reply to requests for alternative formats. We won't reply to any other emails.
After we get your request, we’ll reply with instructions and tell you where to send your application.
To submit your application
For more information about applying with an alternate format, call 1-888-242-2100 (from inside Canada only).
This is not a legal document. The explanations and definitions are not legal definitions. In case of a discrepancy between the language in this document and the relevant legislation or regulations, the legal text in the legislation and regulations prevails.
For legal information, consult the following documents:
New: If your nomination is through an Express Entry stream, you must apply through the online system. This application package is only for people applying to the Provincial Nominee Class through the non-Express Entry process. Find out about how to apply through Express Entry.
This application package has:
The instruction guide:
Read the instruction guide completely and then fill out each of the applicable forms.
For an application to be considered complete, the principal applicant must fill out the forms listed below and must submit them all in the Permanent Residence Online Application Portal for the principal applicant and each of their dependants. Incomplete applications will be returned.
The forms include questions that will help the processing of your application.
This guide uses these symbols to draw your attention to important information:
What you must do to have your application processed.Important information that you need to know to avoid delays or other problems.
Where to get more information.
Note: Tips that will help you with this application.
Canada encourages applications for permanent residence from people with abilities, education and work experience that will contribute to the Canadian economy.
The Provincial Nominee Class (PNC) allows provincial and territorial governments to choose immigrants according to the economic needs of the province or territory. Each province and territory:
You must apply to the PNC in two (2) steps:
Applications for permanent residence under the PNC can be submitted by people who have been nominated by one of the following provinces or territories:
Before you can apply to immigrate to Canada as a provincial nominee, you must first be nominated by a province or territory. Each province or territory has its own application and nomination procedures. However IRCC retains the authority to make the final decision on an application for permanent residence using existing selection and admissibility criteria, including security, criminal, and medical components for candidates who hold Provincial Nominee Certificates.
If you would like information on how to become nominated by a particular province or territory, or if you require further details regarding the PNC, contact the following provincial and territorial authorities:
This application package is only for applicants in the PNC.
If you think you may qualify to apply under a different program, use the Come to Canada Tool to find out which immigration stream best suits your situation.
Check other classes to see if you satisfy their eligibility criteria.
Selection criteria, requirements and other information for applicants can sometimes change. Please note that:
The government of Canada provides no financial support to new immigrants. You must prove that you have enough money unencumbered by debts or obligations to support yourself and your family members after you arrive in Canada.
We strongly recommend that you research the cost of living in the region of Canada where you intend to live. Bring with you as much money as possible to make your establishment in Canada easier.
If you arrive in Canada with an amount greater or equal to CAN$10,000, or its equivalent in a foreign currency, you must tell this to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officer. These funds could be in the form of:
Note: Failure to disclose funds can result in fines and imprisonment.
Finding employment in Canada requires planning. You should obtain as much information as possible before you apply to immigrate. There is no guarantee that you will be able to work in your preferred occupation.
Although credential assessment and licensing are not required for the provincial nominee application, you need to be aware of these issues when considering immigrating to Canada.
Twenty percent of people working in Canada work in occupations that are regulated to protect the health and safety of Canadians. Examples include:
Provincial and territorial regulatory bodies are responsible for establishing entry requirements for individual occupations; for recognizing prior credentials, training and experience; and for issuing licences required to practice.
The recognition process varies between provinces and territories and between occupations. Recognition of qualifications and issuance of licenses can generally only be completed in Canada. The process can take time. You may be asked to:
For non-regulated occupations, there are no set requirements and there is no legal requirement to obtain a licence. The employer will set the standards and could request registration with a professional association.
A credential assessment is advice on how qualifications from another country compare to Canadian qualifications. An assessment does not guarantee that:
However, a credential assessment will help you understand the Canadian educational system and assist you with your job search.
To have your credentials assessed by one of the provincial evaluation services, consult the Foreign credentials referral office ( PDF , 2.12 MB ) .
Job opportunities and labour market conditions are different in each region of Canada. It is important to research conditions in the area in which you want to live.
Please consult the Working in Canada tool for information on the Canadian labour market, job banks, and provincial and territorial labour market information.
Your family members include your spouse or common-law partner, your dependent children and any children that are their dependent children.
Spouse
Refers to either of the two persons (any gender) in a marriage legally recognized in the country in which it took place, as well as in Canada.
Proxy, telephone, fax, internet and similar forms of marriage where one or both parties were not physically present are not considered as valid spousal relationships under the Regulations nor are polygamous marriages. For more information, consult our policy on the legality of a marriage.
Common-law partnerRefers to a person who is living in a conjugal relationship with another person (any gender), and has done so continuously for a period of at least one year. A conjugal relationship exists when there is a significant degree of commitment between two people.
This can be shown with evidence that the couple share the same home, support each other financially and emotionally, have children together, or present themselves in public as a couple.
Common-law partners who have been in a conjugal relationship for at least one year, but are unable to live together or appear in public together because of legal restrictions in their home country or who have been separated for reasons beyond their control (for example, civil war or armed conflict) may still qualify and should be included on the application.
Dependent children
We assess your child’s eligibility as a dependant based on how old they were at a specific point in time, called the "lock-in date". This is usually the date we received your application. To see if your child qualifies as a dependant, we consider the age of your child on the lock-in date, even though your child’s age may change during processing.
Your child or the child of your spouse or common-law partner can be considered a dependent child if that child meets the requirements below on the lock-in date:
Children 22 years old or older qualify as dependants if they meet both of these requirements:
With the exception of age, dependants must continue to meet these requirements until we finish processing your application.
If your child’s age was locked in on or before October 23, 2017, a previous definition of dependent children may apply.
Dependent child of a dependent child
Refers to children of dependent children of the applicant and those of the spouse or common-law partner, if applicable.
You and your family members may need to appear in person to have fingerprints and a photograph (biometric information) taken at a biometric collection service point.
Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada are exempt from giving biometrics.
As of December 3, 2019, you need to give biometrics when you apply from within Canada. You can go to a designated Service Canada location.
Find out if you need to give biometrics.
If you have to give biometrics, you can give them after you:
You must bring the BIL with you to the biometric collection service point to give your biometrics.
We encourage you to give your biometrics as soon as possible after getting the BIL. We’ll start processing your application after we get your biometrics.
You need to book an appointment to give your biometrics at one of these official biometric collection service points.
Note: If a paid representative is submitting your application online on your behalf, they must sign in to their Representative Portal account to do so. You, as the Primary Applicant, need to electronically sign your application and your representative must also provide their declaration before submitting the application.
If you (the principal applicant) want to authorize a representative to act on your behalf (paid or unpaid) you must
If you (the principal applicant) want to allow us to release information from your application to someone other than yourself who will not act as your representative you must
Use the Document Checklist [IMM 0199] (opens in a new tab) to assist you in gathering the necessary documentation.
Incomplete applications will be returned by email. For your application to be considered complete you must include
If you do not provide all the requested information and the documents from the checklist, your application will be returned to you. Upload them as the document type we asked for.
You must include the following along with any document that is not in English or French:
Translations may be done by:
If the translation isn’t done by a Canadian certified translator, the person who completed the translation must provide an affidavit swearing to their language proficiency and the accuracy of the translation.
The affidavit must be sworn in the presence of:
In Canada:
Authority to certify varies by province and territory. Consult your local provincial or territorial authorities.
Outside of Canada:
Authority to administer oaths varies by country. Consult your local authorities.
Important information: Translations must not be done by the applicants themselves nor by members of the applicant’s family. This includes a parent, guardian, sibling, spouse, common-law partner, conjugal partner, grandparent, child, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew and first cousin.
Note: An affidavit is a document on which the translator has sworn, in the presence of a person authorized to administer oaths in the country where the translator is living, that the contents of their translation are a true translation and representation of the contents of the original document. Translators who are certified in Canada don’t need to supply an affidavit.
To have a photocopy of a document certified, an authorized person must compare the original document to the photocopy and must print all of the following on the photocopy:
Only authorized people can certify copies.
Important information: Certifying of copies must not be done by the applicants themselves nor by an applicant’s parent, guardian, sibling, spouse, common-law partner, conjugal partner, grandparent, child, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew or first cousin.
People authorized to certify copies include the following:
In Canada:
Authority to certify varies by province and territory. Check with your local provincial or territorial authorities to learn who has the authority to certify.
Outside Canada:
Authority to certify international documents varies by country. Check with your local authorities to learn who has the authority to certify in your country.
If you and your family members are 18 years of age and older and aren’t permanent residents or Canadian citizens, you must provide a valid police certificate for any country other than Canada in which you spent 6 or more months in a row since the age of 18.
Note: You do not need to provide a police certificate from a country if you or your family members were under 18 years of age the entire time you lived in that country.
If the original certificate isn’t in English or French, you must get an accredited translator to translate it. You must include both the police certificate and the translation.
We’ll also do our own background checks to see if there are reasons why you or your family members may not be admissible to Canada.
For specific and up-to-date information, see our guide on where to get a police certificate.
If you were convicted of or committed a criminal offence outside Canada, you may overcome this criminal inadmissibility
If the offence is one that would, in Canada, be prosecuted summarily, and if you were convicted for two (2) or more such offences, the period for rehabilitation is at least five (5) years after the sentences imposed were served or are to be served.
If you have a criminal conviction in Canada, you must seek a record suspension (formerly a pardon) from the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) before you will be admissible to Canada.
Note: Do not complete the forms in this guide until you have received your record suspension.
You can request a Record Suspension Application Guide or additional information from:
Parole Board of Canada
Clemency and Record Suspension Division
410 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0R1
Telephone: 1-800-874-2652 (Callers in Canada and the United States only)
Fax : 1-613-941-4981
Email: suspension@pbc-clcc.gc.ca
Website: https://www.canada.ca/en/parole-board.html
(The instructional guide and application forms can be downloaded from the website)
In order to be considered for a record suspension under the Criminal Records Act, a specified period of time must pass after the end of the sentence imposed. The sentence may have been payment of a fine, period of probation, or imprisonment.
Note: Once you have a copy of the record suspension, submit a photocopy to a Canadian visa office or Citizenship and Immigration Centre. If you are travelling to Canada carry a copy of the record suspension with you.
If you have had two (2) or more summary convictions in Canada, you may no longer be inadmissible if: