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Northwest Territories meets PNP allocation cap for 2024

Northwest Territories meets PNP allocation cap for 2024

The Northwest Territories (NWT) has reached the nomination cap for its Provincial Nomination Program (PNP) for the first time.

On July 22, the territory announced it had reached and exceeded its limit of 300 nominations for the Northwest Territories Nominee Program (NTNP), which it was allotted by Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in 2024.

This means the program will not accept new applications for the remainder of the year. However, according to a release from the territory’s government, exceptions are made for foreign nationals with work permits expiring in 2024 and those who meet all the eligibility criteria and are already working in the NWT in 2024.

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In addition, the 300 nomination cap was specifically for the employer-driven stream and the francophone stream. The NWT will continue to accept applications for the business stream.

The NWT government says decisions on applications currently being processed will be made in the fall.

Reaching this limit so early in the year is a sign of growing interest among newcomers in Canada’s North. For example, the territory issued 139 nominations in 2023, 100 in 2022 and just 62 in 2021.

While these numbers are small compared to other Canadian provinces, the NWT says the volume of applications received in 2024 indicates the territory could benefit from increased annual nomination allocations in the coming years.

Every province and territory in Canada has a PNP (except Quebec and Nunavut). Through these programs, IRCC issues a number of nominations to each province and territory, which they can use to select and nominate economic immigrant candidates they think are best suited for the local labour force.

Once a province or territory nominates a candidate, that candidate is in a stronger position to receive permanent residence status.

The number of nominations allocated to a province or territory depends on a number of factors such as the existing population as well as economic and demographic needs. For example, Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, receives the most nominations of all PNPs in 2024.

Territories of Canada

Canada has three northern territories, the NWT, Yukon, and Nunavut, all of which extend beyond the Arctic Circle.

They are among the most sparsely populated regions of the country. According to the Canadian government, they comprise 40% of the country’s land area and about 3% of the population. This is mainly due to harsh climatic conditions and long, dark winters.

The Northwest Territories has a population of 44,920, of which almost half (21,853) live in the Northwest Territories.

Yellowknife, the capital. The NWT’s government says it also benefits from the highest median household income in Canada, making it an attractive potential destination for some newcomers.

Territories differ from provinces because they are governed differently. For example, provinces “exercise constitutional powers in their own right,” while territories “exercise delegated powers under the authority of the Parliament of Canada.”

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