Immigration lawyers welcome proposed changes to provinci= al nominee program

Current system is a =E2=80=98fiasco,=E2=80=99 says one lawyer

3D"Immigration — Sergio Karas and David Garson

BY Aidan Macnab<= /a> 16 Sep 2020

Immigration lawyers are welcoming the Ontario Government= =E2=80=99s proposed changes to the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program, which= contemplate changing from a quota to a points system for prospective newco= mers.

=E2=80=9CAs a result of this year=E2=80=99s fiasco, the Ontario governme= nt is, wisely, proposing to align its selection process with that used by t= he Federal government in the Express Entry system,=E2=80=9D says Sergio Kar= as, a Toronto-based certified specialist in immigration law.

=E2=80=9CThis is a positive step, and should have been done years ago,= =E2=80=9D he says.

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The OINP nominates a certain number of foreign workers, international st= udents and others who have the desirable skills, experience and education. = Typically, those applying to the OINP are already working or studying in On= tario, says Karas. Those selected are then invited by the federal governmen= t to apply for permanent residence in one of the skilled worker programs, w= ith the provincial nomination almost guaranteeing they will be selected, he= says.

The current system operates like rush seating, says Karas. The online po= rtal is opened for applications on a given time and because the demand is s= o high, it fills up almost immediately. This year, the quota filled in 10 m= inutes and the system was overloaded and crashed, he says.

=E2=80=9CThis year what happened was an absolute catastrophe,=E2=80=9D s= ays Karas. =E2=80=9CEverybody was up in arms.=E2=80=9D

The province=E2=80=99s proposals= call for an Expression of Interest system, where candidates would regi= ster with the OINP and enter a selection pool. The information in the EOI = =E2=80=93 personal, labour market and human capital information =E2=80=93 w= ill be used to come up with a score, which the Government will use to deter= mine who gets an invitation to apply to the federal skilled worker program.=

Ontario=E2=80=99s Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development is= seeking public input on the proposed changes. To implement the new system,= amendments would be needed to authorize the director appointed under the a= ct to conduct either a general or targeted draw of =E2=80=9Cselect EOI appl= icants,=E2=80=9D score applicants based on their EOI information, devise a = points system which allocates points to various factors such as education l= evel and language and to issue the top scorers an invitation to apply.

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The Province says the proposed= system will =E2=80=9CIncrease the OINP's labour-market responsiveness and = better respond to regional labour market needs,=E2=80=9D allow Ontario to = =E2=80=9Cstrategically manage high demand for the OINP thereby creating mor= e predictability for applicants and employers=E2=80=9D and =E2=80=9Cmanage = OINP intake in a way that prioritizes the most suitable applicants.=E2=80= =9D

=E2=80=9CIt=E2=80=99s a marked improvement on the current system. The cu= rrent system is a disaster,=E2=80=9D says Karas.

Managing partner of Garson Immigration Law David Garson says the propose= d system is based on =E2=80=9Cmeritocracy=E2=80=9D rather than the ability = to get an application in before the quota fills up.

=E2=80=9CThis is a much fairer way to proceed to the extent that it give= s the opportunity to the skilled applicants =E2=80=93 who we need =E2=80=93= to gain an opportunity to actually apply for permanent residence under the= program,=E2=80=9D says Garson, who is also a certified immigration law spe= cialist. =E2=80=9CRather than just spamming it or overloading it with a bun= ch of applications of individuals that may or may not be qualified or may o= r may not be helpful or of assistance to Ontario=E2=80=99s economic needs.= =E2=80=9D

Garson adds that the Government should monitor, =E2=80=9Con an ongoing b= asis,=E2=80=9D the skills the province could use more of, so that the point= s system is continually revised and does not become =E2=80=9Cstale.=E2=80= =9D

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=E2=80=9CYou want to have them updated every quarter or every half year = and say, =E2=80=98Okay, well, we satisfied our quota for engineering techno= logists, but we really do need individuals who are involved in systems anal= ysis. So we should probably tweak our system to reflect that,=E2=80=99=E2= =80=9D says Garson. =E2=80=9CAnd I think that would be helpful if they're g= oing to do that.=E2=80=9D

=E2=80=9CI really do believe that it's a much better system than =E2=80= =93 I mean, it has to be a better system than what's gone on. What's going = on, it's just been ridiculous.=E2=80=9D

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