Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP)

The Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) is Manitoba's economic immigration program. Manitoba selects people whose skills, education and work experience match its labour market and nominates them to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for permanent residence. Manitoba describes it as an economic program, not a sponsorship program: every applicant must be employable and able to settle in the province.

The MPNP has three streams. The Skilled Worker Stream has two pathways: Skilled Worker in Manitoba and Skilled Worker Overseas. The International Education Stream has three: the Career Employment Pathway, the Graduate Internship Pathway and the International Student Entrepreneur Pilot. The Business Investor Stream has two: the Entrepreneur Pathway and the Farm Investor Pathway.

Maximum EOI ranking points before risk deductions

1,000

Points for ongoing Manitoba employment or a direct invitation

500

Manitoba's 2026 nomination allocation

8,000

Manitoba's 2026 allocation is 8,000 nominations: 6,239 received in January 2026 and 1,761 more in August 2026. In 2025, Manitoba started with 4,750 nominations, half of its 2024 allocation, and finished the year with 6,239.

Skilled Worker in Manitoba (SWM). You need a valid work permit and a full-time, long-term job offer from a Manitoba company after at least 6 months of continuous full-time work with it, or 1 year if you graduated in another province. Self-employment, unauthorized work, and work done while studying full time (for example on a co-op permit) do not count. Owner-operators, independent contractors and workers who are exempt from needing a work permit cannot use this pathway.

Skilled Worker Overseas (SWO). You need one of three connections: Manitoba Support (a close relative, or a friend or distant relative, who is a citizen or permanent resident and has lived in Manitoba for at least a year), Manitoba Experience (at least 6 months of full-time work or a completed post-secondary program in Manitoba), or a Manitoba Invitation from a strategic recruitment initiative. You must also score at least 60 points on Manitoba's assessment grid. Children in Manitoba cannot support a parent's application.

International Education Stream (IES). The Career Employment Pathway is for graduates of the last 3 years from a full-time program of at least one year, with CLB 7 and a full-time job offer of at least 1 year in an occupation on Manitoba's In-Demand Occupations List. The Graduate Internship Pathway is for master's and doctoral graduates who complete a Mitacs internship in Manitoba. The International Student Entrepreneur Pilot is for Manitoba graduates who want to run a business instead of taking a job.

Business Investor Stream (BIS). The Entrepreneur Pathway is for people who will start, buy or join a business in Manitoba after arriving on a temporary work permit. The Farm Investor Pathway is for experienced farm owners who will run a primary production farm in rural Manitoba. Both require a minimum net worth of $500,000 and a business plan; see the province's current criteria for investment amounts. More detail is on the provincial entrepreneur streams page.

Employer Services. Manitoba also runs two employer applications that can lead to a direct invitation, which earns the same 500 EOI points as ongoing employment. The Employer Direct Initiative supports recruitment from outside Canada. The Temporary Resident Retention Pilot helps employers keep temporary residents who have worked for them full time for at least 18 months. Since February 4, 2026, hospitality and food services is no longer an eligible sector for that pilot.

Each pathway has its own criteria. These rules apply across the worker and graduate pathways:

• Connection to ManitobaRequired for every Skilled Worker and International Education applicant, and it must be stronger than ties to any other province
• LanguageAn approved test (IELTS General Training, CELPIP General, PTE Core, TEF Canada or TCF Canada) taken within 2 years, unless you work in Manitoba in a TEER 0–3 job. TEER 4–5 jobs need at least CLB 4. The Career Employment Pathway needs CLB 7.
• EmployabilityEducation, training, experience and any licence needed to work in your occupation in Manitoba
• Settlement fundsAt least $10,000 plus $2,000 per accompanying family member, or the IRCC amount if you add an Express Entry profile. Manitoba considers your income if you already work there.
• Settlement PlanA plan showing why you chose Manitoba, where you will live and how you will find or keep work
• Not in an excluded groupNo live-in caregivers in Canada, no refusal by the MPNP in the last 6 months unless you can address the reasons, and only one MPNP application per family at a time

An EOI is an online profile, not an application. It is free, stays valid for one year, and you can have only one at a time. Manitoba ranks profiles on six factors and sends a Letter of Advice to Apply (LAA) to the highest-ranked candidates in each draw. Manitoba can limit or exclude occupations with high volumes of submissions or a limited job outlook.

Adaptability dominates. Ongoing employment in Manitoba for 6 months or more with a long-term job offer from the same employer, or an Invitation to Apply under a strategic initiative, earns 500 points. Otherwise, a close relative in Manitoba earns 200, past Manitoba work or a 2-year Manitoba program 100, and a friend or distant relative 50. Being fully recognized by a Manitoba licensing body adds 100 work experience points. Work or study in another province deducts 100 points each.

Recent draws, as published by Manitoba on November 4, 2026: Manitoba held Skilled Worker draws every two weeks from June 18 to October 22, 2026 (draws 273 to 282). In the latest, on October 22, 2026, it issued 1,304 Letters of Advice to Apply: to Skilled Worker in Manitoba candidates who completed post-secondary study in Manitoba (lowest score 816), to the overall top-scoring Skilled Worker in Manitoba profiles (lowest score 846), and to candidates directly invited through strategic recruitment initiatives. 353 of them had declared a valid Express Entry profile.

Draws are targeted. Manitoba often selects by occupation, by Manitoba study, by French language or by type of invitation, so the lowest score differs from one selection to the next. Business Investor Stream EOIs are not drawn at present: Manitoba reviews each one within four weeks and sends either an LAA or a feedback letter.

1. 1

   Check your pathway and connection

   Confirm your connection to Manitoba and the pathway rules. Take a language test if you need one.

2. 2

   Create an Express Entry profile first, if you want an enhanced nomination

   Add your Express Entry profile number and job seeker validation code to your EOI, and include the profile and your Educational Credential Assessment in your full application.

3. 3

   Submit your EOI in MPNP Online

   Keep a copy of your EOI Summary Report and update your EOI if anything changes.

4. 4

   Apply within 60 days of an LAA

   Upload credible, verifiable documents for every claim and pay the $500 fee by Visa or Mastercard credit card. Manitoba says you must use Microsoft Edge to pay and submit.

5. 5

   Assessment

   An officer assesses your employability and adaptability. If the officer has concerns, you receive a procedural fairness letter and can respond before a decision.

6. 6

   Nomination and IRCC application

   If approved, you receive a nomination certificate. Apply to IRCC for permanent residence for you and your family within 180 days, following your Letter of Approval.

Manitoba says that, because of high application volumes, its processing is taking more than six months from submission. Delays are more likely when a supporter or employer is involved in several applications, or when documents need verification. IRCC's processing times for provincial nominees are shown live below.

• Documents are not detailed or credible enough for a full assessment.
• Your application does not match your EOI, or your documents do not support what you claimed.
• You cannot show enough experience, education, training or licensing to find work in your assessed occupation in Manitoba.
• Your language ability is too low to be employable in Manitoba.
• You do not show the ability and intention to settle permanently in Manitoba, or your ties to another province are stronger.
• Your settlement supports are weak: not enough settlement funds, or a Manitoba Supporter who does not meet the rules.
• Your Settlement Plan does not show real steps toward employment, including any required licence.
• You used an immigration representative you did not declare.

Manitoba's decisions are final and there is no appeal. The procedural fairness letter is your chance to respond to concerns before a decision. If you are refused, you must wait 6 months before applying again unless you can address the reasons. A challenge to a later IRCC refusal in Federal Court (judicial review) requires a lawyer.

Manitoba has not closed any of its three streams, but several related routes have ended or narrowed.

On July 6, 2026, IRCC signed the Manitoba Workforce Transition Bridge Temporary Public Policy. It is not open to new candidates. It lets Manitoba issue up to 2,700 new support letters to people who already received a support letter in 2024 or 2025, and extends their nomination deadline from December 31, 2026 to December 31, 2027.

Follow the steps in your Letter of Approval. Manitoba says Skilled Worker nominees who were not nominated through its Express Entry sub-stream should not enter Express Entry, and should apply to IRCC through the regular, non-Express Entry process. IRCC still checks admissibility, including medical, security and criminality checks for you and your family. Manitoba nominates only people who intend to live in Manitoba, so keep your plans consistent with your Settlement Plan.