Permanent residence lawyer in Toronto

Canadian Experience Class

For people who already work in Canada. You need at least one year of skilled work experience in Canada (TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3), full-time or the equivalent part-time, in the three years before you apply, gained while you were authorized to work. Self-employment and work done while you were a full-time student don’t count. There is no education requirement, although education adds points, and no proof of funds is required. Many people in the GTA qualify after a post-graduation or other work permit; our work permits page explains how to protect that experience.

Federal Skilled Worker Program

For skilled workers with experience in Canada or abroad. You need at least one year of continuous skilled work (or the part-time equivalent) in the last ten years, language test results in English or French meeting the minimum in all four abilities, and a completed education with an educational credential assessment if it was obtained outside Canada. You must also score at least 67 points on a separate selection grid covering language, education, experience, age, arranged employment and adaptability, and show settlement funds unless you are authorized to work in Canada and have a valid job offer.

Federal Skilled Trades Program

For qualified tradespeople. You need at least two years of full-time work in a skilled trade within the five years before applying, language results meeting the trades minimums, and either a valid full-time job offer of at least a year or a certificate of qualification in your trade issued by a Canadian authority.

Getting the occupation right

Eligibility turns on the National Occupational Classification code you choose, and that code must match the duties in your reference letters, not your job title. A wrong code is a common reason invited candidates are refused.

On June 26, 2026, Ontario closed the earlier streams of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program and replaced them with a single Ontario Workforce Priority stream. It has pathways for workers with a qualifying job offer from an Ontario employer and a separate pathway for self-employed physicians. The employer applies for approval of the position, and candidates register an expression of interest; Ontario then invites candidates to apply.

In practice this means a nomination in Ontario now starts with the job. Employers in Scarborough, Markham and across the GTA who want to keep a foreign worker long-term should involve their advisers early, because the position and the worker are both assessed. Ontario has said more changes are coming, so we check the current program rules before recommending it.

After nomination, you apply to IRCC for permanent residence, either through your Express Entry profile or on paper outside it, depending on the stream. The province decides the nomination; IRCC still decides admissibility, including medical, security and criminality checks. Other provinces run their own programs with different rules, and you must intend to live in the province that nominates you.