Permanent residence pathways

Compare PR program families and check your eligibility against specific criteria.

Frequently asked questions

Which permanent residence program should I apply under?

Permanent residence is not one queue. Express Entry ranks candidates federally and draws from a pool; provincial nominee programs select against provincial labour needs; the Atlantic Immigration Program runs through a designated employer; and family sponsorship turns on the sponsor's relationship and income rather than the applicant's profile. Ruling families out early is usually faster than optimizing inside the wrong one.

How much is a provincial nomination worth in Express Entry?

An enhanced provincial stream nominates a candidate who already holds an Express Entry profile, and the nomination adds 600 CRS points, effectively a guaranteed invitation at the next general draw. Base streams nominate outside the pool and lead to a paper application to IRCC with longer federal processing. The same province can therefore be the fastest route for one candidate and the slowest for another.

Should I start from my CRS score or from an eligibility check?

A CRS score only means something against a draw cutoff, and a cutoff only applies to candidates who are eligible for the program that drew it. The cross-program eligibility check screens Express Entry, provincial streams, work permits, and sponsorship together, and reports which gates you clear and which you miss. Each calculator then implements the published rule for that program and shows its source beside the result.

Why screen streams individually instead of ranking provinces?

Because a province is not a single route. Most provinces run both enhanced and base streams, with different job offer, connection, and occupation gates on each, so a ranking of provinces would average away the only thing that decides your outcome: whether you clear a specific stream's criteria. The eligibility check screens each stream on its own terms instead.

Does a Quebec destination change which programs apply?

Yes. Quebec selects its own economic immigrants under a separate agreement with the federal government, so the federal economic streams on this page do not apply to a Quebec destination. Quebec's own selection runs first and issues a Certificat de sélection du Québec; the federal permanent residence application to IRCC follows that selection.