Ottawa deals blow to Manitoba's provincial nominee program, cutting number of immigrant approvals in half

This story is part of Welcome to Canada, a CBC News series about immigration told through the eyes of the people who have experienced it.

A federal immigration program that's responsible for much of Manitoba's recent population growth is facing a severe cut. 

Manitoba is only receiving 4,750 nominee slots through the provincial nominee program this year — which is half of the number it was allotted last year.

Each nomination could represent an entire family, as chosen applicants can bring their spouse and any dependants.

Provincial immigration minister Malaya Marcelino condemned Ottawa's decision to cut a program that brought skilled workers to Manitoba to fill job vacancies. 

"Businesses are telling us that this is going to hurt Manitoba businesses and worsen labour shortages in many parts of the province," she said in a statement late Friday. 

"We will continue to work with the federal government to advocate for Manitoba's immigration needs and priorities and explore all tools available."

Province tried to avoid cut

The province said it was informed of its new quota on Thursday. Federal immigration minister Marc Miller was in Winnipeg and met privately with Marcelino. 

The federal government previously announced it would reduce immigration targets for Canada's provincial nominee programs by about half — from a total of 110,000 nominations in 2024 to a 55,000 annual target over the next three years — but Manitoba, which relies on the program more than any other jurisdiction, was lobbying to avoid a cut of any kind.

In fact, Marcelino asked the feds for 12,000 nominations — a 26 per cent jump from 2024's allotment and nearly double the 6,325 nominees Manitoba had in 2022.

She said in an early January interview more immigrants are needed to fill "deep and persisting labour shortages throughout our province."

"We need as many folks as we can get," she said. 

Ottawa's move to cut provincial nominee allocations comes as the Liberal government rolls back immigration numbers across the board to stabilize population growth and relieve pressure on the housing market.

The measure was mainly targeted at the country's biggest cities, where housing is in short supply.

But Marcelino said her province shouldn't suffer as a result.

"What's going on in other areas across Canada is not what's happening here in Manitoba. You are trying to fix a problem that doesn't exist here in Manitoba and you are creating a new one for us," she said in an interview earlier in the month.

Before the quota announcement, Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal member of Parliament for Winnipeg North, said in an interview Manitoba has done "relatively well" in terms of accommodating immigrants and handling the housing crunch, but he said the number of arrivals still need to be restrained everywhere.

With overall immigration levels dropping, "you can only have so many [provincial] nominees coming into the country," he said.

More than 70 per cent of Manitoba's immigrants in 2024 came through the provincial nominee program, according to statistics from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

The province receives a $500 fee from each applicant.

The nominee program was founded in Manitoba in 1998. Other areas of the country have since replicated the program. 

Marcelino previously told CBC News if Manitoba's provincial nominee allocation for 2025 was curtailed, she'd ask the federal government to direct more of the economic immigrants it accepts toward her province.

The In-Canada Focus stream, which the federal government created this year, is aimed at temporary residents already contributing to the economy.