As of August 5, 2026. Checked against Ontario's published application process for the Ontario Workforce Priority stream.
Ontario opened the Expression of Interest portal for its new Ontario Workforce Priority stream on August 4, 2026. Registering an Expression of Interest (EOI) is now the only way into the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), because every other stream is closed.
Most of what you will read about the OINP EOI describes the old system. The guides ranking for it were written when Ontario ran nine categories and candidates could register themselves. Neither is true anymore. Under the new stream you cannot start the process at all until your employer acts first, and there are three separate deadlines that can end your registration before Ontario ever looks at it.
What is an OINP Expression of Interest?
Short answer: An EOI is a free profile you register in Ontario's e-Filing Portal telling the province you want to be considered for a nomination. It is not an application. Ontario scores every profile in the pool, then issues invitations to apply to the highest-ranked candidates in periodic draws. Only after you receive an invitation do you submit an actual application and pay a fee.
The distinction matters because registering costs nothing and guarantees nothing. Ontario states plainly that you should not register if you do not meet the stream criteria: if you are invited and then cannot prove what you claimed, the application is refused and the fee is not refunded.
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Short answer: Skilled and intermediate workers with a qualifying Ontario job offer, and self-employed physicians who meet the College and Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) requirements. Everyone else is out for now, because the Ontario Workforce Priority stream is the only stream open and the other eight closed in June 2026.
Self-employed physicians are the exception to almost every rule here. They register without a job offer and without an employer, provided they are members in good standing with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, hold a certificate of registration in an eligible class, and are eligible to bill OHIP.
For everyone else, the sequence is the thing people get wrong. Your employer registers in the Employer Portal and submits a job offer for your position. That generates a job offer ID. You cannot register an EOI without it.
What deadlines can end your EOI before a draw?
Short answer: Three, and two of them are easy to miss. You have 30 calendar days from your employer submitting the job offer to register your EOI. A registered EOI stays in the pool for 12 months and is then removed automatically. After an invitation, you have 17 calendar days to submit and pay, but you cannot submit until your employer files their own application, and they have 14 days to do it.
Clock
Who it applies to
Length
What happens if you miss it
Job offer to EOI registration
You
30 calendar days
The job offer expires and your employer must submit a new one
EOI validity in the pool
You
12 months
The EOI is automatically removed from the selection pool
Employer application after invitation
Your employer
14 calendar days
You cannot submit your own application
Your application and payment
You
17 calendar days
The invitation lapses
The last two run at the same time and depend on each other. Your 17 days start when the invitation is issued, but Ontario blocks submission until your employer has filed their application for approval of the employment position. You can build your application during those 17 days. You cannot press submit. An employer who takes their full 14 days leaves you three. Agree a filing date with your employer before you register, not after the invitation lands.
One more trap sits in the job offer itself. If your employer needs to change the wage or the National Occupational Classification (NOC) code on the offer, they have to withdraw it and submit a new one, and you then have to register a brand new EOI. Your place in the pool does not survive the correction.
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How many points is the OINP EOI scored out of?
Short answer: Job-offer candidates are scored out of 130 points and self-employed physicians out of 115, because the wage factor does not apply to them. Points come from employment factors, education, language, and where in Ontario the job sits. Ontario has not published a cut-off for the new stream, because it has not run a draw yet.
The single largest swing for most candidates is geography. A work location in Northern Ontario earns the full 15 regionalization points. Toronto earns zero. Eastern Ontario, Southwestern Ontario, and Central Ontario outside the Greater Toronto Area each earn 10, and the GTA outside Toronto earns 5. Two identical candidates can sit 15 points apart on the location of the job alone.
Language is the next largest lever at 15 points for Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 9 or higher, with a further 10 available for a second official language at CLB 6 across all four abilities. Ontario work experience in the offered position tops out at 18 points.
Does registering an EOI cost anything?
Short answer: No. Ontario charges nothing to register an Expression of Interest. The application fee only arrives if you are invited to apply, and it is paid at that point. Any service charging you to register an EOI is charging for form-filling, not for access.
That is worth stating plainly because the free registration step is where paid intermediaries cluster. What you are buying, if you buy anything, is judgement about whether your profile is competitive and whether your employer can actually meet the employer-side requirements. The registration itself is a form.
What happens after Ontario invites you?
Short answer: An invitation is not a nomination. You submit an application with documents proving every scoring factor you claimed, your employer submits their application for approval of the employment position, and Ontario assesses both. If Ontario nominates you, you then apply to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for permanent residence, and IRCC makes the final decision.
Everything you attested to in the EOI has to be evidenced. Ontario is explicit that receiving an invitation does not mean you will be nominated, and that not all applicants who meet the criteria will be invited.
Self-employed physicians have an extra option at the nomination stage: they can choose to be nominated through the federal Express Entry system, which adds 600 points to an Express Entry profile. If you take that route and let the Express Entry profile lapse after nomination, you start the whole OINP process again from a new EOI.
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Where can you get help deciding if it is worth registering?
Short answer: The registration is free, so the question is not whether to register but whether your profile is competitive and whether your employer can carry their half. Those are the two places these applications fail, and both are answerable before you start.
Look hard at the employer side first. They must be registered, willing to file within 14 days of an invitation, and able to meet the requirements for approval of the employment position. A candidate with a strong score and a disengaged employer does not get nominated.
Go Far Global is a licensed Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) firm in Toronto. If you want your score estimated and your employer's position assessed before you commit, book a consultation. If you are not sure Ontario is the right route, our free assessment checks which programs fit you. Our Ontario guide covers OINP eligibility and fees in one place. For the full stream requirements and the closed-stream transition, see our Ontario Workforce Priority Stream guide, and for draw activity our OINP news tracker.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to express interest in OINP?
Your employer starts it. They register their business in the OINP Employer Portal and submit a job offer for your position, which produces a job offer ID. You then sign in to Ontario's e-Filing Portal, enter that job offer ID and your email address, and register your Expression of Interest within 30 calendar days of the offer being submitted. Registration is free. Self-employed physicians are the exception and register without an employer or job offer, provided they meet the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario and OHIP billing requirements. Registering does not guarantee an invitation.
What is the EOI score for OINP?
Under the Ontario Workforce Priority stream, job-offer candidates are scored out of a maximum 130 points and self-employed physicians out of 115, since the hourly wage factor does not apply to them. Points come from the NOC TEER category and occupational category, hourly wage, Ontario work experience, Canadian earnings history, legal status, education, Canadian credentials, official language ability, and the region of Ontario where the job is located. Ontario has not published a cut-off score for this stream because no draw has been held since it opened on August 4, 2026. Cut-offs from the closed streams do not carry over.
What are the latest OINP news for 2026?
Ontario rebuilt the program this year. Amendments to Ontario Regulation 422/17 came into force on June 25, 2026, removing the existing eight streams and creating the Ontario Workforce Priority stream in their place. Ontario updated its web pages with the new eligibility criteria on July 20, and opened the Expression of Interest portal on August 4, 2026. No invitations have been issued under the new stream yet. Ontario describes this as Phase 1 of a two-phase redesign, so further changes are expected. Registrations under the closed streams that never received an invitation were withdrawn.
Does OINP EOI expire?
Yes. Your EOI registration stays valid for 12 months while you wait for an invitation to apply, and Ontario removes it from the selection pool automatically after that. An EOI can also be withdrawn earlier, either by you or by the program, and Ontario notifies you when that happens. There is a separate and shorter deadline before the EOI even exists: the job offer your employer submits expires if you do not register within 30 calendar days, and they must then submit a new one. If your employer changes the wage or NOC code, the offer is withdrawn and you must register a new EOI.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute immigration or legal advice. Immigration laws and policies change frequently. Each case is unique and outcomes depend on individual circumstances. Consult a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) before making immigration decisions.
Rami Mamar is an RCIC-IRB licensed immigration consultant and Commissioner of Oaths with over a decade of experience helping clients from Iran, UAE, Syria, Armenia, and worldwide immigrate to Canada. He has overseen 10,000+ immigration cases including Express Entry, work permits, study permits, and family sponsorship applications.
