OINP March 2026 Draw: 1,112 ITAs, Regional Score Cut-Offs, and What Comes Next
By Amir Ismail, RCIC #R412319 | Amir Ismail & Associates
Last Updated: March 2026 | Reading Time: 7 minutes
On March 25, 2026, Ontario issued 1,112 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) across five geographic regions under its Employer Job Offer streams. The minimum score to get an ITA in the Greater Toronto Area was 61 for Foreign Workers and 90 for International Students. In Central Ontario, In-Demand Skills candidates qualified with a score as low as 32. If you are currently in Canada on a work or study permit with an Ontario job offer, this draw directly affects your next move.
What Happened in the OINP March 25, 2026 Draw?
On March 25, 2026, Ontario ran five simultaneous regional draws under the Employer Job Offer category. This was the fourth round of OINP draws in 2026, following rounds on February 2, February 18, and March 18. A total of 1,112 ITAs were issued. That number represents 7.91% of Ontario’s full 2026 allocation of 14,119 nominations, used up in a single day.
The draws targeted three streams:
- Foreign Worker Stream: 597 invitations
- International Student Stream: 418 invitations
- In-Demand Skills Stream: 97 invitations
Every invited candidate must currently reside in Canada with a valid work or study permit. This was not an offshore draw. Ontario is retaining people who are already here and already contributing.
How Were the 1,112 Invitations Split by Region?
Ontario divided the invitations across five geographic zones. The majority went outside Toronto. Here is the full breakdown:
| Region | Invitations | Share of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Greater Toronto Area (GTA) | 431 | 38.7% |
| Southwestern Ontario | 251 | 22.6% |
| Central Ontario (ex. GTA) | 199 | 17.9% |
| Eastern Ontario | 174 | 15.6% |
| Northern Ontario | 57 | 5.1% |
In total, 681 invitations (61.3%) went to candidates with job offers outside the GTA. Ontario is not hiding its goal here: the GTA is overloaded, and every draw since the Employer Portal launched in July 2025 has pushed skilled talent outward.
What Were the Exact Score Cut-Offs by Stream and Region?
This is the table that every candidate in the OINP pool should study. Score requirements vary significantly by both stream and region.
Foreign Worker Stream Score Cut-Offs
| Region | Invitations | Minimum Score |
|---|---|---|
| Greater Toronto Area | 355 | 61 and above |
| Southwestern Ontario | 99 | 53 and above |
| Eastern Ontario | 64 | 57 and above |
| Central Ontario (ex. GTA) | 51 | 55 and above |
| Northern Ontario | 28 | 54 and above |
International Student Stream Score Cut-Offs
| Region | Invitations | Minimum Score |
|---|---|---|
| Greater Toronto Area | 76 | 90 and above |
| Eastern Ontario | 79 | 83 and above |
| Central Ontario (ex. GTA) | 82 | 82 and above |
| Southwestern Ontario | 152 | 81 and above |
| Northern Ontario | 29 | 80 and above |
In-Demand Skills Stream Score Cut-Offs
This stream ran in only two regions on March 25:
| Region | Invitations | Minimum Score |
|---|---|---|
| Central Ontario (ex. GTA) | 66 | 32 and above |
| Eastern Ontario | 31 | 34 and above |
The GTA, Southwestern Ontario, and Northern Ontario were not included in the In-Demand Skills draw at all on this date.
Which NOC Codes Were Targeted in the March 25 Draw?
Ontario was surgical about who it invited. This was not an open-pool draw. Each region had a defined list of eligible National Occupational Classification (NOC) codes.
GTA: Technology and Corporate Management
The GTA Foreign Worker and International Student draws focused heavily on:
- Senior managers in financial, communications, and business services (NOC 00012)
- Engineering managers (NOC 20010)
- Computer and information systems managers (NOC 20012)
- Software engineers and designers (NOC 21231)
- Software developers and programmers (NOC 21232)
- Web developers (NOC 21234)
- Computer engineers (NOC 21311)
- Information systems specialists (NOC 21222)
The GTA is Canada’s largest tech hub. These NOC codes confirm that Ontario is using immigration to protect that position.
Eastern and Central Ontario: Healthcare and Administration
Outside Toronto, the priority shifted sharply toward healthcare and operations:
- General practitioners and family physicians (NOC 31102)
- Registered nurses and psychiatric nurses (NOC 31301)
- Physiotherapists (NOC 31202)
- Audiologists and speech-language pathologists (NOC 31112)
- Licensed practical nurses (NOC 32101)
- Human resources professionals (NOC 11200)
- Administrative officers (NOC 13100)
- Medical administrative assistants (NOC 13112)
Rural Ontario does not have enough doctors or nurses. These draws are Ontario’s direct response to that crisis.
In-Demand Skills: Home Support Workers (NOC 44101)
The primary target for the In-Demand Skills draw was home support workers, housekeepers, and related occupations (NOC 44101). These workers provide in-home care for seniors and people with disabilities. Without them, patients end up in hospitals or long-term care facilities that Ontario cannot afford to expand fast enough. The wage range for this role runs from approximately $17.60 to $28.00 per hour, with a median around $22.00 across the province.
Other eligible occupations in this stream included:
- Construction trades helpers and laborers (NOC 75110)
- Livestock workers and farm machinery operators (NOC 84120)
- Harvesting laborers (NOC 85101)
- Industrial butchers and meat cutters (NOC 94141)
- Retail meat cutters and fishmongers (NOC 65202)
What Are the Deadlines If You Received an ITA on March 25?
If you received an ITA on March 25, 2026, your clock is already running. Here is what must happen, and when:
Step 1: Your employer has 14 calendar days to log into the OINP e-Filing Portal and submit a formal application for approval of your employment position. The employer must prove their company’s financial standing, confirm the position is full-time and permanent, and verify that the offered wage matches the prevailing rate for your NOC code in your region.
Step 2: You have 17 calendar days from the ITA date to submit your complete OINP application and pay the processing fee. You will find your file number in the portal under the prefix JOXX.
These are not soft deadlines. A missed employer deadline kills the invitation permanently. Do not wait for your employer to move first. Start gathering your documents on the day you receive the ITA.
Your application must match exactly what you attested to in your EOI profile. If your wage changed, your permit status changed, or your job duties changed, you must notify OINP immediately. Discrepancies trigger refusals.
Your profile must have been created and attested before March 23, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. ET to have been eligible for this draw.
Why Did Ontario Design the March Draw This Way?
Ontario’s provincial allocation for 2026 is 14,119 nominations. That is a 31.3% increase from the 2025 allocation of 10,750, but it remains well below the 2024 peak of 21,500. With fewer certificates available than at peak, Ontario cannot afford to nominate people who do not fill an immediate gap. Every certificate now has to produce economic output.
That is the logic behind the geographic scoring system. The OINP awards 8 regionalization points for job offers in Northern Ontario and designated rural areas. It awards 3 points for the broader GTA. It awards 0 points for job offers located strictly within Toronto. The result is a built-in score subsidy for employers who hire outside the city.
Ontario also alternates its draw methodology deliberately. The February 2 and February 18 draws were province-wide occupational sweeps targeting healthcare (minimum scores as low as 33 for physicians) and skilled trades. The March 25 draw pulled back to strict geographic zones with much higher score floors. That two-stroke pattern, broad sector draws followed by targeted regional draws, is how Ontario builds a balanced workforce without concentrating everyone in Toronto.
What Is Happening to the OINP in May 2026?
This is the most important section of this article. If you are in the OINP pool, or planning to apply, read this carefully.
Ontario’s official OINP updates page confirms that amendments to Ontario Regulation 421/17 under the Ontario Immigration Act, 2015, took effect on March 16, 2026. On May 30, 2026, every existing OINP stream category will be legally revoked. That includes:
- Foreign Worker stream
- International Student stream
- In-Demand Skills stream
- Masters Graduate stream
- PhD Graduate stream
- Employer Job Offer streams in their current form
- All other legacy Section 2 categories
This is not a rumor or a proposal. The regulation is already amended. The streams lose their legal basis on May 30.
What replaces them? Ontario has proposed but not yet confirmed the following new structure:
- A consolidated Employer Job Offer stream with two pathways based on TEER skill level (TEER 0-3 and TEER 4-5)
- A Priority Healthcare Stream (no job offer required for eligible registered professionals)
- An Exceptional Talent Stream (researchers, innovators, high-profile creatives)
- A revamped Entrepreneur Stream focused on active business ownership
What this means for you right now:
If you are currently in the OINP pool under the Masters or PhD Graduate streams, the March 18 draw (which issued 582 Masters Graduate ITAs at a minimum score of 30, and 525 PhD Graduate ITAs at a minimum score of 49) appears to have been a deliberate clearing of that backlog before May 30. Those streams are closing.
If you are in the Employer Job Offer pool, your stream continues until May 30 under current rules. Applications submitted before May 30 will be processed under the rules in effect at the time of submission.
Ontario has not confirmed whether existing EOI profiles will transfer to the new system. When the Employer Portal launched in July 2025, all prior profiles were wiped and candidates had to start over. Plan for the possibility of re-registering.
How Do You Improve Your Score for the Next OINP Draw?
Your score in the OINP EOI system depends on factors including language ability, education, Canadian work experience, wage level, and regionalization points. Here are the levers that actually move the needle in the current environment:
1. Move your job offer outside the GTA.
In the Foreign Worker stream, a GTA candidate needed 61 in the March 25 draw. The same profile in Southwestern Ontario needed 53. That 8-point difference can be the gap between an ITA and another year of waiting.
2. Target In-Demand Skills NOCs if your score is low.
If your cumulative score is under 40, the In-Demand Skills stream is the only realistic path right now. Focus on NOC 44101 in Central or Eastern Ontario. The March 25 cut-off was 32 in Central Ontario.
3. Get your documents ready before the next draw, not after.
The 17-day deadline requires your language tests, Educational Credential Assessment, employment letters, and permit copies to be ready before you receive an ITA. If you wait for the ITA to start gathering documents, you will almost certainly miss the deadline.
4. Act before May 30.
The existing streams close on May 30, 2026. If you qualify under any current stream, applying or strengthening your profile now is a lower-risk path than waiting for the new system to launch with unknown criteria.
How Does the March 2026 Draw Compare to February 2026?
The February draws were bulk acquisitions. The March draw was precision targeting. Here is the side-by-side view:
| Factor | February 2026 | March 25, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Draw type | Province-wide occupational sweeps | Region-specific geographic draws |
| Total ITAs (combined) | 3,151 (across Feb 2 and Feb 18) | 1,112 |
| Lowest FW score | 33 (physicians, Feb 2) | 53 (Southwestern Ontario) |
| Lowest IS score | 56 (healthcare, Feb 2) | 80 (Northern Ontario) |
| In-Demand Skills included | No | Yes (Central and Eastern Ontario) |
| Geographic restriction | None | Strict census division boundaries |
The pattern is clear. Ontario uses open-sector draws to clear acute province-wide labor gaps at low score thresholds. It uses geographic draws to distribute talent and penalize GTA concentration with higher score floors.
Frequently Asked Questions About the OINP March 2026 Draw
How many ITAs were issued in the OINP March 25, 2026 draw?
Ontario issued exactly 1,112 Invitations to Apply across five geographic regions on March 25, 2026, targeting the Foreign Worker, International Student, and In-Demand Skills streams under the Employer Job Offer category.
What was the lowest score accepted in the March 2026 OINP draw?
The lowest score accepted was 32 points, in the In-Demand Skills stream for Central Ontario. Eastern Ontario required a minimum of 34 in the same stream. The highest minimum score was 90, for the International Student stream in the GTA.
Which streams were included in the March 25, 2026 OINP draw?
The draw included three streams: the Employer Job Offer Foreign Worker stream (597 invitations), the Employer Job Offer International Student stream (418 invitations), and the Employer Job Offer In-Demand Skills stream (97 invitations).
What happens if I missed the March 2026 OINP draw?
Your EOI profile remains in the pool for future draws. Ontario holds draws on an approximately bi-weekly basis. The next draw could target different occupations or regions. Your best immediate action is to verify that your profile is fully attested and that your job offer is in an eligible region.
Will the OINP streams change in May 2026?
Yes. Ontario has confirmed through amendments to Ontario Regulation 421/17 that all existing OINP stream categories will be legally revoked on May 30, 2026. New streams have been proposed but not yet officially confirmed. Candidates should monitor the official OINP updates page at ontario.ca for announcements.
Does getting a provincial nomination from Ontario guarantee Canada PR?
No. A provincial nomination gives you 600 additional CRS points in the federal Express Entry system, which in practice makes an ITA for federal PR virtually certain. But the federal PR application is a separate step with IRCC. Nomination is not a guarantee; it is a very strong pathway.
Should You Use an RCIC for Your OINP Application?
The OINP 14-day employer deadline and 17-day candidate deadline run simultaneously. In 34 years of immigration practice, I have watched strong candidates lose valid ITAs because their employer did not know they had a 14-day window, or because one document was not current when the ITA arrived.
An RCIC does not just fill out forms. We verify your employer’s financial eligibility before the clock starts. We audit your EOI profile for inconsistencies that could trigger a refusal. We track both deadlines for you and flag any changes in your employment or permit status that require immediate disclosure.
If you received an ITA on March 25, or you are positioning yourself for the next OINP draw, the compliance window is too short to manage alone. I have helped over 25,000 clients navigate Canadian immigration since 1991. I know exactly what OINP officers look for, and what gets an application refused.
Learn more about our Ontario PNP services at amirismail.com or explore your broader Canadian immigration options through our Express Entry guide.
Ready to get started? Book Your Strategy Assessment and let us review your OINP profile before the next draw.
Amir Ismail is a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC #R412319) and founder of Amir Ismail & Associates, with offices in Toronto, Dubai, and Karachi. He has served over 25,000 clients since 1991.