6 Ontario-OINP Draws On March 18, 2026

Last Updated On 18 March 2026, 6:11 PM EDT (Toronto Time)

On March 18, 2026, the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program issued a total of 1,243 invitations to apply across 6 OINP draws.

But the headline story is one that thousands of master’s and PhD graduates have been waiting more than a year to hear: the Masters Graduate and PhD Graduate streams are officially back.

This marks the first time Ontario has conducted draws under these two streams since 2024.

The entire calendar year of 2025 passed without a single invitation under either the Masters Graduate or PhD Graduate stream, leaving thousands of international graduates in limbo.

These OINP draws signal that Ontario is actively utilizing these pathways once again before the anticipated OINP program redesign eliminates them later this year.

In February 2026 alone, Canada issued 25,722 PR invitations across all programs, and Ontario was the most active province with over 3,200 OINP invitations.

Summary of All OINP Draws on March 18, 2026

Ontario conducted 6 targeted draws on March 18, 2026, issuing a combined 1,243 invitations to apply.

The draws covered the Masters Graduate stream, PhD Graduate stream, Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker stream for physicians, and three streams under the Regional Economic Development through Immigration pilot.

This continues the aggressive draw activity seen throughout early 2026, following the 1,825 invitations issued on February 2 and the 1,404 skilled trades invitations on February 18.

The table below provides a comprehensive breakdown of every draw.

Stream	Date Issued	Invitations	Score	Profile Dates	Notes
Masters Graduate	March 18, 2026	582	30+	Jul 2, 2025 – Mar 16, 2026	Targeted draw
PhD Graduate	March 18, 2026	525	49+	Jul 2, 2025 – Mar 16, 2026	Targeted draw
Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker (Physicians)	March 18, 2026	97	36+	Jul 2, 2025 – Mar 16, 2026	Targeted – Physicians
Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker (REDI)	March 18, 2026	11	47+	Jul 2, 2025 – Mar 16, 2026	REDI Pilot
Employer Job Offer: International Student (REDI)	March 18, 2026	17	61+	Jul 2, 2025 – Mar 16, 2026	REDI Pilot
Employer Job Offer: In-Demand Skills (REDI)	March 18, 2026	11	30+	Jul 2, 2025 – Mar 16, 2026	REDI Pilot

All eligible profiles must have been created and attested to by March 16, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. The profile eligibility window spans from July 2, 2025, to March 16, 2026.

This date aligns with the OINP intake system changes introduced in July 2025, which reset the Expression of Interest registration process when the new Employer Portal launched.

Candidates who received invitations can access the OINP e-Filing Portal to submit their applications within the required deadlines.

Full List Of Targeted Occupations for Masters Graduate Stream

Candidates must have Canadian work experience in one of the following NOC codes to qualify for this targeted draw:

1. NOC 00010 – Legislators
2. NOC 00012 – Senior managers – financial, communications and other business services
3. NOC 00015 – Senior managers – construction, transportation, production and utilities
4. NOC 10011 – Human resources managers
5. NOC 10012 – Purchasing managers
6. NOC 10019 – Other administrative services managers
7. NOC 10020 – Insurance, real estate and financial brokerage managers
8. NOC 10021 – Banking, credit and other investment managers
9. NOC 11200 – Human resources professionals
10. NOC 12010 – Supervisors, general office and administrative support workers
11. NOC 12011 – Supervisors, finance and insurance office workers
12. NOC 12013 – Supervisors, supply chain, tracking and scheduling coordination occupations
13. NOC 12100 – Executive assistants
14. NOC 12101 – Human resources and recruitment officers
15. NOC 12102 – Procurement and purchasing agents and officers
16. NOC 12103 – Conference and event planners
17. NOC 12104 – Employment insurance and revenue officers
18. NOC 12111 – Health information management occupations
19. NOC 12112 – Records management technicians
20. NOC 13 – Senior managers – health, education, social and community services and membership organizations
21. NOC 13100 – Administrative officers
22. NOC 13112 – Medical administrative assistants
23. NOC 14101 – Receptionists
24. NOC 20010 – Engineering managers
25. NOC 20011 – Architecture and science managers
26. NOC 20012 – Computer and information systems managers
27. NOC 21100 – Physicists and astronomers
28. NOC 21111 – Forestry professionals
29. NOC 21200 – Architects
30. NOC 21201 – Landscape architects
31. NOC 21222 – Information systems specialists
32. NOC 21311 – Computer engineers (except software engineers and designers)
33. NOC 30010 – Managers in health care
34. NOC 31112 – Audiologists and speech-language pathologists
35. NOC 31120 – Pharmacists
36. NOC 31121 – Dietitians and nutritionists
37. NOC 31202 – Physiotherapists
38. NOC 31203 – Occupational therapists
39. NOC 31300 – Nursing co-ordinators and supervisors
40. NOC 31301 – Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses
41. NOC 32103 – Respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists and cardiopulmonary technologists
42. NOC 32109 – Other technical occupations in therapy and assessment
43. NOC 32129 – Other medical technologists and technicians
44. NOC 33101 – Medical laboratory assistants
45. NOC 33102 – Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates
46. NOC 33109 – Other assisting occupations in support of health services
47. NOC 40020 – Administrators – post-secondary education and vocational training
48. NOC 40030 – Managers in social, community and correctional services
49. NOC 41301 – Therapists in counselling and related specialized therapies
50. NOC 41302 – Ecclesiastical occupations
51. NOC 50011 – Managers – publishing, motion pictures, broadcasting and performing arts
52. NOC 51110 – Editors
53. NOC 51113 – Journalists
54. NOC 51122 – Musicians and singers
55. NOC 52110 – Film and video camera operators
56. NOC 52112 – Broadcast technicians
57. NOC 52113 – Audio and video recording technicians
58. NOC 70010 – Construction managers
59. NOC 70011 – Home building and renovation managers
60. NOC 70012 – Facility operation and maintenance managers
61. NOC 72010 – Contractors and supervisors, machining, metal forming, shaping and erecting trades and related occupations
62. NOC 72012 – Contractors and supervisors, pipefitting trades
63. NOC 72014 – Contractors and supervisors, other construction trades, installers, repairers and servicers
64. NOC 72020 – Contractors and supervisors, mechanic trades
65. NOC 72023 – Supervisors, railway transport operations
66. NOC 72025 – Supervisors, mail and message distribution occupations
67. NOC 73112 – Painters and decorators (except interior decorators)
68. NOC 73201 – General maintenance workers and building superintendents
69. NOC 92010 – Supervisors, mineral and metal processing
70. NOC 92011 – Supervisors, petroleum, gas and chemical processing and utilities
71. NOC 92013 – Supervisors, plastic and rubber products manufacturing
72. NOC 92014 – Supervisors, forest products processing

For complete stream requirements, visit the official Masters Graduate stream page on the Ontario government website.

Full List Of Targeted Occupations for PhD Graduate Stream

Candidates must have Canadian work experience in one of the following NOC codes:

1. NOC 10021 – Banking, credit and other investment managers
2. NOC 11101 – Financial and investment analysts
3. NOC 11200 – Human resources professionals
4. NOC 11201 – Professional occupations in business management consulting
5. NOC 13110 – Administrative assistants
6. NOC 20011 – Architecture and science managers
7. NOC 20012 – Computer and information systems managers
8. NOC 21100 – Physicists and astronomers
9. NOC 21101 – Chemists
10. NOC 21102 – Geoscientists and oceanographers
11. NOC 21109 – Other professional occupations in physical sciences
12. NOC 21110 – Biologists and related scientists
13. NOC 21120 – Public and environmental health and safety professionals
14. NOC 21202 – Urban and land use planners
15. NOC 21210 – Mathematicians, statisticians and actuaries
16. NOC 21211 – Data scientists
17. NOC 21220 – Cybersecurity specialists
18. NOC 21222 – Information systems specialists
19. NOC 21223 – Database analysts and data administrators
20. NOC 21230 – Computer systems developers and programmers
21. NOC 21231 – Software engineers and designers
22. NOC 21232 – Software developers and programmers
23. NOC 21233 – Web designers
24. NOC 21300 – Civil engineers
25. NOC 21301 – Mechanical engineers
26. NOC 21310 – Electrical and electronics engineers
27. NOC 21311 – Computer engineers (except software engineers and designers)
28. NOC 21322 – Metallurgical and materials engineers
29. NOC 21331 – Geological engineers
30. NOC 21399 – Other professional engineers, n.e.c.
31. NOC 22214 – Technical occupations in geomatics and meteorology
32. NOC 22300 – Civil engineering technologists and technicians
33. NOC 22310 – Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians
34. NOC 31100 – Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine
35. NOC 31301 – Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses
36. NOC 40020 – Administrators – post-secondary education and vocational training
37. NOC 41200 – University professors and lecturers
38. NOC 41201 – Post-secondary teaching and research assistants
39. NOC 41210 – College and other vocational instructors
40. NOC 41400 – Natural and applied science policy researchers, consultants and program officers
41. NOC 41401 – Economists and economic policy researchers and analysts
42. NOC 41402 – Business development officers and marketing researchers and consultants
43. NOC 41403 – Social policy researchers, consultants and program officers
44. NOC 41404 – Health policy researchers, consultants and program officers
45. NOC 41405 – Education policy researchers, consultants and program officers
46. NOC 41409 – Other professional occupations in social science
47. NOC 42201 – Social and community service workers
48. NOC 43109 – Other instructors
49. NOC 44101 – Home support workers, housekeepers and related occupations
50. NOC 51110 – Editors
51. NOC 52120 – Graphic designers and illustrators
52. NOC 74102 – Couriers and messengers

For complete stream requirements, visit the official PhD Graduate stream page on the Ontario government website.

Application deadline: Candidates must submit their application and payment within 14 calendar days of receiving the invitation under Masters and Phd Graduate Streams.

Log in to the OINP e-Filing Portal and click the newly created file number with the prefix NPHD.

The absence of Masters and PhD Graduate stream draws throughout 2025 created significant uncertainty for thousands of international graduate students in Ontario.

Many had chosen to study in Ontario specifically because of the well-established pathway from an Ontario graduate degree to permanent residence through these streams.

When the draws stopped, these students were left without the PR pathway they had planned around.

The 2025 disruptions also extended to other OINP streams, most notably when Ontario returned all Skilled Trades Stream applications in November 2025, a decision that Premier Doug Ford attributed to federal allocation cuts.

The March 18, 2026, draws are significant for several interconnected reasons.

Ontario’s 2026 OINP nomination allocation stands at 14,119, a 31% increase from the 10,750 nominations in 2025.

The province has already been active, issuing 1,825 invitations on February 2 targeting healthcare and REDI candidates, followed by 1,404 skilled trades invitations on February 18.

However, candidates should understand that this return may be temporary.

Ontario announced regulatory changes on March 16, 2026, granting the Minister authority to create or remove OINP selection streams.

The province has confirmed that 9 categories of applicants currently eligible for provincial nomination will be formally revoked on May 30, 2026.

The OINP program redesign is expected to eliminate the Masters and PhD Graduate streams entirely, replacing them with new pathways including a Priority Healthcare Stream, an Exceptional Talent Stream, and a consolidated Employer Job Offer Stream.

Full List Of Targeted Occupations Under Foreign Worker Stream

Ontario continued its focus on physician recruitment with 97 invitations issued under the Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker stream, targeting physicians with a score of 36 and above.

This continues a pattern established in the February 2 draws when 129 physician-specific invitations were issued.

At the federal level, the new Express Entry physician category launched on February 19, 2026, inviting 391 doctors at a historic low CRS cutoff of just 169 points.

The physician draw targets three specific NOC codes:

• NOC 31100 – Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine
• NOC 31101 – Specialists in surgery
• NOC 31102 – General practitioners and family physicians

Ontario’s persistent focus on physicians reflects the province’s critical healthcare staffing shortage.

With over 2.3 million Ontarians lacking a family doctor according to recent provincial data, the recruitment of internationally trained physicians through immigration is a workforce priority that extends far beyond immigration policy.

Canada has also introduced Express Entry exemptions for self-employed doctors and created a dedicated Express Entry category for physicians with Canadian work experience, making 2026 the most physician-focused immigration year in Canadian history.

REDI Pilot Draws Across 3 Streams

The Regional Economic Development through Immigration pilot continued with 39 invitations split across three Employer Job Offer streams.

The REDI pilot targets candidates with job offers in Lanark or Leeds and Grenville, two rural Ontario regions where local employers struggle to fill positions through domestic hiring alone.

REDI has become a consistent feature of OINP draws throughout 2025 and 2026, appearing in the October 2025 draws, the December 2025 draws, and every draw round in 2026 so far.

These draws are part of Ontario’s broader strategy to distribute immigration benefits beyond the Greater Toronto Area and into smaller communities that face acute labour shortages.

The Working for Workers Seven Act, 2025 laid the legislative groundwork for more targeted regional immigration approaches, and the REDI pilot is one concrete implementation of that strategy.

OINP REDI Full List Of Targeted Occupations

REDI: Employer Job Offer – Foreign Worker Stream

11 invitations were issued to candidates with a score of 47 and above. Candidates must have a job offer in one of the following NOC codes:

• NOC 11100 – Financial auditors and accountants
• NOC 22302 – Industrial engineering and manufacturing technologists and technicians
• NOC 32104 – Animal health technologists and veterinary technicians
• NOC 33102 – Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates
• NOC 72302 – Gas fitters
• NOC 72410 – Automotive service technicians, truck and bus mechanics and mechanical repairers

REDI: Employer Job Offer – International Student Stream

17 invitations were issued to candidates with a score of 61 and above. Candidates must have a job offer in one of the following NOC codes:

• NOC 33102 – Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates
• NOC 42201 – Social and community service workers
• NOC 42202 – Early childhood educators and assistants
• NOC 70010 – Construction managers
• NOC 72100 – Machinists and machining and tooling inspectors
• NOC 73202 – Pest controllers and fumigators

REDI: Employer Job Offer – In-Demand Skills Stream

11 invitations were issued to candidates with a score of 30 and above. Candidates must have a job offer in one of the following NOC codes:

• NOC 44101 – Home support workers, housekeepers and related occupations
• NOC 94100 – Machine operators, mineral and metal processing
• NOC 94111 – Plastics processing machine operators
• NOC 94140 – Process control and machine operators, food and beverage processing
• NOC 94201 – Electronics assemblers, fabricators, inspectors and testers
• NOC 95106 – Labourers in food and beverage processing

Ontario-OINP Application Deadlines and Next Steps

Candidates who received invitations on March 18, 2026, must act quickly. The application windows are tight and non-negotiable.

Stream	Application Deadline
Masters Graduate (prefix NMAS)	14 calendar days from invitation
PhD Graduate (prefix NPHD)	14 calendar days from invitation
Employer Job Offer streams (prefix JOXX)	17 calendar days from invitation (employer: 14 days)

Missing these deadlines means losing the invitation entirely. There are no extensions. Candidates should have their documents prepared in advance and submit their application as soon as possible.

For Employer Job Offer streams, the employer-led application process through the OINP Employer Portal means employers must act first within 14 days before candidates can complete their own submissions.

Candidates who also plan to pursue federal immigration pathways should be aware that Express Entry now requires upfront medical exams before application submission.

The OINP Program Redesign and Why Time Is Running Out

Ontario’s OINP is undergoing the most significant restructuring in its history.

The regulatory changes that took effect on March 16, 2026, under amendments to Ontario Regulation 421/17, grant the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development the authority to create or remove selection streams without requiring new legislation.

This authority was originally introduced through the Working for Workers Seven Act, 2025.

The confirmed timeline includes the revocation of nine categories of applicants on May 30, 2026.

The proposed OINP redesign for 2026 outlined a phased approach: Phase 1 merges the three Employer Job Offer streams into a single unified stream with TEER-based tracks, while Phase 2 eliminates the Masters Graduate, PhD Graduate, and potentially other streams.

In their place, Ontario plans to introduce a Priority Healthcare Stream, an Exceptional Talent Stream, and a redesigned Entrepreneur Stream.

For anyone currently eligible under the Masters or PhD Graduate streams, the message is clear: these March 18 draws may represent one of the final windows of opportunity.

Candidates who have not yet registered an Expression of Interest should do so immediately through the OINP e-Filing Portal.

Those who have active profiles but did not receive an invitation in this round should maintain their profiles and monitor the OINP Program Updates page closely for future draws.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Fact-checked: All information in this article has been verified against official Ontario government sources, including the OINP Program Updates page and Ontario Regulation 421/17.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or immigration advice. Consult a licensed immigration professional for guidance specific to your situation.

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