The Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP) is now returning nomination applications for those employed in the transportation, retail trade, accommodation and food services sectors, as it has reached its newly implemented 25% cap for nominations in these sectors. Nomination applications currently remain open in all other eligible sectors.
What is SINP?
SINP is Saskatchewan’s permanent resident nominee program. It works to address economic and labour needs within the province by assisting foreign workers looking to work and live in Saskatchewan to become permanent residents. It also plays a critical role in supporting Saskatchewan’s growing economy and labour needs, with much of Saskatchewan’s economic immigration being facilitated through SINP.
What’s new?
Following a brief pause on the intake of new Job Approval Forms (JAFs) in March 2025, the provincial government resumed accepting new JAFs subject to several changes. Among these changes was a 25% nomination cap for candidates employed in the transportation, retail trade, accommodation and food services sectors.
Saskatchewan has now reached the 25% cap, and subsequently candidate applications within these sectors will be returned. However, SINP noted that if unused nominations in these sectors become available they may issue additional nominations later in the year. For those still looking to submit nominations, the province will continue to accept JAF applications in the affected sectors.
What’s next for employers?
The federal government’s decision to reduce provincial nominee program allocations by 50% in 2025 has required Saskatchewan to adapt their SINP intake strategy to continue to meet the province’s labour market needs while remaining within increasing constraints on temporary residence in Canada.
Employers seeking to submit JAFs in any SINP-eligible sector continue to be able to do so. However, nomination applications within the transportation, retail trade, accommodation and food services sectors will be returned due to capacity constraints. Employers within these sectors will need to evaluate how the potential reduction of foreign workers will impact their candidate pools and business needs going forward. Employers may need to look to other immigration options, such as Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIA) or LMIA-exempt work permit extensions to fill labour gaps resulting from SINP capacity reductions. For more information about these changes, or to discuss how SINP affects your workforce, please contact the authors or a member of our immigration group.
Note: This article is of a general nature only and is not exhaustive of all possible legal rights or remedies. In addition, laws may change over time and should be interpreted only in the context of particular circumstances such that these materials are not intended to be relied upon or taken as legal advice or opinion. Readers should consult a legal professional for specific advice in any particular situation.
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