Sask. ‘labour shortage possible’ if SINP pause lasts too long

Saskatchewan has been on a path of growth for nearly the last decade and immigration has been a significant part of it. However, a new pause in the province’s program could put a damper on that.

As of Feb. 19, the provincial government has paused intake for all new job approval forms for the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP).

SINP is the only immigration program over which the province has control.

In 2023, the provincial government celebrated increases to its SINP allocation, bringing it to 7,350 people for that year, the highest target ever.

It was set to grow to 8,500 by 2025.

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A news release from the province at that time said immigration played a vital role in Saskatchewan’s economy and labour demands and the SINP accounted for three-quarters of the province’s newcomers.

In June 2024, Saskatchewan hit 1,231,043 people. The biggest gain to reach that number, according to a Statistics Canada analyst, was international migration

However, last fall, the federal government announced it would be cutting immigration numbers into the country.

“(The plan will) pause population growth in the short term to achieve well-managed, sustainable growth in the long term,” read a Government of Saskatchewan news release in October 2024.

It established controlled target numbers for international students, foreign workers and permanent residents — SINP being a major path to permanent residency in Saskatchewan.

The government explained it had loosened the reins on immigration to help with recovery from the pandemic. Now it’s pulling back to respond to the “evolving needs of our country” and alleviate pressure on housing, infrastructure and social services.

These moves cut the number of nomination allocations through the SINP program by half, to 3,625 — the lowest allocation for the program since 2009, according to the Government of Saskatchewan.

As such, the province said job approval form intake has been temporarily paused.

“The ministry will be reviewing existing application inventories, labour market priorities and what program changes will be necessary due to the federal cuts,” said the government in a statement.

“Given this dramatic reduction in available spots, program changes will be necessary to ensure fair and effective management of our limited allocation.”

The province said the federal government is also requiring 75 per cent of provincial nominee program nominations in 2025 to be used for people already in Canada.  They said it can’t keep nominating people yet to land in Canada when only a quarter of its nominations can be used for people from abroad.

According to immigration consultants, this has left newcomers who were hoping to use the program, scrambling.

“People have been waiting here, working here in this province for maybe one year, two years or maybe longer, now they are in the lurch, like, they don’t have any idea … what’s going to be their future in the province of Saskatchewan,” explained Dhaval Bhatt, chief consultant at Red Lily Immigration Services Ltd.

Daria Conaghan, immigration consultant with Reach International Recruitment & Immigration Inc., agreed, adding people are in a state of anxiety because of the pause.

“SINP, once they nominate someone, they want them to come to work right away. (The nominee is) assuming they’re going to be nominated and it’s going to go through. They’ve sold all of their family goods at home, their house, everything and they put everything on the line to come here and now they’re (hearing), ‘well maybe you will, maybe you won’t,’” said Conaghan.

If the pause lasts long enough, according to Vishal Chawla, a consultant with White Ridge Immigration, it could mean people have to leave Saskatchewan and go back home. And with a much smaller pool of newcomers arriving, he said that would mean a labour shortage.

“We still need immigrants, we still need people to fill the labour shortage — come here, pay taxes and young people especially,” said Chawla.

He said the program is particularly used for restaurants and retail stores to fill skilled positions and also entry-level jobs.

Conaghan agreed SINP is needed on the business side.

“I know farmers who are desperate for workers as well as restaurants and things, they’ve been hit hard with COVID and we’re still all trying to recover,” she explained.

Bhatt said he understood the federal government has slashed numbers but he said his phone is constantly ringing with worried people.

“A government should at least be sympathetic and empathetic to their situation and should provide a long-term vision on how they are going to work, and what are the future plans,” said Bhatt.

Chawla hoped the pause would only last for four months, at most, so that people wouldn’t have to start making decisions about going back to their country of origin.

“People have worked hard in this country, they have contributed a lot to the economy and then they have to leave without permanent residence papers. That’s not fair to them,” said Chawla.

Editor’s Note: this story has been corrected to reflect the reduced allocation for the SINP program for 2025