Provinces and Territories Portal user guide

On this page

• Who can use the PT Portal
• Primary user actions
  • Manage access
  • Provide access to secondary users
  • Remove access for secondary users
• Primary and secondary user actions
  • Logging in to the PT Portal
  • Viewing detailed information about candidates
  • Search for a candidate
  • Work with search results
  • Exporting search results
  • Select candidates to receive a NOI Letter
  • Navigating the Selected Candidates table
  • Resend a NOI to a candidate
  • Notify IRCC of a nomination from the Selected Candidates view
  • Remind a candidate of their nomination letter
• Log out of the PT Portal

As provincial and territorial partners of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) you can use the secure Provinces and Territories (PT) Portal to:

• search for candidates in the Express Entry (EE) pool who may be interested in immigrating to your province or territory
• notify candidates that your province or territory is interested in exploring a nomination
• notify IRCC that your province or territory has nominated a candidate

To use the portal, you must first enrol with a GCKey or with Secure Concierge. To find out how, follow these instructions.

Who can use the PT Portal

The PT Portal has 2 types of users:

1. The primary user is responsible for administering the PT Portal for their jurisdiction. Primary users can also add or delete other users from their jurisdiction. Primary users are the portal's point of contact between IRCC and the provinces or territories. In all other respects, primary users have the same access as secondary users.
2. The secondary user is allowed to access, search, indicate interest in and nominate candidates in the portal.

Primary user actions

Manage access

The Manage Access section displays the list of secondary users for your province or territory. You can add or delete a secondary user, as needed.

Provide access to secondary users

To add a secondary user:

1. In the Create User section, enter the given name and family name of the secondary user.
2. Read the confirmation text, and check the checkbox.
3. Click Create Account.
4. When the system displays the message indicating successful account creation, click Continue.
5. To see the name of the user you created, go to View Manage Access. A Personal Identification Number (PIN) appears beside the user's name.
6. Record the PIN and provide it to the secondary user.

Using the PIN, this person can now:

• sign up for a GCKey secure credentials account or use SecureKey Concierge
• enrol in the PT Portal

Remove access for secondary users

To deactivate the account of an existing secondary user:

1. Go to View Manage Access.

2. Click the Delete Account button next to the secondary user's PIN.

   The system will request that you confirm the deletion.

3. Click Continue.

The system then no longer displays the user in the list of secondary users in View Manage Access.

Primary and secondary user actions

Logging in to the PT Portal

1. Log in to the PT Portal using either a GCKey or SecureKey Concierge. After logging in, the Welcome page displays the last date and time you logged in.
2. As an option, you can change your password and recovery questions or revoke your GCKey.
3. On the Welcome page, click Continue.
4. After reviewing the portal terms and conditions, click I Accept.
5. On the Identity Validation page, answer 1 of the security questions you set up when you first enroled.
6. Click Continue.

If your answer is correct, the system returns you to the PT Portal.

The Contact Information section includes your personal details. You can change your email address and save it, as needed.

The Nomination Quota section displays the nomination quota for your province or territory:

• Total quota for this year – The quota of nominations available through EE, allocated by IRCC for the current nomination period. Typically, the nomination period follows the calendar year.
• In progress – The number of notices of nomination from your province or territory that are waiting for the candidate to accept or decline.
• Accepted – The number of notices of nomination that have been accepted.
• Quota remaining for this year – The number of EE nominations that remain available for this nomination period. You cannot nominate more candidates if you have reached your quota.

Viewing detailed information about candidates

The PT Portal lets you view detailed information about each candidate from the following pages:

• Search Results
• Individual Nomination
• Selected Candidates List

To navigate this information, click the arrow next to each EE key. The system displays detailed information about the candidate's profile and score.

If an arrow does not expand for an EE key, the candidate’s details are no longer available. Information becomes unavailable when:

• The candidate submits an application for permanent residence
• The candidate status progresses to a purge status. See the Purge Records section

Search for a candidate

1. In What would you like to do today?, select Search for Express Entry Candidates.

   The system displays a search screen where you search for candidates in the EE pool.

2. You can search for Express Entry candidates in 2 ways:
   • by entering the candidate’s Express Entry Key (profile number)
   • by entering a minimum of 2 attributes

   You can’t combine an Express Entry Key with any attribute.

   You can select more than 1 value in the following attribute:

   • Primary Occupation

   To select more than 1 value, click Add for each occupation you would like to search for from the drop-down field.

   You can define your own range for the following attributes:

   • age
   • Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) Band
   • years of experience in an occupation listed as Training, Education, Experience, and Responsibilities (TEER) category 0, 1, 2, or 3 of the National Occupational Classification (NOC)
   • years of TEER category 0, 1, 2, or 3 experience – in Canada
   • years of TEER category 0, 1, 2, or 3 experience – in Canada, continuous
   • years of skilled trades experience
3. Click Search.

Note: Click Clear Search to clear all attribute values and start a new search.

Work with search results

A summary screen displays search results, which are those candidates who match your search criteria, if any. Search results include only candidates who either:

• stated that they are interested in your province or territory, or
• indicated an interest in all provinces and territories

Search results include a list of candidate profile numbers (EE keys).

1. When results include more than 1 page of information, click Next to browse pages.
   1. A search returns results for a maximum number of 500 records. The system indicates when more than 500 records are found and guides you to further refine your search criteria to narrow results.
   2. By default, 1 page of results displays up to 10 records. To change the maximum number of records listed on a page (to a maximum of 100), use the Show num entries field at the top left of the page.
2. If you want to sort search results, click the appropriate column header of the Search Results. To sort in ascending or descending order, click the arrow.

3. Filter the results using the Search field above the upper left corner of the table. Enter values of any of the columns. If you have more than 1 page of results, the system filters all results, not only those displayed on the current page.

   The Search Results table includes:

   • Checkbox – Selects or deselects the record
   • Arrow button – Expands into candidate profile information. The arrow is not expandable if the information is no longer available for display, as determined by the candidate status
   • Express Entry Key – Displays the candidate's EE number
   • CRS band – Displays the total CRS score of candidate profile
   • Primary NOC – Displays the value indicated by candidate in their profile
   • Relative in PT – Identifies whether the candidate has relative in the PT jurisdiction
   • Relative in Canada – Identifies whether the candidate has a relative in Canada
   • Submission Received – Displays the date the candidate profile was created
   • Age – Displays the candidate’s age
   • Job Offer – Identifies whether the candidate has a job offer in Canada
   • Has a Job Offer in My Province – If the Job Offer field indicates “Yes”, this field displays whether the job offer is in your province or territory
4. To search again, click Return to Search at the bottom of the page. You can change your search criteria. Click Search.
5. Click Return to Partner Portal to return to the home page. The system erases all the attribute search selections you specified in the Search page.

Exporting search results

To export your search results to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, click the Export to Excel button above the upper left corner of the search results table.

Select candidates to receive an NOI

To notify a candidate that you are interested in communicating with them about possible nomination from your province or territory:

1. Check the checkbox next to the relevant candidate record.
2. Click Send letters of interest at the bottom of the view.

To send the NOI to all records:

1. Click Select All.
2. Click Send letters of interest.

Note: Clicking Select All selects all available records, not only the records visible on the page.

To clear your selections, click Deselect All. Alternatively, uncheck the checkboxes beside the individual records.

The system automatically sends a letter to the candidate’s online account. The letter notifies the candidate that your province or territory is interested in having them contact your jurisdiction directly for possible nomination.

A confirmation page appears indicating the number of NOI sent and gives the option to export the list to Microsoft Excel.

Click Return to Partner Portal to return to the home page.

Note: The candidate is responsible for initiating contact with your province or territory. The provincial or territorial application process is not conducted through the online account or the PT Portal.

If the candidate’s application to your province or territory is successful, you must obtain their EE key and verification code (also known as the Job Seeker Validation Code) to notify IRCC of the nomination through the PT Portal.

Candidates who have been sent an NOI no longer appear in the search results. You can find these candidates in the Selected Candidates table.

Navigating the Selected Candidates table

The Selected Candidates table displays all candidates for which a user in your province or territory has sent an NOI or offered nomination (both pending and confirmed).

To locate the table from the home page, click View Selected Candidates.

By default, the Selected Candidates table displays all records of candidates who have been contacted by you using either:

• an NOI
• a nomination

You can sort the Selected Candidates table using any column.

By default, 1 page of results displays up to 10 records. To change the maximum number of records (to a maximum of 100) listed on a page, use the Show num entries field above the list.

You can choose the following 3 actions in the Available Actions field:

• Send nomination letters
• Resend interest letter
• Remind of a Nomination

Use the Candidate List field to choose 1 of 3 candidate types:

• Current – Latest correspondence date with candidate is less than or equal to 180 days. Initial contact is established with the first NOI or nomination.
• Stale – Latest correspondence date with candidate is more than 180 days ago. Initial contact is established with the first NOI or nomination.
• All candidates – All candidates in the Selected Candidates list.

The Candidate Status Details column shows the number of days that have passed since the initial contact.

Selected Candidates table

The Selected Candidates table includes:

• Arrow button – Expands into candidate profile information. The arrow is not expandable if the information is no longer available for display, as determined by the candidate status
• Express Entry Key – Candidate EE number
• Submission Received – Date the candidate profile was created
• Candidate status – Status as of the last extraction of data from GCMS, which is performed daily after 8 p.m. Pacific time. The status determines the information that is available for display
• Candidate Status Date – Date the candidate status changed last
• Candidate Status Detail – Duration of time that the candidate record has been on the Selected Candidates table
• Correspondence Status – Type of last correspondence with the candidate

• Date of Correspondence – Date of last correspondence with the candidate

  Note: The information in the following fields is not displayed if the candidate is no longer available for nomination or has submitted their application for permanent residency.

• CEC Eligibility/ FST Eligibility/ FSW Eligibility – Program eligibility of the candidate displayed over 3 columns. The columns indicate “Met” or “Not Met” for the titled program
• Job Offer – Identifies whether the candidate has a job offer in Canada
• Has a Job Offer in My Province – If the Job Offer field indicates “Yes”, this field displays whether the job offer is in your province or territory
• Job Offer NOC – Displays the NOC of the job offer
• CRS – Displays the total CRS score of candidate profile
• Relative in Canada: Identifies whether the candidate has a relative in Canada
• Province of Residence of Relative – If the Relative in Canada field indicates “Yes”, displays the province of residence of the relative

Candidate Status

The Candidate Status column displays:

• Available – A user sent an NOI from your province or territory. One of the following must also be true:
  • A client has indicated that they have a nomination from a provincial or territorial jurisdiction when creating an EE profile with IRCC
  • The nomination has not been sent to IRCC for this candidate by any province or territory.
  • The candidate has rejected a nomination from any province or territory and is again available for a new nomination.
  • A previously sent nomination has expired and the candidate is again available for a new nomination.
  • A previously sent nomination has been cancelled by the issuing provincial or territorial jurisdiction.
  • The candidate rejected an Invitation to Apply.
• Nomination Pending – The candidate has received a nomination from a user in your province or territory.
• Nomination Accepted – The candidate has accepted a nomination from your province or territory and received the 600 CRS points.
• No longer available for Nomination - Profile Withdrawn – The candidate has withdrawn their profile from the EE pool.
• No longer available for Nomination – Profile Cancelled – 1 of the following is true:
  • The candidate’s profile has been cancelled by IRCC.
  • The candidate no longer meets the EE Minimum Entry Criteria. Reasons could include, but are not limited to, a language test results expiring, work experience that no longer falls within an appropriate period of time, or no longer meeting settlement fund levels.
• No longer available for Nomination – Profile Expired – 1 of the following:
  • The candidate did not accept their Invitation to Apply within the 90 days.
  • The candidate’s profile has expired after 1 year.
• No longer available for a Nomination – Other – The candidate’s profile is at 1 of the following stages:
  • The candidate has a pending nomination from another province or territory.
  • The candidate has accepted a nomination from another province or territory.
  • The candidate no longer lists your province or territory as a province of destination in their profile.
  • The candidate does not have a nomination from any province or territory and an Invitation to Apply was sent by IRCC and is pending
  • The candidate has been sent an Invitation to Apply that has not yet been accepted or rejected by the candidate and the:
    • candidate either:
      • did not receive a Nomination before creating an EE profile with IRCC, or
      • received a Nomination before creating an EE profile with IRCC
    • candidate rejected a nomination
    • issuing provincial or territorial authority cancelled the nomination
    • nomination expired before candidate accepted or rejected it
• Invitation to Apply Issued – The candidate accepted a nomination from your province or territory and was sent an Invitation to Apply.
• Application for Permanent Residence Received – The candidate accepted a nomination from your province or territory and has successfully submitted an application for permanent residence.
• Application for Permanent Resident Finalized – Rejected – The candidate accepted a nomination from your province or territory, but submitted an incomplete application for permanent residence that IRCC rejected.
• Application for Permanent Residence Finalized – Withdrawn – The candidate accepted a nomination from your province or territory, but withdrew their application for permanent residence.
• Application for Permanent Residence Finalized – Refused – The candidate accepted a nomination from your province or territory and their application for permanent residence was refused.
• Application for Permanent Resident Finalized – Approved – The candidate accepted a nomination from your province or territory and their application for permanent residence was approved.

Purging records

The system purges records in the Selected Candidate table weekly. Records are purged 90 calendar days after the Candidate Status becomes:

• No longer available for Nomination – Withdrawn
  • No longer available for Nomination – Cancelled
  • No longer available for Nomination – Expired
  • No longer available for Nomination – Other
    • This status excludes circumstances where an Invitation to Apply from IRCC is pending. Candidates who reject an Invitation to Apply return to the pool and the value in the Candidate Status field changes to “Available”.
  • Application for Permanent Residence Finalized – Withdrawn
  • Application for Permanent Residence Finalized – Rejected
  • Application for Permanent Residence Finalized – Refused
  • Application for Permanent Residence Finalized – Approved

Resend an NOI to a candidate

To resend an NOI to 1 or more candidates:

1. On the home page, click View Selected Candidates.
2. In the Available Actions field, select “Resend interest letter”.
3. In the Candidate List field, select the appropriate value.
4. Click Search.
5. Do 1 of the following:
   • Select available candidates individually.

   • Click Select All at the bottom of the page.

     You can resend an NOI only when a candidate status is “Available”. For more information, see Selected Candidates table.

6. Click Resend interest letter.

   The system displays a confirmation page that indicates the number of interest letters sent, and gives an option to export the list to Microsoft Excel.

Notify IRCC of a nomination from the Selected Candidates view

You nominate a candidate from either of these pages:

• View Selected Candidates
• Notify IRCC of a Nomination

Nominate a candidate from the View Selected Candidates page

1. On the home page, click View Selected Candidates to nominate any candidate you have previously contacted through an NOI letter.
2. In the Available Actions field, select “Send nomination letters”.
3. In the Candidate List field, select the appropriate value.

4. Click Search.

   The system displays a list of the candidates available for a nomination.

5. Click Notify IRCC of a Nomination next to the appropriate candidate to send a Nomination letter to the candidate's online account.

   You must click Notify IRCC of a Nomination for each candidate individually and provide their unique verification code. If you incorrectly enter the verification code, the system returns an error code with details in red text.

   After receiving the letter, the candidate can accept or reject your nomination.

6. Enter the nomination details. You can also review candidate information by clicking on the arrow next to the EE key number.

   The following rules apply to nomination details fields:

   • Nomination Certificate Number – Must include only alphanumeric characters.
   • Expiry Date: Must meet both of the following conditions:
     • the current date or a future date
     • a date that is after the Date Issued by Province/Territory
   • Date Application Received by Province/Territory – Must meet both of the following conditions:
     • the current date or a past date
     • a date that is prior to Date Issue by Province/Territory
   • Date Issued by the Province/Territory – Must be the current date or a past date.

The system returns a message indicating the candidate is no longer available for any of 4 reasons:

• You have already nominated the candidate. Please confirm in the Selected Candidates List.
• The candidate has been nominated by another provincial or territorial jurisdiction.
• The candidate has been invited to apply by IRCC.
• The candidate is no longer in the EE pool. Typically, the profile expired or was withdrawn, or the candidate is no longer eligible.

Note: PT Portal data refreshes from the Global Case Management System every 24 hours. However, nominations occur in real time. Between last data refresh and the time you attempt to nominate the candidate, their status may have changed. Any error messages reflect real-time candidate status.

7. To complete the nomination, enter the information on the Notify IRCC of a Nomination screen.
8. Click Return to Partner Portal to return to the home page.

Nominate a candidate from the Notify IRCC of a Nomination view

1. Click Notify IRCC of a Nomination from the home page to nominate any candidate for whom you have an EE key and a verification code.

2. Enter the EE key and verification code.

   The candidate provided this information to you. The EE Key is comprised of the letter E followed by 9 digits. The verification code (also known as the Job Seeker Validation Code) is comprised of 4 numbers or letters.

3. Click Search.

If you incorrectly enter the EE key or verification code, the system returns an error code with details in red text.

If the system returns a message indicating the candidate is no longer available, it may be for any of 4 reasons:

• You have already nominated the candidate. Please confirm in the Selected Candidates List.
• The candidate has been nominated by another province or territory.
• The candidate has been invited to apply by IRCC.
• The candidate is no longer in the EE pool. Typically, the profile expired or was withdrawn, or the candidate is no longer eligible.

Note: PT Portal data refreshes from the Global Case Management System every 24 hours. However, nominations occur in real time. Between the last data refresh and the time you attempt to nominate the candidate, their status may have changed. Any error messages reflect real-time candidate status.

To complete the nomination, enter the information on the Notify IRCC of a Nomination page.

The following rules apply to nomination details fields:

• Nomination Certificate Number – Must include only alphanumeric characters.
• Expiry Date: Must meet both of the following conditions:
  • the current date or a future date
  • a date that is after the Date Issued by Province/Territory
• Date Application Received by Province/Territory – Must meet both of the following conditions:
  • the current date or a past date
  • a date that is prior to Date Issue by Province/Territory
• Date Issued by the Province/Territory – Must be the current date or a past date.

After providing all nomination details information, click Submit Nomination to IRCC to complete the transaction.

The system confirms successful submission.

Click Return to Partner Portal to return to the home page.

Remind a candidate of their nomination letter

A candidate has 30 days to accept or decline a nomination. You can remind a candidate of their outstanding nomination by sending a new letter. This correspondence advises the candidate that they have not yet accepted or rejected a nomination from your province or territory.

1. On the home page, click View Selected Candidates.
2. In the Available Actions field, select Remind of a Nomination.
3. In the Candidate List field, select the appropriate value.
4. Click Search.
5. Select candidates individually or click Select All at the bottom of the page.

6. Click Remind of a Nomination.

   A confirmation page appears that indicates the number of letters sent, and gives an option to export the list to Excel.

Click Return to Partner Portal to return to the home page.

Log out of the PT Portal

1. Click Logout. The button is located on all portal pages, below the main navigation bar.
2. Click Continue to confirm that you want to log out of the portal.
3. Close your browser to make sure that you are completely logged out and to prevent unauthorized access to your account.

All communications related to the portal between IRCC and the province or territory will be between IRCC and the primary user. The primary user can contact IRCC by email at: FPT-EWG-GTE@cic.gc.ca.