Despite Ottawa's cooling stance on immigration, Manitoba wants even more skilled workers in 2025

Manitoba welcomed a record number of skilled newcomers to the province through a federal immigration program in 2024 — and now it wants permission to exceed that total by thousands of people this year.

The push to increase the number of newcomers accepted through the provincial nominee program comes as the federal government — which distributes nominee slots among the provinces — has soured on immigration, severely curtailing the number of people welcomed into Canada recently.

In 2024, Manitoba accepted all of the 9,500 nominees it was allotted through the program, which brings skilled workers to the province to fill labour gaps.

Manitoba was granted 40 more nominee spots in December and filled those too, says Malaya Marcelino, the province's labour and immigration minister.

"I told my staff that I'm the happiest minister in all of Canada," she said in an interview.

But this year, Manitoba has asked the federal government for as many as 12,000 nominations, the minister said — a 26 per cent jump from 2024's allotment and nearly double the 6,325 nominees Manitoba had in 2022.

The Progressive Conservative government under Premier Heather Stefanson successfully lobbied for an increase to 9,500 nominees in 2023 to address major labour shortages, but issued just 7,348 nominations, after it couldn't process 2,152 applications in time.

The province has routinely accepted as many nominees as Ottawa has allowed, so missing the mark was "extremely unusual," immigration lawyer Alastair Clarke told CBC last year.

WATCH | Manitoba pushing to bring in more provincial nominees in 2025:

Marcelino says her NDP government, elected in October 2023, made sure it had the staff to welcome as many newcomers as possible. Ten more full-time equivalent positions were assigned to the provincial nominee program, for a total of 41.

The minister credited her department's staff for reaching its provincial nominee quota, "and we did it within a year."

Each nomination could represent an entire family, as chosen applicants can bring their spouse and any dependants. 

Marcelino expects Ottawa will inform Manitoba of its decision by late February. 

"We wouldn't have asked for that if we didn't think we could do it," she said.