Yukon's nominee allocation cut by half, territory delays application process

The Yukon's allocation of nominees under the Yukon Nominee Program has been slashed in half for 2025.

Premier Ranj Pillai announced the reduction in a statement on Tuesday.

He said the Yukon government was informed of its new allocation last Wednesday. The figure is set by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

The Yukon's new allocation is 215 nominees. Last year, the territory's allocation was 430, which was quickly oversubscribed. The government received 590 applications in the first five months of last year, forcing it to pause intake.

Nominee programs are intended to help fill local labour market gaps by bringing in skilled immigrants, and are designed and managed by provinces or territories. The federal government determines how many applications can be approved each year in each jurisdiction.

The Yukon's cut mirrors similar changes to other nominee programs in the North. Last week, the N.W.T. announced it would be delaying the reopening of its program after its allocation, too, was cut in half.

The program in the Yukon was scheduled to reopen for applications on Jan. 29, but the territorial government says that has now been delayed to "ensure this limited allocation is used strategically to address the Yukon's pressing labour market needs," according to Pillai's statement.

The program will no longer accept rural applications after Jan. 22 at 4:30 p.m., the statement continues.

There is also a new federal rule requiring that 75 per cent of nominations come from temporary residents already within Canada.

Reduction will affect Yukon labour force, says chamber of commerce

A survey to businesses is going out from the Yukon Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, according to the chamber's executive director Luke Pantin.

Pantin says this year's reduction in nominees will have an impact on the territory's labour force, which relies on immigration to fill shortages. 

"There's going to be many stakeholders fighting for a very small pie, and everyone is going to be trying to get a piece of this pie," Pantin said.

Pantin said he would like to see northern organizations band together to present a united front to the federal government. He said these reductions should be taken as a signal that future cuts are to come.

"This is a bigger problem long-term than it actually is a problem short-term," Pantin said.