The Atlantic Immigration Program is a pathway to permanent residence for skilled foreign workers and international graduates from a Canadian institution who want to work and live in one of Canada’s four Atlantic Provinces

New Brunswick Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island or Newfoundland and Labrador.

The program helps employers hire qualified candidates for jobs they haven’t been able to fill locally.

This is an employer-driven program designed to help employers in Atlantic Canada hire qualified candidates for jobs they have been unable to fill locally. Applicants must receive a job offer from a designated employer in Atlantic Canada to participate in the program.

To immigrate to Atlantic Canada through this program, the applicants must be either

• A recent graduate of a recognized post-secondary institution in Atlantic Canada, or
• A skilled worker

You can be living abroad or already be in Canada as a temporary resident.

To be eligible for the Atlantic Immigration Program you must

• have qualifying work experience, unless you’re an international graduate
• meet or exceed the educational requirements
• meet or exceed the language requirements and
• show that you have enough money to support yourself and your family when you get to Canada
• If you’re already living and working in Canada with a valid work permit, you don’t need to show proof.
• If you meet all of these requirements, you can start looking for a job with a designated Atlantic employer.

In the last 5 years, you must have worked at least 1,560 hours. This is the number of hours you would have worked in 1 year if you were working 30 hours per week.

This work should be at one of these National Occupational classifications (NOC) skill levels

• NOC Skill Type 0 (management jobs such as restaurant managers, mine managers)
• NOC Skill Level A (professional jobs that usually need a degree from a university, such as doctors, dentists, architects)
• NOC Skill Level B (technical jobs and skilled trades such as chefs, electricians, plumbers)
• NOC Skill Level C (intermediate jobs that usually call for high school and/or job-specific training, such as industrial butchers, long-haul truck drivers, food and beverage servers)

You must meet all the requirements below to be exempt from the work experience requirements.

You do not need to meet the work experience requirements if you’re an international graduate who:

• has a degree, diploma, certificate, or trade or apprenticeship certification that took at least 2 years of studies
• is from a recognized post-secondary institution in 1 of the 4 Atlantic provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, or Newfoundland and Labrador)
• was a full-time student for the entire time you were studying
• lived in one of the following provinces for at least 16 months during the last 2 years before you graduated
  • New Brunswick
  • Nova Scotia
  • Newfoundland and Labrador or
  • Prince Edward Island
• had the visa or permit you needed to work, study or get training while you were in Canada

You must have one of these:

• a high school diploma, post-secondary certificate or degree if you studied in Canada
• an educational credential assessment (ECA) to show that your studies are equal to a Canadian secondary or post-secondary certificate, diploma or degree if you studied outside Canada
• your ECA report must be less than 5 years old on the date we get your application
• an education level at least equal to a Canadian one-year post-secondary certificate if you have a job offer at the NOC 0 or A skill type or level,this must be confirmed with an ECA
• an education level at least equal to a Canadian high school certificate if you have a job offer at the NOC B or C skill levels, this must be confirmed with an ECA

You must meet the minimum language requirements based on the NOC category that applies to your job offer. This can either be the

Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) or

Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC)

The minimum language requirements for each NOC category are

• CLB/NCLC 5 for NOC 0, A and B
• CLB/NCLC 4 for NOC C

You must submit your results from a designated language testing organization with your application. These results must be less than 2 years old when you apply.

You need to have enough money to support yourself and your family when you get to Canada. The amount you need depends on the size of your family. The size of your family also includes anyone you support who isn’t immigrating with you.

If you’re already living and working in Canada with a valid work permit, you don’t need to show proof of funds.