Atlantic Canada is a beautiful place to live in, with access to the ocean, fresh seafood, and affordable housing. It comprises 4 Canadian Provinces offering programs inviting International Students and Workers for Permanent Immigration to fill up the gap in shortage of qualified labour.
The Atlantic Immigration Pilot (AIP) is a pathway to permanent residence for skilled foreign workers and international graduates who want to work and live in one of Canada’s four Atlantic Provinces: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island
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. To immigrate to Atlantic Canada through the pilot, you must be a recent graduate of a publicly funded institution in Atlantic Canada or a skilled worker who meets the program requirements.
You can be living abroad or already be in Canada temporarily.
You must receive a job offer from a designated employer in one of the four provinces to participate in the pilot.
If you receive a job offer from an employer:
- ask for a copy of the employer’s Confirmation of Designation, or
- tell them about the Atlantic Immigration Pilot and ask them to consider becoming designated, if they aren’t already
The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program has two programs for skilled workers:
- Atlantic High-Skilled Program (AHSP)
- Atlantic Intermediate-Skilled Program (AISP)
and one program for international student graduates known as:
- Atlantic International Graduate Program (AIGP)
For all three programs, you must show proof that you meet the language, education and work experience requirements and that you have enough money to support you and your family when you come to Canada.
In general, to be eligible for Atlantic International Graduate Program you must:
- have a degree, diploma or other credential from a publicly funded institution in an Atlantic province
- have lived in an Atlantic province for at least 16 months in the 2 years before getting your degree, diploma or credential
- take a language test to show you can communicate in English or French
- show you can support yourself and your family when you come to Canada
Work experience is not required for international graduates hired through the Atlantic Immigration Pilot.
The employer must also meet certain requirements.
AIGP does not require work experience
You must meet AIGP Educational requirements:
- You must have at least a 2-year degree, diploma, certificate, or trade or apprenticeship credential from a recognized publicly-funded institution in an Atlantic province.
- You must have been a full-time student for the entire duration of your studies.
- You graduated from this institution in the 24 months before we receive your permanent resident application.
- You lived in the Atlantic province of the institution granting the education credential for at least 16 months within the 24-month period before the credential was granted.
- You had the visa or permit you needed to work, study, or train in Canada.
Your study or training program can’t be either English or French second-language courses for more than half the length of the program or distance learning undertaken for more than half the length of the program.
You can’t apply if you had a scholarship or fellowship requiring you to return to your home country after you graduate.
You can accelerate your studies and complete your education credential in less than 2 years. The education credential must still be considered as part of a 2-year program by the educational institution at which it is being offered thus it is considered an Accelerated Program. However, the entire 2-year program education credential must be obtained from 1 single institution and must have been obtained within 24 months of the date on the application for permanent residence.
For AIGP, only your education in Canada is considered. However, if you have education credentials from outside Canada you want to include, you must have your education outside Canada assessed.
Even though you were educated in Canada, you must take one of the language tests we approve. The test shows you can communicate in English or French well enough to live and work in Canada.
If you have taken an approved test, you can send those results if they
- are less than 2 years old
- show you meet the level the program requires
——————————————–
For Atlantic High-Skilled Program eligibility you must:
- have worked in a management, professional or technical/skilled job for at least a year
- have at least a Canadian high school diploma or equivalent education
- take a language test to show you can communicate in English or French
- show you can support yourself and your family when you come to Canada
The employer must also meet certain requirements.
To be eligible for AHSP
In the last 3 years, you must have worked at least 1,560 hours. This is how many hours you would have worked in 1 year if you were working 30 hours per week.
This work must have been at National Occupational Classification (NOC) skill type or level 0, A, or B.
To calculate your hours:
- Count hours worked in part-time and full-time jobs.
- The hours must be in 1 occupation, but they can be with different employers.
- You must have been paid for these hours. Volunteering or unpaid internships do not count.
- Do not count hours when you were self-employed.
- These working hours can be inside or outside of Canada.
- The hours must have been accumulated over a period of at least 12 months.
To be eligible for AHSP You must have one of the following:
- a Canadian secondary (high school) or post-secondary certificate, diploma, or degree from a recognized institution
- a foreign degree, diploma, or certificate, equal to a Canadian credential. You’ll need an educational credential assessment (ECA) report from a recognized organization to show your credential is valid and equal to a Canadian credential. If you already have an ECA report, it must be less than 5 years old when we receive your permanent resident application.
To be eligible for AHSP the language requirements are same as AIGP.
——————————————–
For Atlantic Intermediate-Skilled Program you must:
- have worked in a job that requires a high school education and/or job-specific training for at least a year
- have at least a Canadian high school diploma or equivalent education
- take a language test to show you can communicate in English or French
- show you can support yourself and your family when you come to Canada
Like AIGP and AHSP, the employer must also still meet certain requirements.
To be eligible for you must have worked at least 1,560 hours in the last 3 years. This is how many hours you would have worked in 1 year if you worked 30 hours per week.
Here is how to calculate your hours:
- Count hours worked in part-time and full-time jobs.
- The hours must be in one occupation, but they can be with different employers.
- You must have been paid for these hours. Volunteering or unpaid internships do not count.
- Do not count hours when you were self-employed.
- These working hours can be inside or outside of Canada.
- The hours must have been accumulated over a period of at least 12 months.
- Any periods of self-employment will not be included when calculating the period of qualifying work experience.
You can use your work experience to qualify for the Atlantic Intermediate-Skilled Program in 2 different ways.
Option 1
You have work experience at National Occupational Classification (NOC) skill level C. NOC skill level C is a type of job that usually requires a secondary (high school) education and/or job-specific training, such as:
- industrial butchers
- long-haul truck drivers
- food and beverage servers
Option 2
You have work experience as one of the following:
- as a registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse (NOC skill level A 3012)
- as a licensed practical nurse (NOC skill level B 3233)
- You also have one of the following job offers:
- a nurse’s aide, orderly, or patient services associate (NOC skill level C 3413)
- a home support worker (NOC skill level C 4412)
To be eligible for AISP
You must have one of the following:
- a Canadian secondary (high school) or post-secondary certificate, diploma or degree from a recognized institution
- a foreign degree, diploma, or certificate equal to a Canadian credential. You need an educational credential assessment (ECA) report from a recognized organization to show your credential is valid and equal to a Canadian credential. If you already have an ECA report, it must be less than 5 years old when we receive your permanent resident application.
To be eligible for AISP the language requirements are similar to other 2 programs for Atlantic Immigration.
If you have any questions leave us a comment below and Fill our Free Assessment form at www.visavendor.com and an agent will get back to you.
[…] Atlantic Immigration Pilot […]