The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program is created to welcome additional newcomers to the Atlantic Canada region to fill the needs of the local employers and the communities. It is an employer-driven program that facilities the hiring of foreign workers. The applicants arriving in Canada under this program must have a job offer from a designated employer and an individualized settlement plan for both themselves and their family members.

The three-year pilot program allows designated local employers to find candidates who meets their employment needs and the program criteria. Once the candidates have been identified, the employer will need to offer them a job. Employers are exempt from through the process of obtaining a Labour Market Impact Assessment under this program.

There are three streams under this pilot program. Two programs are for skilled workers and one program is for international student graduates. For each program, there are certain requirements that individuals will need to meet. Below, you will find a chart with these requirements:

Employers that need to fill a job vacancy quickly will have access to apply for a temporary work permit so that the eligible candidate can come to Canada as soon as possible. In order to obtain this work permit, candidates will need:

• A valid job offer;
• A letter from the province; and
• A commitment to apply for permanent residency within 90 days of the temporary work permit application

Employers must meet certain requirements, including a commitment to support the newcomer and his or her family as they integrate into their new life in Atlantic Canada.

Home Child Care Provider/Home Support Worker Pilot Program

The Home Child Care Provider Pilot and the Home Support Worker Pilot are 5-year pilot programs that allow qualified caregivers and their family members to come to Canada with the goal of becoming permanent residents.

No Qualifying Work Experience in Canada

If candidates do not have any qualifying work experience in Canada, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency through the Home Child Care Provider or the Home Support Worker Pilot Programs as long as they meet the other eligibility requirements.

The first step is to apply to either the Home Child Care Provider Pilot or the Home Support Worker Pilot – depending on which occupation the candidate plans to work in. The work permit application is submitted together with the permanent residency application. If the requirements are met, a work permit to work temporarily in Canada is issued.

This work permit that is issued is an occupation-restricted open work permit, meaning that it allows you to work under either NOC 4411 or NOC 4412 for any employer. Candidates will have to gain at least 24 months of work experience in order to qualify for permanent residency. Once the 24 months have elapsed, candidates send proof of their work experience in order to obtain a final decision on their permanent residency application.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible to apply for the Home Child Care or the Home Support Worker Pilot program, candidates must meet the following:

Genuine and valid job offer, which must be:

1. Made using Offer of Employment (IMM 5983)
2. Full-time, at least 30 hours of paid work each week
3. From a Canadian employer
4. Outside the province of Quebec
5. From an employer who is not an embassy, high commission or consulate
6. Genuine, meaning there is a real need to hire the candidate

In addition to the above, the job being offered must match the pilot in which the candidate wishes to apply for.

Language

Candidates who wish to apply under this Pilot Program must prove that they meet the minimum language skills. The minimum language skill is in CLB 5 in English or NLCL 5 in French for all 4 language skills.

Education

Candidates must have completed post-secondary education credential of at least 1 year in Canada. If candidates do not have a Canadian education credential, they must get their foreign education credential assessed to show that it is equal to a completed Canadian post-secondary education credential of at least 1 year. 

Some qualifying work experience, but less than 24 months

If candidates have some qualifying work experience in Canada, however, it is less than 24 months, they are still eligible to apply for the Home Child Care Provider or Home Support Worker Pilot Programs as long as they meet the other eligibility requirements.

The first step is to apply to either the Home Child Care Provider Pilot or the Home Support Worker Pilot – depending on which occupation the candidate plans to work in. The work permit application is submitted together with the permanent residency application. If the requirements are met, a work permit to work temporarily in Canada is issued.

This work permit that is issued is an occupation-restricted open work permit, meaning that it allows you to work under either NOC 4411 or NOC 4412 for any employer. Candidates will have to gain at least 24 months of work experience in order to qualify for permanent residency. Once the 24 months have elapsed, candidates send proof of their work experience in order to obtain a final decision on their permanent residency application.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible to apply for the Home Child Care or the Home Support Worker Pilot program, candidates must meet the following:

Genuine and valid job offer, which must be:

1. Made using Offer of Employment (IMM 5983)
2. Full-time, at least 30 hours of paid work each week
3. From a Canadian employer
4. Outside the province of Quebec
5. From an employer who is not an embassy, high commission or consulate
6. Genuine, meaning there is a real need to hire the candidate

In addition to the above, the job being offered must match the pilot in which the candidate wishes to apply for.

It is important to note that the qualifying work experience must only be in 1 of the jobs. It cannot be a mixture of both jobs. It is important to ensure that the job being offered matches the work experience they already have

Language

Candidates who wish to apply under this Pilot Program must prove that they meet the minimum language skills. The minimum language skill is in CLB 5 in English or NLCL 5 in French for all 4 language skills.

Education

Candidates must have completed post-secondary education credential of at least 1 year in Canada. If candidates do not have a Canadian education credential, they must get their foreign education credential assessed to show that it is equal to a completed Canadian post-secondary education credential of at least 1 year. 

24 or more months of qualifying work experience

Candidates who have already gained 24 months of qualifying work experience in Canada in the last 36 months are eligible to apply for permanent residency right away under Home Child Care Provider or Home Support Worker Pilot Programs.

Work Experience

The work experience that the candidate has met must be at least 24 months of full-time work experience in the last 36 months prior to applying. Depending on which pilot the candidate applies for, the work experience must be in 1 of the NOC Jobs:

1. Home Child Care Provider (NOC 4411)
2. Home Support Worker (NOC 4412)

For this work experience, they must meet the following requirements:

• Must be in only 1 of those jobs, it cannot be a mixture of both jobs
• Must show that the job matched the NOC job description and they must have done most of the main duties
• The 24 months of work experience must be gained in a 36-month period
• The 24 months of work experience does not have to be in a row, it can be a total of 24 months
• It must be full-time, meaning at least 30 hours of paid work each week
• Any work experience that is gained while a full-time student does not count

Language

Candidates who wish to apply under this Pilot Program must prove that they meet the minimum language skills. The minimum language skill is in CLB 5 in English or NLCL 5 in French for all 4 language skills.

Education

Candidates must have completed post-secondary education credential of at least 1 year in Canada. If candidates do not have a Canadian education credential, they must get their foreign education credential assessed to show that it is equal to a completed Canadian post-secondary education credential of at least 1 year.

Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot

The Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot is a community-driven program in which allows participating communities to take a lead in attracting new immigrants and matching them with local job vacancies, promoting a welcoming community and connecting newcomers to established members of the community and its settlement services. With this pilot program, small and remote communities in Ontario, Western Canada and three territories can attract and retain foreign workers.

Skilled workers must find a job with an employer in one of the participating communities. If the community commends the skilled worker and they are successful in applying for permanent residency, they’ll then be able to move to the community and continue to work and live there.

Skilled workers must meet the following requirements:

• 1 year of continuous work experience (at least 1,560 hours) in the past 3 years
• Must have a genuine job offer from one of the participating communities
• The job offer must be at the same skill level, 1 level above or 1 level below the NOC that applies to the work experience
• Must meet the minimum language requirement based on the NOC Category that applies to the job offer
  • NOC 0 and A: CLB 6
  • NOC B: CLB 5
  • NOC C and D: CLB 4
• Must have a Canadian high school diploma or an educational credential assessment report showing that they completed a foreign credential that is equal to Canadian secondary school
• Settlement funds
• Intention to live in the community

To be considered eligible to participate in the pilot, the community must meet certain criteria:

• Must have a population of 50,000 people or less and be located at least 75 km from the core of a Census Metropolitan Area or up to 200,000 people and be considered remote from other larger cities
• Be located in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Yukon
• Have job opportunities
• Have an economic development plan
• Have a local economic development organization that can manage the pilot within the community
• Have the capacity to settle new immigrants in the community by having or developing:
  • Relationships with local or regional immigrant-serving organizations
  • Access to education, housing, transportation and health care
  • Opportunities to connect with newcomers