The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) allows workers, graduates, and entrepreneurs to permanently settle in Alberta. It is one of Canada’s Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP), a significant component of Canada’s immigration system. It is located in Western Canada, home to the beautiful Rocky Mountains and glacial lakes. Calgary, as well as the capital of Alberta – Edmonton – have seen substantial economic growth over the past few years.
The AINP offers the following streams through which applicants who possess the required skills and experiences can immigrate through:
Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS)
The AOS targets foreign workers who are living and working in Alberta as well as international graduates from an Alberta approved post-secondary institution.
Interested applicants must satisfy several requirements in order to qualify for the Alberta Opportunity Stream.
- Residency and Work Permit Requirements
Eligible applicants must have a valid work permit (not implied status or restoration status) at the time their application is postmarked and assessed. The work permit for an eligible occupation must be based on either:
- A positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)
- LMIA exemption for workers based on international trade agreements, workers transferred within a company, International Experience Canada (IEC), Mobilité Francophone
- A Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) held by the graduate of an Alberta Advanced Education publicly funded post-secondary institution
Most occupations under the NOC skill levels 0, A, B, C, and D are considered eligible occupations under the AINP.
Take a look below at the list of ineligible occupations:
| NOC Code (2016) | NOC Skill Level | Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| 0011 | 0 | Legislators |
| 0422 | 0 | School principals and administrators of elementary and secondary education |
| 0423 | 0 | Managers in social, community and correctional services |
| 0432 | 0 | Fire chiefs and senior firefighting officers |
| 0651* | 0 | Escort agency managers, massage parlour managers |
| 4031 | A | Secondary school teachers |
| 4032 | A | Elementary school and kindergarten teachers |
| 4154 | A | Professional occupations in religion |
| 5121 | A | Authors and writers |
| 5133 | A | Musicians and singers |
| 5135 | A | Actors and comedians |
| 5136 | A | Painters, sculptors and other visual artists |
| 1227 | B | Court officers and justices of the peace |
| 3223* | B | Dental laboratory assistants/bench workers |
| 4214* | B | Early childhood educators who do not have certification through Alberta Children's Services – Child Care Staff Certification Office or who have been certified as child development assistant (formerly Level 1) |
| 4216 | B | Other instructors |
| 4217 | B | Other religious occupations |
| 5232 | B | Other performers, not elsewhere classified |
| 5244 | B | Artisans and craftspersons |
| 5251 | B | Athletes |
| 6232 | B | Real estate agents and salespersons |
| 4411 | C | Home child care providers |
| 4412 | C | Home support workers, housekeepers and related occupations |
| 4413 | C | Elementary and secondary school teacher assistants |
| 6533 | C | Casino occupations |
| 6564 | C | Other personal service occupations |
| 7513 | C | Taxi and limousine drivers and chauffeurs |
| 8442 | C | Trappers and hunters |
| 6623 | D | Other sales related occupations |
| 6722 | D | Operators and attendants in amusement, recreation and sport |
| 6742 | D | Other service support occupations, not elsewhere classified |
| 8611 | D | Harvesting labourers |
| 8612 | D | Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers |
| 8613 | D | Aquaculture and marine harvest labourers |
| 8614 | D | Mine labourers |
If you are a holder of a PGWP, your occupation must be of the same field of study. If you attended school on or after April 1, 2019 and have completed an Advanced Education-approved one year post-diploma certificate or post-baccalaureate certificate, your current occupations must be related to your previous post-secondary field of study outside Canada.
In addition to PGWP holders, if you hold an occupation that is on this list, Apply Now you will also be ineligible to apply to the Alberta Opportunity Stream as those occupations are not in demand in Alberta.
- Language Requirements
For applicants working in a NOC 0, A or B occupation, the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) score required is minimum CLB 5 in each language skill area (listening, writing, reading, speaking).
For applications working in NOC C or D occupation, minimum score required is CLB 4 in each area.
For applications under NOC 3413 (Nurse aids, orderlies, and patient service associates), CLB 7 is required for each language skill.
- Education Requirements
At the time of applying, candidates must have completed at the very least their high school education in their originating country.
Effective January 1, 2021, all candidates must complete their high school education equivalent to Alberta standards. PGWP holders are exempt from this requirement, but their credential must be issued by an Alberta Advanced Education publicly funded post-secondary institution.
- Work Experience Requirements
To qualify, the applicant must be working in the same occupation as listed in their application at the time of applying and that occupation must match their work experience.
In order for their work experience to qualify, they must have one of the following:
- A minimum of 12 months full-time work experience in their current occupation in Alberta within he last 18 months
- A minimum of 24 months of full-time work experience in their current occupation in Canada and/or abroad within the last 30 months. This work experience can be a combination of Alberta, Canada, and/or abroad.
Post-graduation work permit (PGWP) holders require a minimum of 6 months of full-time work experience in their current occupation in Alberta within the last 18 months.
In addition, all applicants at the time of applying must have a full-time job offer or an employment contract from an Alberta employer to work in their current occupation in Alberta.
A job offer that has the following conditions will be considered ineligible regardless if they work 30 hours a week or more in a 12-month period:
- Part-time, casual, or seasonal employees
- Independent contractors, business owners or temporary agency workers, including individuals listed as Directors, Shareholders or Agents of the Alberta employer on the Corporate Registry System (CORES)
- Employees who work in Alberta in a place of employment that is not zoned for commercial or industrial operations, such as a home-based business
- Employees who do not work on premises in Alberta, such as those who work in a “virtual” location or serve the employer by telecommuting from a location outside Alberta
Alberta Express Entry Stream
This stream allows qualified applicants in Canada’s Express Entry pool to be nominated by Alberta. These may be candidates who have previous strong ties to Alberta or who can help Alberta in supporting the economic development. Only those who are invited will be asked to submit an application under this stream and be considered.
Candidates are chosen based on the information they have stated in their Express Entry profile. They may receive a Notification of Interest (NOI) letter if they:
- Have an active Express Entry profile in the federal Express Entry pool
- Have stated an interest in immigrating to Alberta permanently
- Are working in an occupation that supports Alberta’s economic development and diversification, and
- Have a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 300
The likelihood of receiving an NOI can increase if the candidate has one or more of the following adaptability factors:
- Alberta job offer and/or work experience
- A graduate of a Canadian post-secondary institution
- Have a relative that is currently living in Alberta
Factors that may decrease your chances of receiving an NOI include:
- Candidate’s Express Entry profile will expire in 3 months or less
- Candidate is working in an occupation:
- on the list of High-wage and low-wage occupations in the province of Alberta set out on the online Government of Canada Refusal to Process a Labour Market Impact Assessment list ;
- on the Alberta Opportunity Stream Ineligible Occupations list (see the list under this section); or
- that has a high volume of submissions across all AINP stream.
Alberta Self-Employed Farmer Stream
This stream targets experienced farm owners with farm management skills and sufficient financial resources planning to reside in Alberta in order to own and operate a farming business.
Applicants must meet the following criteria in order to be eligible:
- Prove they have farm management skills, which can be done through:
- Financial documents of an existing farm business
- Education, training, and work experience documents
- A proposed business plan for the farming business in Alberta
- Proof that a Canadian financial institute will finance your farming business
- Prove they have sufficient financial resources:
- Be able to invest a minimum of $500,000CAD of equity in a primary production farming business in Alberta
- Documents attesting to a min. net worth of $500,000CAD or confirming you have the ability to access those funds. While this is the minimum amount, applicants may be required to show they have the ability to invest in more
- Provide documentation of their investment plans for primary production investment in the form of a proposed business plan
The following are not eligible to apply under this program:
- refugee claimants, or individuals involved in a federal appeal or removal process. It is not the mandate of the AINP to intervene in the federal refugee claim, appeal or removal process.
- live-in caregivers currently living in Canada
- temporary foreign workers working and residing in a province other than Alberta
- international students studying in Canada, including students doing co-op work placements or internships as part of their study program