This is a great news for skilled workers with little experience and limited language ability. Now you can also apply for immigration to Atlantic Provinces of Canada. The Atlantic provinces of Canada which is Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador popularly referred to as the “Maritimes”, have united together with Federal government and introduced a new program called “Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program”.

This program is introduced to attract more immigrants to settle in the Atlantic Region. As per the Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) website, this program will allow about 2000 principal applicants to enter the Atlantic Canada in 2017 which is scheduled to begin in March 2017. This is a three year pilot program which is introduced by the government of these provinces to meet the labor demand in the market and facilitate the growth of business in certain sectors. 

 What is Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program (AIPP)?

Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program is a newly introduced immigration program for eligible workers and graduates having professional skills and qualifications in certain occupations detailed in the new Occupation List. This is very exciting news for all immigration aspirants having a dream to settle down in Canada. This program is for eligible international students who have completed their graduation from an authorized list of publicly funded institutions participating in the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program (AIPP).

Additionally, this program is also open for workers in intermediate level belonging to National Occupational Classification (NOC) categorized under type C, as well as for workers with limited language skills. Please note that this program is open for both international graduate students (passing out from recognized institution participating in this program) and for workers in management, professional, technical, and skilled trade occupations belonging to NOC O, A or B. 

This program has two subprograms for skilled workers while one subprogram is for International graduates:

• Atlantic High Skilled Program(AHSP):

This is for High skilled workers performing occupations listed in NOC O, A, B or C with a full time job offer from a designated Canadian employer.

• Atlantic Intermediate-Skilled (AISP):

This is for Intermediate Skilled graduates performing occupations listed in NOC O, A, B or C with full time offer from a designated Canadian employer.

• Atlantic International Graduate Program(AIGP):

This is for international students who have recently graduated from an institute of Atlantic Canada which is participating in this program.

Benefits of Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program (AIPP):

• Atlantic Canada comprises of provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador.
• The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program main benefit of this program is it provides a new platform to immigration applicants with intermediate skills to apply for Immigration to Atlantic Canada if they have a valid job offer from a Canadian employer.
• The AIPP program helps international graduate students studying in recognized institution participating in the AIPP to apply for Permanent Residency in Atlantic Canada.
• International Graduate students don’t need show any experience in order to apply for this program.
• This program has a limited English language requirement; so skilled or semi skilled professionals whose occupation is in the NOC list O, A, B or C can apply. This  is a very good opportunity for Canada immigration aspirants meeting the eligibility criteria to enter into Canada.
• This program provides applicants provide a platform to apply for Canadian immigration through Express Entry. If you receive an Invitation to Apply for a PR card using AIPP you get to enjoy the following benefits:

• You can live, work, study in Canada permanently
• You can enjoy health benefits just as a Canadian citizen
• You can apply for citizenship after spending 3 years in Canada
• You can sponsor your family to become a permanent resident

Eligibility criteria for Atlantic Intermediate-Skilled (AISP) Subprogram of AIPP: 

• Full time job offer from a designated employer: If you have an occupation which belongs to intermediate skills with NOC type O, A, B or C along with valid job offer from a designated employer, you can apply for PR through the AISP subprogram. Every province has its own employer designated requirement which the employer needs to fulfill in order to invite applicants to apply for immigration through this program.

• Skilled Work Experience Requirement: If you have a skilled work experience (in occupation belonging to NOC O, A, B, C) of about 1 year and the experience is relevant to your Canadian job offer, you can apply for immigration.

• Educational Requirement: There is a very relaxed educational qualification requirement in order to participate in this program. Skilled workers with Intermediate skills who have completed at least high school can apply for this program. Applicants who have foreign credential education need to undergo Educational Credential Assessment.

• English Language Requirement: You have to undergo International English Language Testing System (IELTS) for English or Test devaluation de François (TEF) for French and need to have a minimum score of level 4 of Canadian Language Bench mark.

• Provincial Endorsement: You need to provide a letter of endorsement provided by Atlantic province in order to apply for this program.

 Eligibility criteria for Atlantic High Skilled Program (AHSP) Subprogram for AIPP:

• Full time job offer from a designated employer: If you have an occupation belonging to NOC O, A, or B and a valid job offer which can be one year contractual employment from a designated employer; you can apply for PR through the AHSP. Every province has its own employer designated requirement which the employer needs to fulfill in order to invite applicants to apply for immigration through this program.

• Skilled Work Experience Requirement: If you have a skilled work experience (in occupation belonging to NOC O, A, B, C) of about 1 year and the experience is relevant to your Canadian job offer, you can apply for immigration.

• Educational Requirement: There is a very relaxed educational qualification requirement in order to participate in this program. High Skilled workers with average skills who have completed at least high school can apply for this program. Applicants who have foreign credential education need to undergo Educational Credential Assessment.

• English Language Requirement: You have to undergo International English Language Testing System (IELTS) for English or Test devaluation de François (TEF) for French and need to have a minimum score of level 4 of Canadian Language Bench mark.
• Provincial Endorsement: You need to provide a letter of endorsement provided by Atlantic province in order to apply for this program.

Atlantic International Graduate Program (AIGP), Subprogram of AIPP:

International Graduates who have successfully completed their course from Institute participating in Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program. You need to be an international student who has completed a two year post-secondary diploma from a publicly funded learning institution in the Atlantic region as per the list in the table below:

• Full time job offer from a designated employer: International graduates recently completed their courses which is related occupation belonging to NOC O, A, B or C and a valid job offer which can be one year contractual employment from a designated employer, you can apply for PR through the AIGP. Every province has its own employer designated requirement which the employer needs to fulfill in order to invite applicants to apply for immigration through this program.

• Skilled Work Experience Requirement: The main benefit of this program is that you don’t need to have any experience in order to apply for immigration through Atlantic International Graduate Program (AIGP) program.

• English Language Requirement: You have to undergo International English Language Testing System (IELTS) for English or Test devaluation de François (TEF) for French and need to have a minimum score of level 4 of Canadian Language Bench mark.

• Provincial Endorsement: You need to provide a letter of endorsement provided by Atlantic province in order to apply for this program.

 How to apply for Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program (AIPP):

According to IRCC website, IRCC will start receiving applications under AIPP in the beginning of March 2017. Interested applicants need to check their eligibility criteria as mentioned in the above section and if they are eligible, they can apply. You can perform an online assessment test for this on IRCC website.

You can then follow the mentioned steps to apply through Express Entry. In order to get better understanding of Express Entry System, kindly visit the page: https://visasaborad.com/canada-visa/express-entry-system/