Nova Scotia Skilled Worker
This stream is designed to assist Nova Scotia employers to recruit international workers in order to fill gaps in the labour force. This program is an excellent option for foreign workers and recently graduated international students who have a job offer from a Nova Scotia employer. Through this program, employers who have been unable to fill positions with Canadian citizens or permanent residents may provide job offers to interested foreign workers to facilitate their immigration.
Nova Scotia Demand: Express Entry
This stream is designed to target newcomers who will be able to fill shortages in Nova Scotia’s labour forces by quickly and easily integrating into the workforce. This stream is divided into two separate categories with unique program requirements and application procedures:
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia Demand: Express Entry - Category A: Express Entry
The Nova Scotia Demand: Express Entry Category A has one central requirement which distinguishes it from Category B. Category A requires all applicants to have a full-time, skilled job offer from a Nova Scotia employer. In addition, applicants also must meet the general program requirements which are largely aligned with requirements for Express Entry candidates. To be eligible for the Nova Scotia Demand: Express Entry stream, candidates must score at least 67 points on the province’s points assessment grid.
Nova Scotia Demand: Express Entry - Category B
The Nova Scotia Demand: Express Entry Category B has one central requirement which distinguishes it from Category A. Category B requires all applicants to have a minimum of 12-months of full-time, skilled work experience in one of Nova Scotia’s in-demand occupations. In addition, applicants must meet the general program requirements which are largely aligned with requirements for Express Entry candidates.
Nova Scotia International Graduate Entrepreneur
This stream is designed to target recent graduates of a Nova Scotia university or Nova Scotia Community College. Applicants must have already started or bought a Nova Scotia business and operated it for at least one year. This program is by invitation only. Interested candidates must submit an Expression of Interest (EOI). After submitting an EOI the candidate will be assigned a score based on the Nova Scotia International Graduate Entrepreneur points grid. The applicants with the most competitive scores will be invited to submit an official application to the program.
Nova Scotia Entrepreneur
This stream is designed to target experienced business owners or senior business managers who want to live in Nova Scotia. Successful applicants must start a new business or buy an existing business in which they participate in the day-to-day management duties. After operating the business for one year, the entrepreneur may be nominated for permanent resident.
Nova Scotia Physicians
The stream is designed to assist Nova Scotia health organizations to recruit highly skilled foreign doctors to fill labour shortages in the province’s health sector. Physicians who are successful through this program will be able to apply for Canadian permanent resident status. This stream is ideal for physicians who have secured a valid job offer from one of the eligible health sector employers in Nova Scotia.
Nova Scotia Labor Market Priorities
This stream is designed to target workers with experience in extremely high-demand occupations or those with proficiency in the province’s language priorities. The program sometimes announces occupations in advance of an intake, but sometimes occupations are not announced and candidates are invited directly from the Express Entry pool. This stream selects candidates with work experience in extremely high-demand occupations or those with proficiency in the province’s language priorities. Aligned with the federal Express Entry system, successful applicants to the Nova Scotia Labor Market Priorities stream receive a 600 point boost to their Express Entry profiles, virtually guaranteeing them an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for Canadian permanent residence.
Nova Scotia Occupations In Demand
This stream targets workers holding a job offer from a Nova Scotia employer in an in demand field. Nova Scotia has announced that this stream will be run as a three-year pilot program, during which the eligible occupations will change. Presently, the only occupations eligible for this program are NOC 3413 (nurses’ aides, orderlies and patient service associates), NOC 7511 (transport truck drivers), NOC 7521 (Heavy equipment operators (except crane)), and NOC 7611 (Construction trades helpers and labourers). Targeted professions will change based on the province’s labour needs. Candidates must be between the ages of 21 and 55 to apply.
