The AIP is an economic program targeted to foreign nationals with job offers in the Atlantic region which include four provinces (New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia or Newfoundland and Labrador), who have received an endorsement by an Atlantic province and who meet minimum education, work experience and language proficiency requirements.This program is also useful for international graduates wishing to stay and settle in Atlantic Canada after graduation. There are 3 different programs:

1. International Graduate Program
2. High-Skilled Program
3. Intermediate-Skilled Program

Eligibility Requirements

Confirmation of provincial endorsement

An endorsement certificate is issued by an Atlantic province to a candidate they support for permanent residence under the AIP based on a genuine job offer that is made by a designated employer represents a real labour market need is not fraudulent a settlement plan that responds to the settlement needs of the principal applicant and their accompanying family members as identified by an approved settlement service provider organization

Education

The you must have either a Canadian 1-year post-secondary (or higher) educational credential if they have a job offer under Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities (TEER) 0 or TEER 1 of the NOC, or, if they studied outside Canada, an ECA to confirm that their studies are equal to or higher than a Canadian 1-year post-secondary credential or a Canadian high school diploma if they have a job offer under TEER 2, TEER 3, or TEER 4 of the NOC, or, if they studied outside Canada, an ECA to confirm that their studies are equal to or higher than a Canadian high school diploma.

Eligible educational credentials for international graduates

Only certain educational credentials are eligible for international graduates. An educational credential is not eligible if it was obtained in a study or training program where the study of English or French as a second language was at least half of the program at least half of the program was completed through distance learning or a scholarship or fellowship stipulated that the recipient return to their home country to apply the knowledge and skills gained.

The educational credential of the international graduates must have been obtained within 24 months of the date on the application for permanent residence.

Language

For a job offer under TEER 0, TEER 1, TEER 2, or TEER 3 of the NOC, the you must meet the minimum criteria for level 5 of the Canadian Language Benchmarks system in English or the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens in French for each of the 4 language skill areas.

For a job offer under TEER 4 of the NOC, you must meet the minimum criteria for level 4 of the Canadian Language Benchmarks system in English or the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens in French for each of the 4 language skill areas.

Qualifying work experience

You must have, within the last 5 years, accumulated at least 1 year of full-time (or part-time equivalent, meaning at least 1,560 hours) work experience at one of the following skill levels:

TEER 0 (management jobs such as restaurant managers and mine managers)

TEER 1 (professional jobs that usually need a degree from a university, such as doctors, dentists and architects)

TEER 2 or TEER 3 (technical jobs and skilled trades such as chefs, electricians and plumbers)

TEER 4 (intermediate jobs that usually call for high school or job-specific training, such as industrial butchers, security guards and related security service occupations, and retail salespersons and visual merchandisers)

Qualifying international graduates are exempt from work experience requirements

You does not need to meet the work experience requirements, if you are an international graduate who has at least a 2-year degree, diploma, certificate, or trade or apprenticeship credential from a recognized post-secondary institution in Atlantic Canada, and was a full-time student for the entire duration of their studies lived in either New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador or Prince Edward Island for at least 16 months within the last 2 years before getting their credential had valid temporary resident status throughout their stay in Canada had the visa or permit they needed to work, study or get training while they were in Canada

Job offer

The job offer must meet all of these requirements:

The job offer must be from a designated employer in 1 of the 4 Atlantic provinces (New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia or Newfoundland and Labrador).

The job offer must be full-time, meaning that you will work at least 30 paid hours per week.

The job must be non-seasonal. In general, this means that you will have consistent and regularly scheduled paid employment throughout the year.

For TEER 0, TEER 1, TEER 2, or TEER 3 job offers, the employer must be offering you a job that will last at least 1 year (that is, 1 year from the time you becomes a permanent resident).

For TEER 4 job offers, the employer must be offering you permanent employment, that is, there is no set end date.

Settlement funds

If you are already working in Canada and authorized to work, you don’t need to show proof of funds.

If you are not already working in Canada with a valid work permit, you must demonstrate that you have sufficient funds available for settlement in Canada at the time of application and when the application is finalized. The funds must be all of the following:

• Available and transferable
• Unencumbered by debts or other obligations
• Sufficient to support the initial establishment in Canada

Sufficient funds are determined according to your family size (including both accompanying and non-accompanying dependants), using 12.5% of the current low income cut-off (LICO) for urban areas with populations of 500,000 or more.

Call our experts to know which program you would qualify.