::: Canadian Migration Concerns :::

Nova Scotia Nominee Program

For centuries, Nova Scotia has been welcoming new arrivals with open arms. This tradition has led to our diverse culture and warm reputation, and has enriched our businesses and our communities. This beautiful province continues to attract those seeking a better life for themselves and their families – when quality of life is the real measure of fulfillment. In Nova Scotia, new arrivals often become lifelong residents, contributing to the businesses they work for and economic development in the province.

We are proud to continue this tradition by offering skilled immigrants the opportunity to work and live here through the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP).

The Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) offers a quicker entry into Canada for qualified workers and experienced entrepreneurs who wish to settle in Nova Scotia and become permanent residents of Canada.
The program is managed by the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration in partnership with Citizenship and Immigration Canada, the federal department responsible for immigration.
It allows Nova Scotia to recruit and select immigrants who can contribute to meeting the labour market and economic needs of the province. Individuals nominated by Nova Scotia, together with their spouse/partner and dependent children, are eligible to apply for a permanent resident visa from Citizenship and Immigration Canada visa under the federal Economic Class known as the Provincial Nominee Class.

How it Works

The NSNP is a two-step application process for permanent resident status in Canada.

Step one - Apply to the Nova Scotia Nominee Program:

Once you decide that you want to settle and work permanently in Nova Scotia, you should review the NSNP categories to see if you meet the criteria set by the province for nomination. If you do and you choose to apply, you must complete the required application forms, attach all supporting documentation and forward the complete application package to the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration for assessment.
If you are approved by the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration as meeting the NSNP selection criteria, you will receive a Letter of Nomination. A Certificate of Nomination will be issued by the Office of Immigration directly to the appropriate CIC visa office.
A nomination by the province does not guarantee that you will be granted permanent residency. This final decision rests solely with CIC.

Step two - Apply to a Citizenship and Immigration Canada visa office:

If you are nominated by the province, you must then submit your NSNP and federal immigration application package directly to the appropriate CIC visa office within 90 days of nominee certificate issuance. CIC will conduct criminal, security and health checks on your application. It may also request an interview or additional information. CIC will make the final selection decision on whether you will be issued a permanent resident visa.

NSNP Program Streams:

Family Business Worker Stream:

The Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) Family Business Worker stream helps employers in hiring workers who are close relatives and also have the required skills for positions that they may have been unable to fill with a permanent resident or Canadian citizen.

This stream is employer-driven. The worker must have a guaranteed, permanent job offer in Nova Scotia from an employer who is a close relative and who owns an established business in Nova Scotia.

The worker must be related to the family business owner (or his/her spouse, common-law or conjugal partner) in one of the following ways. The worker is the business owner’s*:

Son or daughter
Brother or sister
Niece or nephew (children of brothers or sisters)
Uncle or aunt (parents’ brothers or sisters)
Grandchild

(* or a step- or half- relative of the same degree)

To be eligible to apply to this category, the Worker must:

Have legal status in his/her country of residence
Wish to settle permanently in Nova Scotia
Have sufficient settlement supports
Have a permanent, full-time job offer in Nova Scotia from an established Nova Scotia business which belongs to a close family member.

The job offer must provide compensation in the form of salary and benefits package that meets provincial employment standards and prevailing wage rates
priority will be awarded to positions with minimum salary in excess of $10.00/hour or a minimum annual wage in excess of $20,000 Canadian dollars
be sufficient to retain the worker in Nova Scotia and does not contravene existing bargaining unit agreements or any employment disputes

Have the qualifications, training or transferable skills, work experience, and licensing or accreditation required for the job or have a suitable plan.
Meet the minimum criteria for age, education, work experience, and language ability requirements for this stream.

Priority will be given to workers whose family employer can demonstrate that they will provide additional supports to assist the Worker and accompanying dependents with their settlement needs.

Community Identified Stream:

The Community Identified stream of the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) is aimed at selecting individuals who have long established connections to a Nova Scotia community, wish to live there permanently, and are employable and can contribute to the labour market and economy of that specific community.
This stream is community-driven. The applicant must have a Letter of Identification from an organization mandated by the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration before submitting an application to the Nova Scotia Nominee Program. The list of mandated organizations is found in Appendix 3 of the NSNP Community Identified Application Guide posted below.
Applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis.
There is no application fee to apply to the NSNP Community Identified Stream.

To be eligible to apply to this category, the Community Identified candidate must:
• not be eligible for any other NSNP streams
• have legal status in his/her country of residence
• have a Letter of Identification from a mandated community organization
• have long established connections in the specific community which provided the Letter of Identification
• wish to settle permanently in that Nova Scotian community
• have sufficient settlement supports
• be employable i.e. have skills, training and work experience for future employment in a field or sector required by that community
• meet the minimum criteria for age, education and language ability requirements for this stream