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.

Skilled Worker Stream

For those who have the needed skills and permanent full-time job offers to fill employment gaps in Nova Scotia. This stream is employer-driven. As a Skilled Worker, the applicant must have a guaranteed, full-time, permanent job offer from a Nova Scotia employer. The NSNP will consider only certain types of jobs and occupations, and priorities based on the current economy. However, priority will be given to Skilled Workers whose employers:

have made a genuine effort to recruit qualified Canadian citizens or permanent residents;
can demonstrate that they will provide additional supports to assist newcomers with their settlement needs;
have an acceptable strategy to recruit and retain immigrant workers in Nova Scotia.

The Skilled 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:
- the job offers a salary and benefits package that meets provincial employment standards and prevailing wage rates
- priority will be awarded to positions with a minimum salary in excess of C$10/hour or a minimum annual wage in excess of C$20,000
be sufficient to retain the Skilled 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 a suitable plan to obtain this
meet the minimum criteria for age, education, work experience, and language ability requirements for this stream

Family Business Worker

This stream helps family-owned businesses hire close relatives who have skills that can’t be found in Canadian citizens or permanent residents. This stream is employer-driven, so the the worker must have a guaranteed, permanent job offer. The worker must be related to the family business owner (or his/her spouse, common-law or conjugal partner) as either a:

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

Ineligible: parents, grandparents, spouses or common-law/conjugal partners. (Instead, apply under the federal Family Class.) Also, international students currently studying cannot apply as workers under this stream. However, the family business owner can hire his/her relative or his/her spouse or common-law/conjugal partner’s relative.

The Worker must also:

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 where:
- the job pays a salary and benefits package that meets provincial employment standards and prevailing wage rates
- priority will be awarded to positions with a minimum salary exceeding C$10/hour or C$20,000 annually
- be sufficient to retain the worker in Nova Scotia and does not contravene existing bargaining unit agreements or any employment disputes
have the relevant qualifications, training or transferable skills, work experience, and licensing or accreditation

The Family Employer must:

have been in operation for a minimum of two (2) years;
owns at least 33.3% of the business;
be a permanent resident or a Canadian resident living in Nova Scotia.

Priority will be given to workers whose family employer can demonstrate that they will provide additional supports (i.e. accommodation and travel, access to language training, orientation to the community, on-the-job training) to assist the Worker and accompanying dependents with their settlement needs.

Non-Dependent Child of Nova Scotia Nominees

This stream is aimed at those who are the non-dependent children of immigrants nominated under the NSNP. The principal applicant must plan to live in Nova Scotia permanently, be employable and contribute to the economy of the province. As the Nominee, The nominee’s non-dependent children must have a minimum of one (1) year of full-time work experience in the last five (5) years in their field of studies and/or have the intention and ability to enter the Nova Scotia labour market.

Eligibility (the non-dependent child):

The applicant must have been named in their parent’s Nova Scotia Nominee Program application.
The applicant meets all the age (at least 22-years-old), education, language ability, employability and financial requirements.
The applicant has completed at least one (1) year of post-secondary education, a training program or apprenticeship and received a degree, diploma or certificate issued by an accredited institution.

This stream will consider the employability of the candidate, but a job offer is not necessary.

Eligibility (the parent):

The applicant must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada, and has been nominated under the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP).
Be the parent of a child who was named in the applicant’s original application for permanent residence to the Nova Scotia Nominee Program.
Have established a family residence in Nova Scotia within six (6) months of obtaining permanent resident status in Canada, and the applicant has remained a resident of this province.
Have been a resident of Nova Scotia for at least three (3) consecutive months immediately before this application and are still residing in Nova Scotia.
Remain a resident of Nova Scotia throughout the application process and are still a resident of this province when the applicant’s child arrives in Nova Scotia with permanent resident status.

International Graduate

This stream helps employers hire and retain recent international graduates whose skills may be in limited supply in the province, and targets such graduates with strong ties to Nova Scotia and intend to live, work, and establish their careers here.

This stream is employer-driven. The International Graduate must have a guaranteed, full-time, permanent job offer in his/her field of study from a Nova Scotia employer. Though the NSNP does not have a specific occupation or skill shortage list, it will consider only certain jobs and occupations. Priority will be given to those whose employers can demonstrate they will provide additional supports to assist newcomers with their settlement needs.

The International Graduate must:

have graduated within the last two (2) years from a program of at least one academic year of full-time study in Nova Scotia and have received a certificate, diploma, or degree from a recognized Nova Scotia post-secondary institution
have legal status in Canada on a temporary Work Permit
have a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Nova Scotia in his/her field of study and at an acceptable level and have been working for at least three months in this position; the job offer must have:
- high education and skill levels
- salary and benefits that meets provincial employment standards and prevailing wage rates
- compensation that’s sufficient to retain the worker in Nova Scotia
- not contravene existing bargaining unit agreements or any employment disputes

Priority will be awarded to positions with a minimum salary surpassing C$10/hour or C$20,000 annually.

Unlike the Skilled Worker stream, International Graduates need to have only three months work experience before applying versus two years. Also under this stream, employers will not have to show proof that they have exhausted efforts to employ Canadian citizens or permanent residents before hiring an international graduate.

Community Identified Stream

This program is aimed at individuals who are employable, have strong established connections to a Nova Scotia community, and can contribute to the labour market and economy of that specific community. This stream is community-driven. There is no application fee.

To be eligible, the candidate must:

be ineligible 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

* have a minimum of one year work experience (inside or outside Canada) within the past five years in an area of employment or sector required by the community

Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP)