Nova Scotia Nomination

The Nova Scotia Provincial Nominee Program (NSNP) is a province specific Canadian immigration service for those wishing to migrate to Canada with the intention of living and working in Nova Scotia on a permanent basis.

Provincial Canadian immigration services offer a route to permanent settlement in a specific province and successful applicants will receive Canadian permanent resident status. The Nova Scotia model allows people to immigrate to Canada under one of several sub-categories, all of which aim to attract immigrants with desirable business skills, qualifications and experience to the province. In Canada, immigration through provincial Nominee Programs can often result in quicker attainment of Canadian permanent residence than applying through one of the Federal business visa schemes. However, it is important to note that a successful candidate immigrating to Nova Scotia must have the intention to settle in that province.

Immigration consultants at Global Visas can provide a comprehensive range of visa services for the wide range of Canadian visas for immigration and work permits available. As a specialist Canadian immigration consultancy, we can offer immigration lawyer expertise throughout your Canadian visa application and can manage every aspect of your immigration to Canada. Visa applications can be monitored throughout the process and we can help you to establish which visa for Canada is the most beneficial for your needs.

Benefits

The Nova Scotia provincial route to Canadian migration, like similar schemes in other participating provinces, offers a path to settled status in Canada. Successful applicants will be granted Canadian permanent residence, which subject to the three year minimum residency term may subsequently lead to Canadian citizenship. The Nova Scotia model benefits the applicant in allowing them to apply for the process directly, rather than requiring an application to be made by an employer, as would be necessary with a Canadian work permit application.

Unlike the types of federal business visa service which make up the business immigration programme, the Nova Scotia provincial route does not employ a points based assessment. In Canada, visas such as the Immigrant Investor Program (IIP), the Self Employed Person visa, and the Entrepreneur visa, require a minimum points threshold to be satisfied. This is also true of the Federal Skilled Worker visa which functions like the Highly Skilled Migrant programme, or HSMP, in the UK. Whilst each subdivision of the Nova Scotia nomination program assesses candidates on a range of factors, no points based assessment is employed.

Understanding the system

The New Brunswick Provincial Nomination Program may be divided into the following subcategories.

Skilled Worker Stream

The skilled worker stream is designed to allow Nova Scotia employers to bring skilled overseas workers to the province to fill skills shortages.

Applicants for immigration to Nova Scotia under this stream require a guaranteed permanent and full time job offer to be in place before an application can be made to the NSNP. Candidates must also fulfil the following criteria:
  • Candidates must have the intention and ability to settle in Nova Scotia and support both themselves and any dependents.
  • Candidates must meet the minimum age, education, work experience, and language ability requirements. A Global Visas migration consultant will be happy to discuss these in detail.
  • Candidates must have the necessary skills, experience and qualifications to perform the job or must have a suitable plan to obtain the necessary attributes.

Family Business Worker Stream

The family business worker stream is aimed at employers wishing to fill positions which cannot be filled from the domestic workforce, with employees who are close relatives.

Immigrating to Canada through this stream carries the same requirements as the skilled worker stream with the added requirement that the prospective employee is related to the employer in one of the following ways.
  • Son/Daughter
  • Brother/ Sister
  • Niece/Nephew
  • Uncle/Aunt
  • Grandchild

In this stream, priority is given where employers can demonstrate that additional support with the settlement needs of the employee will be provided.

Community Identified Stream

The Community Identified stream is designed for potential employees who have a long-standing connection with the province. This Nova Scotia immigration stream is community driven and requires a Letter of Identification from an organization mandated by the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration before an application can be submitted.

Community Identified Stream candidates must also:
  • Be ineligible for any other Nova Scotia Nominee Program stream.
  • Have legal status in his/her country of residence.
  • Have the intention and ability to settle in Nova Scotia and support both themselves and any dependents.
  • Be employable, with skills and experience which will be of benefit to the community.

Economic Stream

The NSNP is currently not accepting any applications for the Economic stream, aimed at experienced business managers and entrepreneurs, until the stream is relaunched in late autumn 2007. Details of the new system will be provided as soon as they become available.

The International Graduate Stream

This stream, aimed at International graduates allows employers to hire recent graduates who wish to live and work in Nova Scotia and have a strong tie to the province. Once more, this stream requires a permanent job offer to be in place before an application can be made.

International Graduates applying under this stream must:
  • Have graduated within the two years before an application is made from a course involving at least one year of full time study in Nova Scotia. They must possess a recognized degree qualification and have legal status in Canada on a temporary working permit.
  • Have a permanent job offer in place and have been working for a minimum of three months in the position.

Dependants

Migrating to Canada through a provincial nomination service constitutes a route to permanent settled status in Canada and therefore allows successful applicants to bring their spouse or partner and dependent children to join them. Spouse immigration allows a candidate's spouse, common-law or conjugal partner to be included on their application and dependent immigration is permitted for unmarried children under the age of 22.

As with other Canadian Provincial Nomination Programs Nova Scotia also makes family immigration available to dependent children over the age of 22 who are either dependent upon their parents as a result of being in full time study or who are unable to work due to a disability.