ALBERTA IMMIGRANT NOMINEE PROGRAM

Every year, people from across the globe choose Alberta as an ideal place to settle in. Alberta’s high standard of living, diverse and welcoming communities, and beautiful landscapes make it a great place to call home. As a matter of fact, over the past 20 years, Alberta’s economy has grown at an average annual rate of 3.7%.

The provincial nominee program for Alberta is called the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) and is an economic immigration program that nominates people for permanent residence in Alberta. Alberta Provincial Nominee Program targets workers that are in high demand throughout the province and fast tracks their Alberta immigration in order to effectively fill the shortage of Canadian professionals with immigrants who have the exact training and experience needed.

This program provides invitations through 2 gateways viz. the Alberta Opportunity Stream and Alberta Express Entry Stream. Fundamentally, the Alberta opportunity stream is specifically for Work permit holders in Alberta; the Alberta express entry stream caters to candidates from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s Express Entry system, and the self-employed farmer stream aims at providing an opportunity to experienced farmers who showcase the capacity to ply a farm in Alberta.

Before making an expression of interest for AINP, it is of utmost importance that the applicant follows the below-mentioned checklist to ensure one’s preparation for applying:

The applicant must be up to date with all the recent and relevant terms and conditions as they are variable to the demand and volume of applications and are subject to change without notification.

Considering the two approaches, there are different eligibility criteria for each one of them and the candidate must be in check with all the eligibility requirements of the stream.

Lastly, the process and procedure for moving ahead with the Expression of Interest after fulfilling the eligibility criteria must be followed in precision as per the AINP guidelines.

Eligibility Criteria:

As stated, AINP offers two streams for candidates to lodge their applications and each of these streams has unique eligibility requirements.

To be eligible under the Alberta Opportunity Stream, one must have a valid work permit (not implied status or restoration status) for an eligible occupation at the time of application and at the time of the application assessment by AINP. A valid work permit is based on:

A positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)

An LMIA exemption for workers as determined by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)

A Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) held by a graduate of an Alberta Advanced Education publicly funded post-secondary institution.

To apply for the Alberta Express Entry Stream, the applicant must:

Have an active Express Entry profile in the federal Express Entry pool

Have stated an interest in immigrating permanently to Alberta

Have been working in an occupation that supports Alberta’s economic development and diversification, and

Have a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System score of 300.

Adaptability factors like a job offer and/or work experience in Alberta or graduation from a Canadian post-secondary institution or having a blood relative who is living in Alberta: parent, child, brother and/or sister increases the applicants’ chances of receiving a Notification of Interest letter.

Oblivious of the stream one is eligible under, there is no assurance that fulfillment of selection requirements would help the applicant secure a Notification of Interest letter. Notification of Interest letters and requests to submit an application is conditioned by the volume of potential candidates meeting these requirements, the type (occupation/sector) of submissions in AINP processing queues, and the number of available nominations.

Application Precess:

Even though AINP offers various streams for interested candidates to apply for, there is an established process for application. Pertaining to the individual requirements of the streams, necessary additions/deductions in each step must be looked after. The following are the general instruction to apply for Alberta PNP.

Step 1: Read the AINP terms and conditions for every stream. For example, without receiving a request from AINP under the Express Entry Stream, one cannot be considered eligible for the stream.

Step 2: Review the AINP Selection criteria. Also, The AINP does not guarantee that all complete applications received by the AINP will be assessed or that all candidates who meet the assessment criteria will be issued a nomination.

Step 3: Download the document checklist and complete the required forms. Each stream has unique forms that are required to be filled in order to file for a complete application.

Step 4: Mail the application package consisting of the complete application via a registered mail or courier services to address unique to each stream.

Assistance by GlobalAxle Immigration:

As an ICCRC licensed consultant and with an experience of about four decades, Globalaxle Immigration would be able to ease the Alberta PNP application process by conducting an in-depth profile assessment as well as identification of the fastest and the best-suited pathway and superintending unique documentation and ensuring the candidate’s virtues are highlighted in the best possible manner before the visa officer.