Atlantic Immigration Program

First point of contact

Contact the WorkingNB office in your region to learn about services available to New Brunswick employers.

Discussion on workforce needs

A workforce consultant will work with you to identify your needs and employment services that might be available to you. An assessment of your needs will also be conducted.

Delivery of employment services and referral to ImmigrationNB

WorkingNB will connect you with the appropriate employment services. If immigration is identified as an actual workforce need, your needs assessment will then be forwarded to ImmigrationNB. An officer from ImmigrationNB will contact you to discuss economic immigration programs and may invite you to submit an employer designation application.

To become designated, your organization must

• not be in violation of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) or the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR);
• be in good standing and comply with employment standards and occupational health and safety legislation;
• not recruit or hire workers for the purpose of establishing a pool of individuals that can be later transferred or contracted out to separate businesses for staffing purposes;
• have been in continuous, active operation under the same management for at least 2 years in one of the Atlantic provinces, or be able to show continuous, active operation in another location in New Brunswick with confirmation of approval from ImmigrationNB;
• work with a New Brunswick settlement service provider organization to help your foreign workers get settlement services.
• commit to taking the onboarding training; and
• commit to taking the intercultural competency training unless you’re exempted by ImmigrationNB. An officer will inform you if you need to take the training during the intake conversation.

Once you are a designated employer, you may apply to ImmigrationNB to endorse a position for a foreign national.

To have a position endorsed, you must

• demonstrate that efforts to hire locally have been unsuccessful;
• recruit a foreign national;
• provide a valid full-time, non-seasonal job offer co-signed by the foreign national;
• provide an individualized settlement plan through one of New Brunswick’s settlement service providers, co-signed by the foreign national;
• have completed the mandatory onboarding training;
• have completed intercultural competency training, unless exempted by ImmigrationNB.

Required documents

• Offer of Employment to a Foreign National (IMM 0157)
• Signed offer letter or contract
• Detailed job description
• Proof of recruitment efforts
• Evidence of the foreign national’s previous work experience
• Valid language test report
• Settlement plan for the foreign national and accompanying family members
• Signed copy of the Endorsement Application Form
• Copy of proof of legal status in Canada (work permit, visitor visa, or study permit*) if the foreign national is already here
• Copy of the passport of the foreign national and their dependents

*Note: If you are looking to endorse a foreign national who is currently in Canada on a study permit, you must wait until they have completed their program of study before you can invite them to apply.

If approved, both you and the foreign national you are supporting will receive the endorsement certificate via the INB portal.

Guides

• Atlantic Immigration Program – New Brunswick Endorsement Guidelines
• Quick guide to submitting an Endorsement Application
• Visual guide to submitting and Endorsement Application

Permanent residence application

With the endorsement certificate in hand, the foreign national must apply for permanent residence (PR) directly to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) under the Atlantic Immigration Program. They may also apply for a temporary work permit while waiting for permanent residence.

• Permanent residence portal
• More information about the AIP from IRCC

Reminders

• To apply for PR, the foreign national must have a valid endorsement certificate issued by ImmigrationNB.
• If the foreign national requires a work permit, they must also have a work permit support letter issued by ImmigrationNB.
• Employers supporting work permit applications must create an account in the federal employer portal to submit the job offer and pay a compliance fee.
• It is important to submit a complete application to IRCC. This includes detailed reference letters with main duties to, a valid language test report with qualifying scores, and proof of education (accompanied by an education credential assessment if obtained from overseas). Consult IRCC’s checklist for the AIP for more information.

Forms

The foreign national must use one of the following forms when contacting ImmigrationNB after they have been endorsed.

• NBAIP-21 Post-Endorsement Request
• NB-011 Immigration Application Withdrawal