Alberta is one of the provinces of Canada, and like every other Canadian province and territory, Alberta also has a separate immigration program named AAIP(Alberta Advantage Immigrant Program).
Earlier, if skilled professionals worldwide wanted to Immigrate to Alberta, they were required to submit an EOI to initiate the application process.
Nevertheless, on 30th September, Alberta modified the process for issuing Expressions of Interest (EOIs) to applicants for specific Alberta Advantage Immigrant Programs.
Therefore, if you are a skilled worker hoping to move to Alberta via this visa program, you should be aware that you must file an Expression of Interest to the Alberta Immigration Authority right away. This guide will tell you everything about the EOI issuing process. But, before moving ahead, let us give you an overview of AAIP and Alberta Worker Stream.
Alberta Advantage Immigrant Program - An Overview
The Alberta Advantage Immigrant Program is an economic immigration program of Alberta that nominates skilled professionals for permanent residency in the province. However, the nominated applicant should have the required skills to fill the skill shortage gap in the province.
Alberta Worker Stream
Alberta modified the procedure for accepting applications for Worker streams earlier this year to effectively manage the excessive demand and address labor market goals.
Further, the province said in June that it would only take a certain amount of applications at a time into the application pool. All applications would be closed if a target was reached by each month's end.
This system is made to balance better the 9,750 PNP nominations that the IRCC allotted Alberta for 2024 with processing times. The impacted programs included:
- Alberta Opportunity Stream
- Rural Renewal Stream
- Accelerated Tech Pathway
- Tourism and Hospitality Stream.
This system aims to "provide applicants with various opportunities to apply and access the program throughout the year."
This year, the demand for the Alberta Opportunity Stream has been so great that the province had to halt accepting applications from February to June.
According to this Canadian province, a pause was necessary so that the AAIP could "address its current inventory and focus its limited immigration nominations on priorities," such as addressing labor shortages in high-demand industries like healthcare, technology, construction, agriculture, tourism, and hospitality.
How to Submit an EOI(Expression of Interest) through this new system?
If you are planning to apply for this immigration program in Alberta, you must follow the following steps to submit an EOI through this new EOI system.
- Candidates applying for worker streams must submit a worker Expression of interest.
- Candidates must accomplish this by going to the official AAIP portal and filling out the required information about themselves. Furthermore, according to the province, applicants who have filed a worker EOI will be included in the worker stream pool and given further attention. There isn't a cost to apply, though.
- Then, candidates' profiles will be ranked based on the Worker EOI points grid. The Worker EOI point system works similarly to the federal Comprehensive Ranking System.
For instance, their points will be determined by human capital factors like age, having a family connection in the province, language proficiency, work experience (with more points given for work experience in Alberta), education (including whether or not they completed their education in the province), and so on.
- Candidates with high scores will get the chance to be selected for a provincial nomination, and they will get the invitation to apply via mail.
Important to Note: According to Alberta's government, candidates who "already have an existing Worker EOI or Entrepreneur EOI or a draft or active AAIP application" are not permitted to create a worker EOI. Creating a Worker EOI also requires withdrawing any pending applications or EOIs.”
The Provincial authority has also stated that the candidates are not required to rush to submit their applications because the authority will start conducting the worker stream in mid to late October.
Points Grid for Worker Expression of Interest
The following tabular representation explains the points grid for Worker Expression of Interest under the Alberta Advantage Immigrant Program.
Factors | Criteria | Maximum Points |
Human Capital Factors | 69 | |
Education | 22 | |
- Doctorate Degree | 12 | |
- Master’s Degree | 10 | |
- Bachelor’s Degree | 7 | |
- Trades Certificate/Diploma | 7 | |
- Diploma/Certificate | 4 | |
- Secondary School and lower | 0 | |
Location of Education (Canada) | ||
- Completed in Alberta | 10 | |
- Completed in another province/territory | 6 | |
Language | 13 | |
- CLB 6+ (English) / NCLC 6+ (French) | 10 (English) / 8 (French) | |
English: CLB 5; French: NCLC 5. | 8 (English) / 5 (French) | |
English: CLB 4; French: NCLC 4. | 5 (English) / 3 (French) | |
No test / CLB 3 or below | 0 | |
Bilingual Proficiency | CLB or NCLC score of 4+ in both English and French | 3 |
Work Experience | 21 | |
Total Work Experience (Canada + Abroad) | ||
- 12 or more months | 11 | |
- 6-11 months | 7 | |
- Less than six months | 3 | |
Work Experience in Canada | ||
- 6+ months in Alberta | 10 | |
- 6+ months in another province/territory | 6 | |
Age | 5 | |
- 18-20 years | 3 | |
- 21-34 years | 5 | |
- 35-49 years | 4 | |
- 50+ years | 3 | |
Family Connection in Alberta | Having a Canadian Citizen/PR family member (over 18 years old) | 8 |
Economic Factors | 31 | |
Alberta Job Offer | 16 | |
- Full-time, permanent job offer | 10 | |
- Job in select Alberta rural community/sector | 6 | |
Job Offer Location | 5 | |
- Calgary/Edmonton areas | 0 | |
- Rural Renewal Stream community | 5 | |
- Other Alberta communities (outside Calgary/Edmonton) | 5 | |
Regulated Occupation in Alberta | Meets regulatory requirements in a regulated occupation | 10 |
Conclusion
Alberta has introduced a new EOI system for the Alberta Advantage Immigrant Program (AAIP) Worker Stream to manage high demand and address labor market goals. Candidates must submit an EOI through the official AAIP portal, ranking candidates based on human capital factors like age, family connection, language proficiency, work experience, and education. Existing Worker EOIs or Entrepreneur EOIs are not permitted. The worker stream will begin in mid to late October.
For more details about the Alberta Provincial Nominee Program or any other PNP Program, contact Province Immigration via +91 98961 96762 or info@provinceimmigration.com
