Atlantic High-Skilled Program (AHSP)

The Atlantic High-Skilled Program (AHSP) is part of the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program (AIPP), Canadian immigration venture from 2017.

Through this program, eligible foreign workers with a job offer from an employer in Atlantic Canada can submit an application for Canadian permanent residency.

The processing time for most of the applications is six months.

Following are the destination Provinces:

• Nova Scotia
• New Brunswick
• Prince Edward Island
• Newfoundland

The Job Offer

The AHSP is an employer driven program, and in this way all candidates are required to acquire a substantial job offer.

Candidates to the AHSP must show that they have a job offer that is:

• from a designed employer in one of the four Atlantic territories
• full-time job for at least one year
• should not be a seasonal job
• skilled (for example in an administrative, expert, or specialized/exchanges position at skill type 0, An or, B of the National Occupational Classification [NOC]) and
• supported by a provincial certificate of endorsement from the province that shows that the job offer is genuine and assessment has been completed and a settlement plan is in place for the candidate and each member of the family.

Work Experience

Candidates to the AHSP must show that they have acquired work experience for in any event one year (1,560 hours absolute/30 hours out of each week), non-consistent, full-time or an equivalent sum in part time, inside the most recent three years. This work experience must be:

• paid work (for example charitable effort, unpaid entry level positions don't tally); and
• in an administrative, expert, or specialized/exchanges position (NOC 0, An, or B).

Extra points to consider for work experience are:

• Candidates must have performed the activities listed in the lead statement of the National Occupational Classification (NOC) description and a substantial number of the main duties.
• Canadian experience probably been gotten while the foreign national was approved to work in Canada as temporary resident.
• Candidates don't need to be employed at the time they apply.
• Times of independent work won't be incorporated when ascertaining the time of qualifying work experience.
• Work experience gained during a time of study is permitted, as long as the work hours didn't surpass what the candidate was approved to accomplish for that period.

Education

Candidates to AHSP must exhibit they have one of the following:

• a Canadian secondary or post-secondary certificate/degree or
• a finished foreign education.

For candidates with education finished outside Canada, an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) is required so as to demonstrate that the degree of training is equivalent with Canadian measures.

Language Ability

Candidates to the AHSP must prove language ability of at least fluent basic level in either English or French in order to apply for this program. This is equivalent to Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 4.

Any of the following language test will be valid:

• IELTS (International English Language Testing System) — General test only.
• CELPIP (Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program) — General test only.
• TEF (Test d’évaluation de français).
• Test de connaissance du français (TCF Canada)

Settlement Funds

The settlement funds must be equal to or greater than the amounts given below for each family size.

No. of Family Members (including those supported by candidate even if they are not included in the application)	Funds Required
1	$3,167
2	$3,943
3	$4,847
4	$5,885
5	$6,675
6	$7,528
7 or more	$8,381

Provincial Endorsement

Candidates must be endorsed by an Atlantic province in order for the application to be complete and accepted by IRCC.

An endorsement letter is issued by the province to applicants who have been endorsed. Candidates must submit a copy of this letter with their application for permanent residency submitted to IRCC.

All endorsements are valid for six months after issuance date, and there are no extensions under these programs. The application for permanent residence must be submitted before the expiry date of the endorsement letter.