NSNP Physician Labour Market Priorities

The NSNP Physician Labour Market Priorities stream in Nova Scotia provides a route to Canadian permanent residence for general practitioners, family physicians and specialist physicians in the Express Entry pool.

Candidates must have an approved job offer from the Nova Scotia Health Authority or the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, along with other criteria, and they must receive a Letter of Interest from the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration in order to apply.

The Nova Scotia Physician Labour Market Priorities stream

This programme draws candidate profiles from the federalExpress Entrypool under one of two federal economic immigration programmes:

• The Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP)
• The Canadian Experience Class (CEC)

Minimum requirements

To apply for a provincial nomination under the Nova Scotia Physician Labour Market Priorities Stream, candidates in the Express Entry pool must:

• Receive a Letter of Interest from the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration (NSOI) in their Express Entry profile;
• Apply within 30 days of the date the Letter of Interest is issued;
• Have an approved job offer from the Nova Scotia Health Authority or the IWK Health Centre as a general practitioner, family physician or specialist physician (NOC 3112 or NOC 3111 from theNational Occupational Classification);
• Demonstrate that they meet the work experience requirements for their Express Entry class;
• Provide a signed Return of Service Agreement with the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness, showing a commitment to remain in the province for two years;
• Demonstrate that they have sufficient settlement fundsto settle successfully in Nova Scotia alone or with accompanying family members and to cover the necessary immigration and travel costs. NSOI will not approve an application where it appears that household income (based on the job offer and any income from a spouse) would fall below theLow Income Cut-Off (LICO)of Statistics Canada; and
• Have legal status in their country of residence when applying to this stream.

All documents must be valid at the time of application to the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration (NSOI) and at the time of application to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for permanent residence.

Language requirements

Candidates must reach Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 across all four language skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing) in one of the two official languages, English or French. They must provide documentation demonstrating this even where their first language is English or French.

Language test results must be no more than two years old and must be renewed if they expire at any point before the application submitted to IRCC is approved for processing.

The accepted language tests are:

• IELTS General TrainingorCELPIP
• TEForTCF

The following table shows the results required to reach theCanadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7:

CLB level 7	Nghe	Reading	Writing	Speaking
IELTS result	6,0	6,0	6,0	6,0
CELPIP result	7	7	7	7
TEF result	249	207	310	310
TCF result	458	453	10	10

Education requirements

The province requires evidence that the candidate has the education and medical training needed for licensing in Nova Scotia.

This evidence may take the form of:

• Evidence of education in Canada (for example, copies of the degree, certificate, transcripts); or
• Evidence of a completed foreign educational credential (for example, copies of the degree, certificate, transcripts) and a copy of theeducational credential assessment (ECA)report issued by the Medical Council of Canada.

The ECA report must:

• Follow IRCC’s format and content requirements;
• Be less than 5 years old on the date NSOI receives the application and when the permanent residence application is submitted to IRCC;
• Demonstrate that the candidate’s credential is equivalent to a completed Canadian credential.

The ECA report and the evidence of the completed foreign educational credential should be submitted together.

NSOI recommends that candidates keep a copy of the ECA report for their records and future use.

Work experience requirements

Candidates must demonstrate that they meet the minimum work experience requirements of their Express Entry stream under the Canadian Experience Class or the Federal Skilled Worker Program.

Reference letters are required from all employers.

A reference letter must:

• Be written on company letterhead;
• Be signed by the employee responsible for human resources, a supervisor or a manager;
• Show the full address, telephone number, email and website URL of the company and bear the company’s official stamp (where available);
• Include the following information in a single document:
• The specific period of employment at the company;
• The positions held during that employment and the period in each position;
• The main duties and responsibilities in each position;
• The annual salary plus benefits in each position;
• The number of hours worked a week in each position;
• The total number of hours worked for each position;
• Evidence that the work experience meets the lead statement and the majority (at least 51%) of the main duties set out in theNOC 2016.

Settlement funds

Federal guidance recommends that immigrants arrive with a minimum of CAD 12,669 plus approximately CAD 3,414 for each family member.

This recommended amount is reduced where the principal candidate has already lived in Nova Scotia or has arranged employment.

Evidence of the source of funds in the candidate’s name is required. This may include transferable funds in the name of the candidate or their spouse.

Immigration status

Candidates living in a country other than their country of citizenship should include a copy of the visa or permit for the country in which they are living at the time of application.

Those living in Canada must provide evidence of legal status as a temporary worker or visitor.

A valid passport is required for all family members. The application submitted must include copies of the passport pages showing the passport number, dates of issue and expiry, photograph, name, date and place of birth, any amendments, the expiry date, and any previous Canadian visas or visits. NSOI recommends that the passport have an expiry date two years from the date of application.

Any previous Canadian immigration application through provincial or federal immigration categories must be declared. Candidates need copies of all correspondence received from the provincial or Canadian government relating to each previous application.

Who is not eligible

Foreign nationals are not eligible for this stream if they are an asylum seeker or a failed asylum seeker who has not left Canada. Failure to provide valid documents, and those who do not meet the eligibility requirements, will also be refused.

NSOI may change the criteria without prior notice and may close or pause the acceptance of applications for any NSNP stream at any time.

The application process

Notifying NSOI of an Express Entry profile

Before applying to the Physician Labour Market Priorities Stream, a candidate needs an Express Entry profile.

Once the profile in the federal Express Entry system is complete, the candidate may send their profile number to NSOI.

If the candidate is eligible, they receive a Letter of Interest (LOI) in their IRCC online account.

An LOI is only provided to physicians who:

• Have created an Express Entry profile;
• Have received an approved job offer from NSHA or IWK;
• Have signed a Return of Service Agreement; and
• Have indicated an interest in moving to Nova Scotia in Express Entry.

Applying to the NSNP under the Labour Market Priorities Stream

Candidates have 30 days after receiving the LOI to apply to the NSNP under the Labour Market Priorities Stream.

The application must be submitted through the Nova Scotia website together with all the required supporting documents.

NSOI recommends that documents:

• Be submitted as PDF files;
• Be clear enough to read;
• Be scanned in colour where they contain images;
• Text-only documents may be scanned in greyscale to reduce file size;
• Scanner resolution should be at least 300 pixels per inch;
• Not be edited or enhanced;
• Not exceed 50 Mb;
• Have a file name of fewer than 50 characters.

Documents not in English or French must be submitted in the original language and accompanied by a certified translation.

The translator must be certified by a regulatory body and must not be a family member of the candidate or of their spouse or common-law partner. Nor may they work for a paid consultant or representative preparing the application. The candidate must also provide evidence from the translator describing their translation ability or certification.

Nomination or refusal

Nomination under the Nova Scotia Labour Market Priorities Stream is at NSOI’s discretion.

Nomination

If the application is approved, the candidate receives a letter from NSOI through their IRCC online account. NSOI also notifies the decision and provides the Certificate of Nomination to the candidate or the candidate’s representative by email.

The candidate has 30 days to accept the nomination from Nova Scotia in the Express Entry system.

Once the nomination is accepted, IRCC sends an Invitation to Apply, together with guidance and instructions for applying for permanent residence.

A nomination from Nova Scotia does not guarantee permanent resident status in Canada. Only IRCC has the authority to issue a permanent resident visa.

Intent to refuse

NSOI may send an Intent to Refuse to candidates who may not have applied correctly. They have 10 working days to submit further information. Extensions may be granted on a case-by-case basis and must be the result of exceptional circumstances such as hospitalisation or bereavement.

The file is then reassessed. The final decision is sent by email to the candidate or their representative.

Refusal

NSOI sends notification by email if the application is refused. There is no appeal process. A refusal decision is final.

Temporary work permit

After receiving a provincial nomination from Nova Scotia, the candidate may request a support letter from the Office of Immigration in support of a temporary work permit application. This letter replaces theLabour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)normally required for a work permit.

A temporary work permit allows the candidate to work in Canada while their permanent residence application is being processed.

Where a temporary work permit needs to be extended, the extension application should be submitted three months before the expiry date.

The passport should be valid for the period requested; otherwise IRCC cannot approve the work permit.

Extending a nomination

One six-month extension of a nomination may be granted at NSOI’s discretion under the NSNP. The decision is made on a case-by-case basis where there is evidence of exceptional circumstances.

Nomination for permanent residence

Once permanent residence is granted, the candidate must contact NSOI within 30 days of arriving in Nova Scotia. NSOI needs to see a copy of the Confirmation of Permanent Residence notice, the candidate’s passport, and contact details in Nova Scotia such as current address, telephone number and email.