Alberta Opportunity Stream For PR: Know Full Eligibility!

Last Updated On 19 January 2023, 9:46 AM EST (Toronto Time)

The Alberta Opportunity Stream of Alberta Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) is for temporary foreign workers already working full-time in Alberta. Alberta renamed its PNP to AAIP (Alberta Advantage Immigration Program) in February 2022. Previously, AAIP was called Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP).

Currently, AAIP is assessing applications received before September 2, 2022. Furthermore, there are approximately 935 applications in queue. IRCC allocated 6,500 nominations to AAIP for 2022. Out of these, Alberta has already issued 5,837 nomination certificates so far.

This article enlists full eligibility requirements for Alberta Opportunity Stream focusing on:

• Language requirements
• Occupation requirements
• Ineligible occupations
• Work permit & residency requirements
• Education requirements
• Eligible Work Experience

Language requirements

When you submit your application, you must demonstrate that you have passed the following language tests in English or French. You must get the required points based on a single test result.

National Occupational Classification (NOC) Skill Level	Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) test score required	Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) test score required
If you are working in a TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3 (NOC 0, A or B) occupation	Minimum of 5 for each English language skill	Minimum of 5 for each French language skill
If you are working in a TEER 4 or 5 (NOC C or D) occupation	Minimum of 4 for each English language skill	Minimum of 4 for each French language skill

When your application is filed, official test results must be no more than two years old. The date you took the exam, not the date your test results were issued, is utilized to establish the age of your test findings. The AAIP will not accept enrollment confirmation for a language exam instead of a test result.

Occupation requirements

Eligible occupations

When you file your application, you must work in a qualifying occupation in Alberta at the time of your application evaluation. The occupation requirements apply to your work experience and a job offer.

In addition, most occupations in National Occupational Classification (NOC) TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3, 4, and 5 are eligible. 

Post-Graduation Work Permit holders

If you have a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP), your occupation in Alberta must also be connected to your subject of study. See the education requirements section for further information on valid Alberta credentials and recognized Alberta institutions.

Suppose you began your Alberta credential program on or after April 1, 2019, and completed an Advanced Education-approved one-year post-diploma or post-baccalaureate certificate. In that case, your occupation must also be connected to your previous post-secondary field of study outside of Canada.

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Ineligible occupations

Individuals employed in the occupations listed below at the time of submission and evaluation are ineligible to apply for or be nominated under the Alberta Opportunity Stream.

NOC Code (2021)	NOC TEER category	Occupation
00010	0	Legislators
40021	0	School principals and administrators of elementary and secondary education
40030	0	Managers in social, community and correctional services
40041	0	Fire chiefs and senior firefighting officers
60040*	0	Escort agency managers, massage parlour managers
41100	1	Judges
41220	1	Secondary school teachers
41221	1	Elementary school and kindergarten teachers
51111	1	Authors and writers (except technical)
51122	1	Musicians and singers
42200*	2	Justices of the peace
42202*	2	Early childhood educators who do not have certification through Alberta Children’s Services – Child Care Staff Certification Office or who have been certified as Level 1 Early Childhood Educator (formerly Child Development Assistant)
43100	3	Elementary and secondary school teacher assistants
43109	3	Other instructors
53121	3	Actors, comedians and circus performers
53122	3	Painters, sculptors and other visual artists
53124	3	Artisans and craftspersons
53200	3	Athletes
63101	3	Real estate agents and salespersons
33100*	3	Dental laboratory assistants/bench workers
44100	4	Home child care providers
44101	4	Home support workers, caregivers and related occupations
64321	4	Casino occupations
55109	5	Other performers
65109	5	Other sales related occupations
65211	5	Operators and attendants in amusement, recreation and sport
65229	5	Other support occupations in personal services
65329	5	Other service support occupations
75200	5	Taxi and limousine drivers and chauffeurs
85101	5	Harvesting labourers
85102	5	Aquaculture and marine harvest labourers
85104	5	Trappers and hunters
85110	5	Mine labourers
85121	5	Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers

Work permit and residency requirements 

When you submit your application and the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program (AAIP) evaluates it, you must have a valid temporary resident status in Canada that allows you to work, i.e. a temporary foreign worker permit.

For work permits to be valid, they should meet one of the following criteria:

• Have a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), or
• An LMIA exemption for workers based on the following:
  • International trade agreements
  • workers transferred within a company
  • International Experience Canada
  • Mobilité Francophone
• Have an IRCC-issued open work permit:
  • To vulnerable workers who demonstrate they are at risk of abuse or experiencing abuse in the content of their employment in Canada. It includes exemption under the Vulnerable Workers Open Work Permit (VWOWP)
  • Family members of a vulnerable worker who qualifies for the VWOWP exemption
• a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) issued to a graduate of Alberta Advanced Education publicly funded post-secondary institution
  • PGWP holders must also fulfill the requirements of the occupation, education, and work experience.
• An open work permit was granted following one of the IRCC’s open work permit public policies:
• The permit must be held by an Alberta Advanced Education publicly funded post-secondary institution graduate. Following the temporary policy changes to the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP). 
• Other open work permit requirements:
  • Open work permit issued under the public policy for Hong Kong recent graduates, or 
  • under the IRCC’s Ukraine immigration measures 

Regarding requirements, candidates must have a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) or one of the accepted LMIA exemption work permits. Candidates must also fulfill additional minimum eligibility requirements for residency and work permit type, occupation, language, education, Alberta job offer, and work experience.

Ineligible applicants

The following individuals are not eligible to apply for or be nominated for the Alberta Opportunity Stream:

• Individuals involved in a federal appeal or removal procedure – The AAIP does not intervene in federal refugee claims, appeals, or removal proceedings.
• temporary residents of Canada living or working in a province or territory other than Alberta, or
• Foreign nationals who live or work in Canada but do not have legal temporary residence status

If you apply to the AAIP under NOC code 33102 (nurse aides, orderlies, and patient service associates), you must have a CLB of 7 for each English language skill or an NCLC of 7 for each French language skill.

Education requirements

Except for Post-Graduation Work Permit holders, all candidates must have completed a minimum of high school education equal to Canadian standards when filing your application on January 1, 2021.

Applicant must provide a copy of an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) issued by an IRCC-approved organization for your highest level of education. You do not fulfill the education criterion if your ECA report reveals that your certificate is not equivalent to the completion of a Canadian high school or if the foreign educational institution is not recognized.

An ECA is not required if:

You have a valid Alberta Qualification Certificate, a trade certificate recognized by Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training, or a Canadian degree, diploma, or certificate from a recognized Canadian post-secondary, technical college, or secondary school (AIT).

Candidates who applied before January 1, 2021, had to have completed high school education in their country of origin. These candidates did not need an ECA.

Eligible work experience

When you submit your application, you must have either: 

• 12 months of full-time job experience in your present occupation in Alberta during the previous 18 months, or
• A minimum of 24 months of full-time work experience in your current occupation in Canada or overseas during the previous 30 months, or both – this work experience can be a combination of experience earned in Alberta, in Canada (outside of Alberta), or abroad.

Post-Graduation Work Permit holders must have a minimum of 6 months of full-time work experience in their current occupation in Alberta within the past 18 months.

Work experience in the qualifying period is required for all candidates, including those with a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP).

• full-time work experience for a minimum of 30 hours a week
• Work experience in the same occupation as your current occupation 
• Had a valid temporary resident status and IRCC-authorised work permit while working in Alberta or Canada. 
• Work experience gained while studying does not count unless you were on a PGWP and completed a paid co-op work term as a part of your program of study at an Alberta post-secondary institution. The work term must have been:
  • Minimum of 30 hours per week, paid and full-time.  
  • Work experience directly relates to your current occupation and 
  • All work experience was gained in Alberta. 

All applicants, including PGWP holders, must complete the following license, registration, and certification requirement at the time your application is filed and the AAIP evaluates it:

• To work in your present occupation in Alberta, you must have the necessary licensure, registration, or certification.
• You must hold a valid Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Trade (AIT) approved trade certificate if you work in a required trade in Alberta.
• If you work as a childcare worker, you must be certified as a Level 2 Early Childhood Educator (previously Child Development Worker) or Level 3 Early Childhood Educator (formerly Child Development Supervisor).

Source: Government of Alberta

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