Nova Scotia nominee stream · NSNP-ENT
NSNP Entrepreneur (Nova Scotia)
Open
Business owners who will invest in and actively run a Nova Scotia business.
Jacinth Immigration Canada teamReviewed by a licensed RCICLast updated
How it works
About the entrepreneur
An invitation-only business stream. Thresholds are lower outside the Halifax area. International graduates are not a separate stream: the province runs them as sub-criteria of this one, on its own tab of the same page, and that route asks for a year of continuous experience owning and managing the Nova Scotia business already, at 33.33 per cent ownership or more, plus a valid post-graduation work permit.
Applying from outside Canada: The main category is open from abroad but works by invitation only. The international graduate sub-criteria are not, since they need a post-graduation work permit, a degree or diploma earned over at least two academic years of full-time in-person study in Nova Scotia, and a Nova Scotia business you are already running.
Source: the province's own page for this stream. Last checked September 18, 2026. Provinces change stream criteria without notice, so confirm the detail before you rely on it.
Requirements
What this stream asks for
- Net worth of at least $600,000, or $400,000 outside the Halifax Regional Municipality
- An investment of at least $150,000 of your own money, or $100,000 outside Halifax
- Three years actively managing and owning a business, at a third ownership or more, or more than five years in a senior business management role
- Aged 21 or over
- Language at CLB 5 in speaking, listening, reading and writing
- An expression of interest, followed by an invitation to apply from Labour, Skills and Immigration
Programme
The Nova Scotia programme right now
Open. Nova Scotia consolidated ten streams into four on 18 February 2026. Two changes since then affect applicants directly: expressions of interest now expire after twelve months, from 1 May 2026, and the province began charging application fees on 1 September 2026.
Ten streams were consolidated into these four on 18 February 2026. Expressions of interest submitted before that date remain active. Nova Scotia also lists Critical Vacancies in its navigation, but the province states plainly that it is not an invitation to apply for a nomination. Note also that the province's immigration website now lives at liveinnovascotia.com: the former novascotiaimmigration.com address redirects there, so older links and printed guides still work but no longer show the domain you may be expecting. The International Graduate Entrepreneur route was not closed in the consolidation, but it is no longer a standalone stream; it survives as sub-criteria of the Entrepreneur stream.
Official NSNP page Official draw results
Checked against the province's own pages on September 11, 2026. Streams change through the year, so confirm on the official page before you apply.
Explore
Other Nova Scotia streams
From the blog
Related reading
- BusinessProvincial entrepreneur streams: how they really workA province does not hand you permanent residence for money. It hands you a work permit and a contract. The nomination comes later, if you deliver.September 19, 2026
- Provincial nomineesEnhanced or base nomination: what actually changes for youAn enhanced nomination runs through Express Entry, a base nomination goes to IRCC's PR Portal. How the route, paperwork and timing differ for you.September 25, 2026
- BusinessNet worth and investment thresholds in Canadian business immigrationWhat each business route requires you to be worth, to invest, to own and to create, with the government source and the date behind every figure.September 19, 2026
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