Nova Scotia nominee stream · NSNP-SW
NSNP Skilled Worker (Nova Scotia)
Open
Workers with a permanent Nova Scotia job offer that the employer could not fill locally.
Jacinth Immigration Canada teamReviewed by a licensed RCICLast updated
How it works
About the skilled worker
Nova Scotia's main worker stream and the one most overseas applicants use. It covers general skilled work, construction occupations, and physicians with an offer from Nova Scotia Health or the IWK, and it does not require an Express Entry profile.
Applying from outside Canada: No requirement to be in Canada. Note that Nova Scotia never states in so many words that you may apply from abroad; this follows from the absence of any residency condition.
Source: the province's own page for this stream. Last checked September 11, 2026. Provinces change stream criteria without notice, so confirm the detail before you rely on it.
Requirements
What this stream asks for
- A permanent, full-time job offer from a Nova Scotia employer
- Aged between 21 and 55
- A high school diploma or higher
- At least one year of experience related to the job offer
- Language at CLB 5 for jobs in TEER 0 to 3, or CLB 4 for TEER 4 and 5
- Settlement funds
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
- 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
- Provincial nomineesProvincial nominee streams that still take you without a job offerThe list of provincial streams open to candidates with no Canadian job offer is far shorter than the internet says. Ontario closed eight of them in 2026.September 24, 2026
- Provincial nomineesIntention to reside: how to show a province you will actually settle thereSince March 2026 only the province judges whether you really intend to live there. What that changes, what the rules say, and what makes the claim credible.September 25, 2026
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Nova Scotia Provincial Nominee Program How the Provincial Nominee Program works
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