If you are looking for comprehensive information on Alberta PNP, here is a complete guide with details of different streams in AINP, eligibility criteria, how to apply etc.

AINP is an economic migration program governed by the governments of Alberta and Canada. The program was formulated with an aim to help the immigrants to obtain permanent residence in Alberta. People willing to obtain permanent resident status must have the skills to fill the vacant job positions or planning to buy or start a business in Alberta and capable enough to feed their families.

People nominated through this program can apply for permanent residence status with their spouse or common-law partner, and dependent children.

Immigrants, refugees, and citizenship Canada handles applications for permanent residence and the final decision is also made by the federal government for these applications.

AINP offers 2 types of streams for people living and working or planning to live and work in Alberta.

1. Alberta Opportunity Stream
2. Alberta Express Entry Stream

Alberta Opportunity Stream :

Eligible candidates who live and work in Alberta and already have a job from an Alberta employer can apply for an AINP nomination under this stream.

Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS) is for non-resident employees from other countries who are already working full time in Alberta and are offered full-time employment by an Alberta employer. Applicants must have obtained a valid Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) or hold one of the approved LMIA exemption permits. Applicants must meet other eligibility criteria and the type of work permit, job, language, education, Alberta job offer and job experience.

Alberta Express Entry Stream :

Candidates who do not have a job offer and have applied with an Express Entry profile may get an invitation to apply for permanent residence under this stream.

Alberta Express Entry Stream allows Alberta to select a limited number of candidates from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s Express Entry system.

Applicants who have demonstrated strong ties to Alberta or who can help finance the economic development of the state may be invited to apply.

Steps involved in Alberta Express Entry Stream :

1. Applicants with an Express Entry Profile will receive a Notification of Interest (NOI) letter from AINP in their Express Entry profile. Only applicants who receive a NOI letter can contact AINP, if they wish to apply for this stream.
2. The AINP invites candidates to apply if they meet the eligibility. Completed applications go into the application pool for processing.

Selection and notification process:

Alberta will send a Notification of Interest letter in the federal Express Entry profiles of selected candidates based  on the information provided in the Express Entry portal.

Candidates who have received a Notification of Interest letter should send a copy of the letter and additional details to the AINP by email within two weeks from the date of receiving the letter.

However, it is not compulsory that a candidate will receive the letter even if he/she has met the required criteria. Candidates are selected for Notification Of Interest letter on the basis of a number of criteria: the function or sector, the number of nominations available etc.

Candidates may receive a Notification of Interest letter if:

• They have showed their interest in permanently immigrating to Alberta
• They have scored minimum 300 in Comprehensive Ranking System
• They are involved in an occupation that contributes in Alberta’s economic development and diversification
• They have an active Express Entry profile in the federal Express Entry pool

Following are the factors that can level up the chances for receiving the Notification Of Interest letter, if:

• graduated from a Canadian post-secondary institution.
• Having a child, parent, brother and/or sister who is a permanent resident or a Canadian citizen living in Alberta
• Having a job offer or work experience from Alberta.

Following are the factors that can negatively affect your chances of receiving a notification of interest letter, if:

• Candidate’s express entry profile is going to expire in 5 months or less.
• Candidate’s occupation is listed as ineligible in the Alberta Opportunity Stream
• Or occupation is in the list of high-wage and low-wage occupations in Alberta

Assessment criteria:

Candidates will receive an email from AINP to submit their application, if invited. Candidates will not receive an invitation, if :

• There is an active nomination which is not expired and/or is eligible for extension under another AINP stream. Candidates are only allowed to receive one AINP nomination certificate.
• A candidate has previously received a letter from AINP application stating that he/she is not eligible to re-apply for specific period of time. It is recommended to keep the Express Entry profile up to date so that one can remain eligible for Alberta Express Entry Stream in the future.

• Application steps

Step 1:  Respond to the Notification of Interest (NOI) letter

If a candidate receives a Notification of Interest letter from Alberta: he/she should:

• email a copy of the letter to AINP at lbr.pnpoffice@gov.ab.ca within two weeks of receiving it from your federal Express Entry profile
• provide number of their Express Entry profile
• provide status information about current and past AINP applications/nominations (if applicable)

AINP will verify the given information once it is received. If a candidate is being selected to apply, AINP will send an email requesting to submit an application.

Step 2. Receiving a request from the AINP to apply for this stream

 A selected candidate will receive an email with a link from AINP to the AINP portal.

Candidates won’t be eligible for further process under the Alberta Express Entry stream, if they do not receive an email from AINP for requesting to submit an application.

Step 3. Read the terms and conditions carefully

Number of applications received and labour market needs are the major factor that can affect the availability of AINP streams and categories. The AINP has the right to close application intake for any AINP category or stream, without giving prior notice. Also, the AINP may reject applications from closed streams, irrespective of the time of application submission.

The eligibility criteria for the AINP are being reviewed continuously and may change at any period of time, without providing notice.

While applying to the AINP, a candidate acknowledges and agrees that the application may not be processed in the order received, or at all. In addition, the decision to evaluate / process any particular application, as well as the outcome of any such evaluation, is at the discretion of the AINP.

Meeting the program requirements does not guarantee that a candidate’s application will be  processed, reviewed or submitted. The AINP may choose to evaluate applications by current operating procedures regardless of the application date.

Candidate must be willing to become financially stable in Alberta. The AINP has the right to reject the application if it does not find the candidate’s profile capable enough to become financially established in Alberta.

Step 4. Review the assessment criteria

Alberta Express Entry Stream assessment’s eligibility criteria is different from the Notification of Interest factors. Candidate is required to meet the criteria for application and assessment. Request for application may get rejected if candidate does not the meet the requirements.

Although, it is not guaranteed that all the received applications by the AINP will be reviewed or/and all the candidates who have met the required criteria will get nominated. Submission of an application or nomination by the AINP does not mean that candidate will be granted a permanent residence visa.

Step 5. Complete application process online and pay the application fee

In order to accept the application by AINP, a candidate must:

• complete and submit the application process, and
• pay the application fee

Candidate will receive an email with a link to the AINP portal. It is required to use the same email address that was used while submitting Notification of Interest letter, and EE profile number.

To access the portal, candidate must have MyAlberta Digital ID (MADI) account. A MADI account is a platform which allows the candidate to access Government of Alberta online services for free. Instructions for creating a MADI are available on the MADI website and on the portal.

The AINP will contact the candidate on the same email which was used to set up MADI account. It should be the same email address that was used for Notification of Interest.  If a candidate wants to change the email address than it is advisable to update new email address in MADI account.

It should be noted that candidate is solely responsible for all the information provided in AINP application.  Misrepresentation or false information may result in the rejection of application, and candidate may get barred from applying to the AINP for a specific period of time.

 Submitting documents:

Candidate is required to submit the needed documents on the portal. Information of required documents are included in the Alberta Express Entry Stream document checklist.

Finishing online application process:

Before submitting the application in the portal, review the completeness and accuracy of the application. Candidate can get file number in the portal and on My Application page.

Next step is to pay the application fee before the application can get accepted.

Application fee:

Candidate is required to pay $500 for all online applications via debit or credit card. The fee must be paid withing 24 hrs of submitting the application in the portal.

Application may stands cancelled if the candidate fails to make the payment withing 24 hrs.

After you apply:

AINP file number can be viewed on the My Applications page of the online portal. Submitted application will go into a pool of Alberta Express Entry Stream applications.  The AINP has its own opinion on how the application is evaluated or whether the application is being evaluated at all.

Decision on the application :

Candidate will receive an email based on the decision for the application.

Approved applications:

Once the application is approved, a candidate will become a Provincial Nominee and will receive a nomination certificate through the federal Express Entry portal. Candidate will also receive a nomination certificate via email which he/she should keep in for records.

To obtain an invitation to apply for permanent residence from IRCC, candidate should accept the nomination after it has been released from the federal Express Entry portal. Once the invitation is received, Candidate should apply within 60 days for the permanent residence.