Atlantic premiers aim to bring 2,000 immigrants to region with pilot program

A new pilot program is hoping to attract and retain skilled immigrants in Atlantic Canada.

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Starting in March, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada will begin accepting permanent resident applications for the Atlantic Immigration Pilot program.

The goal is to bring 2,000 new workers and their families to the region.

“To increase the federal stream by 2,000 per year plus their families is a significant increase in immigration in Atlantic Canada,” said Scott Brison, president of the Treasury Board.

 “We also want to attract more international students to Atlantic Canada in partnership with our universities.”

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Newcomers will be offered job, settlement plan

The Atlantic Immigration Pilot was originally announced in July 2016, at the first meeting of the Atlantic Growth Strategy, which is made up of the premiers of all four Atlantic provinces and federal regional ministers.

On Friday, details surrounding the immigration pilot were unveiled as members of all four Atlantic provinces and federal regional ministers met in Wolfville, N.S. It will see applicants arriving in Canada under the new program offered a job from a designated employer. They will also receive an individualized settlement plan for their family.

Government officials say offering support for newcomers is key to having them succeed and stay in Atlantic Canada.

“Basically, the province’s designate the employers that are ready to go. They designate employers based on the ability of employers to step forward, work with settlement agencies, have an individual assessment for the applicant and a settlement plan,” said Ahmed Hussen, Canada’s minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship.

READ MORE: How Donald Trump’s immigration policies could impact Canada

Officials hope to address ‘chronic shortage’ of workers

With an aging population and shrinking workforce, officials believe the immigration of skilled workers is required to meet labour market needs in Atlantic Canada.

“We believe this is a tremendous opportunity for some of the sectors that have had a chronic shortage of workers and we’re very grateful the fact the national government has continued to move on flexibility when it comes to bringing in more people to our province,” said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We believe this is a tremendous opportunity for some of the sectors that have had a chronic shortage of workers and we're very grateful the fact the national government has continued to move on flexibility when it comes to bringing in more people to our province," said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil.

The Immigration Services Association of Nova Scotia (ISANS) will be one of the settlement groups working with employers who are interested in participating in the pilot program.

“We anticipate initially that it’ll be a lot of employers who have TFWs, who have temporary foreign workers, already on the ground who want to transition them into permanent residents,” said Gerry Mills,  the agency’s director of operation.

In order for an employer to become designated, they will need to meet certain requirements determined by each provincial government.

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