Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP): Eligibility, Fees and Processing Time

Last updated: 2 September 2026

The Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP) is a Canadian permanent residence pathway for skilled workers and international graduates who have a genuine job offer from a designated employer in one of four Atlantic provinces: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, or Newfoundland and Labrador. Originally launched as a pilot in 2017, AIP became a permanent federal immigration program in 2022.

Unlike Express Entry, AIP does not use a CRS score or points-based ranking. Eligibility is assessed directly against a fixed set of criteria: a qualifying job offer, sufficient work experience (or an exemption for Atlantic graduates), a minimum language score, matching education credentials, and proof of settlement funds unless already exempt. This guide covers current AIP eligibility, the application process, processing times, and government fees, corrected against the latest 2026 IRCC figures.

What Is the Atlantic Immigration Program?

AIP is built around two applicant categories:

1. Skilled worker stream: for candidates with at least 1,560 hours (about one year) of qualifying work experience in the last five years, in an occupation classified under NOC TEER 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4.
2. International graduate stream: for recent graduates of recognized post-secondary institutions in Atlantic Canada, who are exempt from the work experience requirement entirely.

Local employers use AIP to identify, recruit, and retain international talent without going through a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), since AIP is LMIA-exempt. This is one of the program’s biggest practical advantages for both employers and candidates.

AIP vs Express Entry (FSWP) vs PNP: Which Fits You?

Practical takeaway: if you already have a genuine job offer from a designated Atlantic employer, AIP remains a legitimate route despite the current processing backlog. If you do not yet have a job offer, or your CRS score is reasonably competitive, Express Entry may currently offer a faster path to the same outcome. Many advisors recommend applying to more than one eligible pathway in parallel rather than treating them as mutually exclusive.

See our Federal Skilled Worker Program guide for the full CRS and points-grid breakdown if you’re weighing AIP against Express Entry.

How the Atlantic Immigration Program Works

AIP exists to help designated employers in Atlantic Canada identify, recruit, and retain skilled workers and international graduates to address regional labour and population needs. The process runs in a clear sequence:

1. A designated employer identifies a candidate who meets both their hiring needs and the program’s eligibility requirements, and extends a job offer.
2. Once the offer is accepted, the employer connects the candidate with a designated settlement service provider organization to begin a settlement plan for the applicant and any accompanying family.
3. If the position needs to be filled urgently, the candidate can apply for a temporary work permit to begin working in Canada while the permanent residence application is processed. This route requires the job offer, a referral letter from the province, and a commitment to apply for permanent residence within 90 days of the work permit application.
4. The candidate and employer submit the endorsement application to the province, and once endorsed, the candidate applies to IRCC for permanent residence.

Since 1 May 2026, an Expression of Interest submitted through the AIP system is valid for 12 months, giving candidates a clearer window to secure a qualifying offer and move forward with endorsement.

AIP Eligibility Requirements

• Eligibility for AIP depends on the following, all of which must be satisfied together:
• Work experience (exemption available for international students who graduated from an Atlantic post-secondary institution in Canada)
• Educational qualifications matching the job offer’s TEER level
• Language proficiency
• Proof of settlement funds

Work Experience

Most applicants need at least 1,560 hours of qualifying work experience within the last 5 years, accumulated over a minimum of 12 months. Working hours are calculated as follows:

1. Full-time or part-time job hours count.
2. Only paid work counts. Unpaid or volunteer work does not.
3. Self-employed hours do not count.
4. Hours can be from Canada or abroad. For Canadian hours, you must have held a valid work permit at the time.
5. Hours should be accumulated over at least a 12-month period.
6. Hours can also count while studying, provided they comply with your study permit conditions.

Work experience must be in an occupation classified under NOC TEER category 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4, and your actual duties must match the corresponding NOC description.

International Graduates (Exempt From the Work Experience Requirement)

International students who graduated from a recognized Atlantic Canada institution do not need to show work experience. To qualify as an international graduate, you must meet all of the following:

1. Hold a diploma, certificate, degree, or trade/apprenticeship certificate requiring at least two years of study, from a recognized post-secondary institution in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, or Newfoundland and Labrador.
2. Have been a full-time student throughout your studies.
3. Have held a valid study, work, or training permit while living in Canada.
4. Have lived in one of the Atlantic provinces for at least 16 months before graduating.

Education Requirements

• For NOC TEER 0 and 1 job offers: at least one year of post-secondary education, or a foreign equivalent.
• For NOC TEER 2, 3, or 4 job offers: a Canadian high school diploma, or a foreign equivalent.

If your education was completed outside Canada, you’ll need an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) to confirm it matches the Canadian standard for your job offer. Your ECA report must be less than 5 years old at the time of application.

Settlement Funds

If you’re already living in Canada with a valid work permit, you don’t need to show proof of funds. All other applicants must show they have enough money to support themselves and their family. The current minimum amounts, based on family size, are:

Figures current as of the July 2025 IRCC update and remain in effect for 2026. These are based on Statistics Canada’s Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) and are reviewed periodically, always confirm the live figure on Canada.ca before relying on it.

Note: these AIP-specific funds requirements are considerably lower than the separate settlement funds table used for Express Entry programs like FSWP, since AIP uses a different LICO-based calculation. Don’t confuse the two if you’re weighing both pathways.

Which Provinces Participate in AIP?

Four provinces take part: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Each province maintains its own list of designated employers and processes endorsement applications independently, though eligibility criteria and federal PR processing are consistent across all four.

What Counts as Work Experience for AIP

Qualifying hours can come from full time or part time paid work, whether in Canada or abroad, though work in Canada requires that you held valid work authorization at the time. Only paid work counts, unpaid or volunteer hours do not, and self employed hours are not counted. Hours must be accumulated over at least 12 months, and hours worked while studying can count if they complied with your study permit conditions at the time.

Your occupation must fall under NOC TEER category 0, 1, 2, or 3, and the actual duties you performed need to match the official NOC description for that occupation.

Designated Employers: The Center of the AIP Process

A designated employer is a company that has been formally reviewed and approved by an Atlantic province specifically to hire through AIP. This designation replaces the need for an LMIA entirely, the province vets the employer once, rather than requiring separate federal labour market approval for every individual hire.

Only job offers from currently, actively designated employers count toward AIP eligibility. A genuine job offer from a legitimate but non designated company does not qualify, a mistake that trips up a meaningful number of applicants. Each province publishes and regularly updates its own designated employer list, so always confirm current status before relying on any specific employer.

Documentation for the Atlantic Immigration Program

To apply for AIP, you’ll typically need to provide:

• Language test results, less than two years old at the time of application.
• Education credentials, including an ECA if completed outside Canada.
• Work experience documentation, such as employment letters, pay stubs, and tax documents (or exemption documentation for Atlantic graduates).
• Job offer from a designated employer, meeting AIP’s requirements.
• Settlement funds documentation, based on your family size and the current LICO-based table above.
• Other documents as needed, such as police certificates, medical exams, and proof of relationship to family members.

Additional documents may include proof of experience and a marriage license, where relevant. Incomplete or inaccurate documentation is one of the most common causes of processing delays or refusal, it’s worth having a regulated immigration consultant review your file before submission.

Application Process for the Atlantic Immigration Program

1. Determine your eligibility, including confirming your job offer, language, and education against AIP’s requirements.
2. Gather required documents, listed above.
3. Submit your application online through IRCC, paying the application fee and uploading all required documents.
4. Wait for a decision, with processing times varying by application volume and completeness.
5. Receive a decision. If approved, you’ll receive a Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR) document to present on arrival in Canada.
6. Prepare for arrival, including travel arrangements, temporary housing, and settlement funds.

AIP is a competitive program, and meeting the eligibility requirements alone does not guarantee approval.

Atlantic Immigration Program Fees (2026)

IRCC increased permanent residence application fees on 30 April 2026. The figures below reflect the current schedule.

All in, the current total per adult applicant is approximately 1,590 CAD (990 processing fee plus 600 RPRF). Confirm exact current figures against the official IRCC fee schedule before applying, since these amounts are reviewed periodically.

2026 Update: Provincial EOI Systems and 12-Month Validity

Several Atlantic provinces, including Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, have introduced a formal Expression of Interest (EOI) system for AIP endorsements, effective 1 May 2026. Under this system, candidates (or their employer) submit an EOI, which remains active in the province’s system for 12 months. If selected, you’ll receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) and generally have 60 days to submit a complete application. EOIs that aren’t selected within 12 months expire automatically and can be resubmitted if the applicant still meets eligibility criteria.

This is a genuinely new mechanic for AIP, worth understanding clearly before you apply, since it adds a formal selection step ahead of endorsement in provinces that have rolled it out. Not every province has implemented an identical system, so confirm the current process for your target province directly.

AIP Processing Time: An Important 2026 Update

This is one of the most decision relevant facts on this page, and it deserves to be stated plainly rather than buried.

AIP processing times spiked dramatically starting in October 2025, jumping from a 13 month median in September 2025 to 37 months in a single month, an increase of roughly 185 percent. This was driven by two factors: IRCC switched AIP to a forward looking processing time estimate that made a real, existing backlog suddenly visible in published figures, and the federal government reduced AIP’s annual admissions target, further compounding the queue. Processing times peaked at approximately 40 months in April 2026.

As of 8 June 2026, published processing time has improved to approximately 26 months, a 12 month reduction from the 38 months published just one month earlier, and the lowest figure recorded since the backlog began. This remains well above IRCC’s 11 month service standard, and a substantial application inventory, reported at roughly 12,900 applications, remains in the system.

What this means practically: if you are weighing AIP against another pathway you also qualify for, current processing realities are a genuine factor to weigh, not just a formality. Because the dedicated work permits held by many in Canada AIP applicants are capped at two years, and these applicants are not eligible for bridging open work permits, some Atlantic provinces (led by New Brunswick) have stepped in with support letters enabling extended closed work permits for applicants caught in the backlog. If you are already in Canada on an AIP related work permit approaching expiry, this is worth discussing with a consultant directly.

Best Occupations and Sectors for AIP in 2026

AIP’s coverage of NOC TEER 0 through 4 makes it one of the more accessible programs for a wide range of occupations, including many roles that don’t qualify for Express Entry’s FSWP (which stops at TEER 3). Sectors with consistent AIP demand include:

• Healthcare and caregiving, including registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and personal support workers
• Skilled trades, including electricians, welders, and construction roles
• Food service and hospitality, including cooks and food service supervisors (note: some occupations face periodic province-level pauses, always confirm current eligibility for your specific role)
• IT and business roles, particularly for candidates with a genuine Atlantic employer connection

For Indian applicants, AIP is often a strong complement to Express Entry rather than a replacement for it: its lower language bar (CLB 4 to 5 versus Express Entry’s practical CLB 7+ floor) and broader occupation coverage make it accessible to candidates who wouldn’t be competitive in general Express Entry draws, provided a genuine Atlantic job offer is secured first.

Why Choose Pi Overseas for Your AIP Application

• Consultations led by professional immigration consultants
• A step-by-step guide through the eligibility and application process
• A secure, transparent online process
• A structured complaint-resolution system for a smooth client experience
• Thousands of applications processed
• Every case reviewed multiple times before submission
• Qualifications and other credentials evaluated by certified experts for error-free filing

If you’d like to know more about the Canada AIP PR visa process, you can contact us by email at mail@pioverseas.com, and one of our experts will help you through every step. Call us at +91-9310-10-6988, request a call back through our inquiry form, or talk to our experts directly through live chat.