The Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS) is one of Alberta’s PNP streams that requires the candidate to hold a job offer from an employer in Alberta to be eligible and candidates do not need to provide proof of funds. When receiving a nomination under the AOS, candidates can then apply for Permanent Residence to the federal government of Canada. Effective June 11, 2024, the Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS) has adopted a new approach. Each month a targeted number of applications will be accepted into the pool from where AAIP will draw. Hence, Applications will be accepted monthly, starting on the following dates: – June 11, July 9, August 13, September 10, October 8, November 5, and December 10 – Once the monthly application target has been met, no further applications will be accepted until the following month.
Language
If you are working in a NOC 0, 1, 2 or 3 occupation:
- a minimum score of 5 for each English (CLB test score) or French (Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC)) test score language skill is required.
- If you apply to the AAIP under NOC code 33102 (nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates), the AAIP requires a minimum language test score of CLB of 7 for each English language skill, or NCLC of 7 for each French language skill.
Education Outside Canada
- All applicants except Post-Graduation Work Permit holders
- As of January 1, 2021, at the time your application is submitted, you must have completed a minimum of high school education equivalent to Canadian standards.
- You must provide a copy of an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) issued by an organization designated by IRCC for your highest level of education.
- You do not need to provide an ECA if:
- you have a Canadian degree, diploma or certificate from a recognized Canadian post-secondary, technical college or secondary institution, or
- you have a valid Alberta Qualification Certificate or a trade certificate recognized by Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training (AIT).
- You do not need to provide an ECA if:
- PGWP holders must meet the following additional education requirements at the time of application submission.
- Your credential must be issued by an Alberta Advanced Education publicly funded post-secondary institution.
- If you started attending your Alberta credential program before April 1, 2019, your credential must be one of the following Alberta Advanced Education approved credentials:
- certificate or post-diploma certificate or post-baccalaureate certificate (minimum 1 year in length)
- diploma program (minimum 2 years in length)
- undergraduate bachelor’s degree
- graduate level degree
- graduate level certificate
- graduate level diploma
- If you started attending your Alberta credential program on or after April 1, 2019, your credential must be one of the following Alberta Advanced Education approved credentials:
- post-diploma certificate or post-baccalaureate certificate (minimum 1 year in length)
- diploma program (minimum 2 years in length)
- undergraduate bachelor’s degree
- graduate level degree
- graduate level certificate
- graduate level diploma
Work/Business Experience
- Your ‘current occupation’ is the occupation you are working in at the time your application is submitted.
- Your current occupation must also match your work experience at the time your application is submitted and at the time the AAIP assesses your application.
- At the time your application is submitted you must have either:
- a minimum of 12 months full-time work experience in your current occupation in Alberta within the last 18 months, or
- a minimum of 24 months of full-time work experience in your current occupation in Canada or abroad within the last 30 months or both – this work experience can be a combination of experience gained in Alberta, in Canada (outside Alberta) or abroad.
- Post-Graduation Work Permit holders require a minimum of 6 months full-time work experience in your current occupation in Alberta within the last 18 months.
For all applicants, including Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) holders, work experience in the qualifying period:
- must have been full-time, for a minimum of 30 hours a week
- must be for the same occupation as your current occupation
- must have been authorized by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and with valid temporary resident status if completed in Alberta or Canada
- cannot have been gained while studying in Canada and doing co-op work placements or internships as part of a study program, unless you are a PGWP holder who completed during paid co-op work terms as a part of your program of study at an Alberta post-secondary institution. To qualify, the work terms must have been:
- paid and full-time (minimum 30 hours per week)
- for work experience directly related to your current occupation, and
- for work experience all gained in Alberta
- All applicants, including PGWP holders, must meet the following licensing, registration and certification requirements at the time your application is submitted and the time the AAIP assesses your application:
- You must have the required licensing, registration or certification to work in your current occupation in Alberta.
- If you are working in a compulsory trade in Alberta, you must have a valid Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Trade (AIT) recognized trade certificate.
- If you are working as childcare worker, you must have valid certification as a Level 2 Early Childhood Educator (formerly Child Development Worker) or Level 3 Early Childhood Educator (formerly Child Development Supervisor).
Work Permit / Temporary Permits
- At the time your application is submitted, and at the time the AAIP assesses your application, you must have a valid work permit – not status maintained during processing (formerly implied status) or restoration status.
- Valid work permits are based on one of the following:
- a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)
- a LMIA exemption for workers based on one of the following exemptions as determined by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC):
- international trade agreements
- workers transferred within a company
- International Experience Canada
- Mobilité Francophone
- R205(d) for religious work
- an open work permit issued by IRCC to:
- vulnerable workers who have demonstrated they are experiencing abuse or are at risk of abuse in the context of their employment in Canada, including under the Vulnerable Workers Open Work Permit (VWOWP) exemption, or
- the family members of a vulnerable worker under the VWOWP exemption
- A Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) held by a graduate of an Alberta Advanced Education publicly funded post-secondary institution
- PGWP holders must also meet specific occupation, education, and work experience requirements as set out below.
- An open work permit issued under one of IRCC’s open work permit public policies:
- 2022 temporary policy changes to the PGWP Program or 2023 temporary policy changes to the PGWP Program
- Permit must be held by a graduate of an Alberta Advanced Education publicly funded post-secondary institution.
- Holders of these open work permits must also meet the same specific occupation, education, and work experience requirements as PGWP holders as set out below.
- an open work permit issued under the public policy for Hong Kong recent graduates
- an open work permit issued under IRCC’s Ukraine immigration measures (also known as the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET))
- 2022 temporary policy changes to the PGWP Program or 2023 temporary policy changes to the PGWP Program
Job Offer
For all applicants, including PGWP holders, at the time your application is submitted, and at the time the AAIP assesses your application, you must have a bona fide full-time job offer or employment contract from an Alberta employer to work in your current occupation in Alberta.
Your Alberta employer must be incorporated or registered by or under an act of the legislature of a province, territory, or the Parliament of Canada and operating as a business that has an established production capability, plant or place of business in Alberta.
Your job offer or employment contract must be signed by you and your Alberta employer and must offer:
- continuous, paid work
- full-time work, defined as a minimum of 30 hours per week employment for 12 months or more
- work in your current occupation
Exceptions for NOC 41302 – Religious leaders and NOC 42204 – Religion workers:
- If your job offer is LMIA exempt, your wages and benefits must meet or exceed minimum wage.
- Meal and lodging deductions that meet Employment Standards are permitted. Proof of employee authorization of deductions is required.
Important: If you submitted your application on or before November 15, 2022, review the NOC 2016 version of the wage requirement for religious workers (PDF, 527 KB) for religious workers that apply to you.
Work for an eligible AAIP occupation for which you have a work permit that meets AAIP work permit requirements.
Wage or Salary
- wages and benefits must meet provincial minimum wage and: meet or exceed the requirements set out in your LMIA, or
- if you are LMIA exempt, meet or exceed the lowest starting wage for your occupation across all industries in Alberta as set out on the Alis website
Employer Eligibility
- The following individuals are not eligible to apply for or be nominated under the Alberta Opportunity Stream, even if they have a job offer to work 30 hours a week or more in a 12-month period:
- part-time, casual or seasonal employees, regardless of their working hours
- independent contractors, business owners or temporary agency workers, including individuals listed as directors, shareholders or agents of the Alberta employer on the Corporate Registry System (CORES)
- employees who work in Alberta in a place of employment that is not zoned for commercial or industrial operations, such as a home-based business
- employees who do not work on premises in Alberta, such as those who work in a ‘virtual’ location or serve the employer by telecommuting from a location outside Alberta
The following individuals cannot apply for or be nominated under the Alberta Opportunity Stream:
- Refugee claimants or individuals involved in a federal appeal or removal process – the AAIP does not intervene in the federal refugee claim, appeal or removal process
- Temporary residents living or working in a province or territory of Canada other than Alberta
- Foreign nationals living or working in Canada who do not have valid temporary resident status
Individuals working in the following occupations at the time of submission and assessment are not eligible to apply for or be nominated under the Alberta Opportunity Stream.
| NOC Code (2021) | NOC TEER category | Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| 00010 | 0 | Legislators |
| 40021 | 0 | School principals and administrators of elementary and secondary education |
| 40030 | 0 | Managers in social, community and correctional services |
| 40041 | 0 | Fire chiefs and senior firefighting officers |
| 60040* | 0 | Escort agency managers, massage parlour managers |
| 41100 | 1 | Judges |
| 41220 | 1 | Secondary school teachers |
| 41221 | 1 | Elementary school and kindergarten teachers |
| 51111 | 1 | Authors and writers (except technical) |
| 51122 | 1 | Musicians and singers |
| 42200* | 2 | Justices of the peace |
| 42202* | 2 | Early childhood educators who do not have certification through Alberta Children’s Services – Child Care Staff Certification Office or who have been certified as Level 1 Early Childhood Educator (formerly Child Development Assistant) |
| 43100 | 3 | Elementary and secondary school teacher assistants |
| 43109 | 3 | Other instructors |
| 53121 | 3 | Actors, comedians and circus performers |
| 53122 | 3 | Painters, sculptors and other visual artists |
| 53124 | 3 | Artisans and craftspersons |
| 53200 | 3 | Athletes |
| 63101 | 3 | Real estate agents and salespersons |
| 33100* | 3 | Dental laboratory assistants/bench workers |
| 44100 | 4 | Home child care providers |
| 44101 | 4 | Home support workers, caregivers and related occupations |
| 64321 | 4 | Casino occupations |
| 55109 | 5 | Other performers |
| 65109 | 5 | Other sales related occupations |
| 65211 | 5 | Operators and attendants in amusement, recreation and sport |
| 65229 | 5 | Other support occupations in personal services |
| 65329 | 5 | Other service support occupations |
| 75200 | 5 | Taxi and limousine drivers and chauffeurs |
| 85101 | 5 | Harvesting labourers |
| 85102 | 5 | Aquaculture and marine harvest labourers |
| 85104 | 5 | Trappers and hunters |
| 85110 | 5 | Mine labourers |
| 85121 | 5 | Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers |
Eligible NOC TEER Categories
Most occupations under NOC TEER Categories 0, 1, 2, 3 4 and 5 are eligible under the AAIP.
Application Period
Approximately 4 months
Application Fee
set at 500 CAD.
Submission of Application
Candidates must:
- Apply to the AOS stream when the stream is open in the AAIP portal by completing the online application uploading all requested documents.
- Apply for permanent residence to the federal government (IRCC) within 6 months of receiving the nomination (after AAIP processes their application). Candidates need to apply on paper to IRCC, and include the nomination documentation received