New Brunswick launches new immigration pilot for International Graduates

New Brunswick unveiled a new immigration pilot project for international students who graduate from four private career colleges in the province. The pilot aims to facilitate permanent residency for international students who have graduated from one of 19 eligible programs of study. The program starts on April 1, 2022, where international students who graduate from the Atlantic Business College, Eastern College, McKenzie College, or Oulton College and who have studied in one of 19 targeted occupations, will be able to apply to the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).

The PNP allows Canadian provinces and territories to identify immigration candidates who can meet their local economic needs. Many PNP streams are maneuvered towards international students, some are specifically tailored for them. Specific details and requirements for the new pilot project will only be available in the fall. However, the government has indicated via a news release that the pilot project is intended for recent graduates of designated learning institutions who are not currently eligible for the federal Post-Graduation Work Permit program. In addition, participation in this pilot program will be limited to designated New Brunswick educational institutions that have held this designation for at least five years and offer eligible programs of study in certain areas.

The new pilot program is a collaboration between Opportunities NB (ONB), which is New Brunswick’s leading business development corporation, and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). For more details about the new pilot program and other programs of New Brunswick, connect with us at Vashist Immigration, our licensed immigration consultants will guide you through the PNP’s and their process.

This latest initiative is in sync with the priorities set by business groups and organizations in the province. Recently an alliance of New Brunswick business organizations presented a set of policy priorities for the upcoming federal election in Canada. The group, made up of the New Brunswick Business Council, boards of trade, the Saint John Regional Chamber of Commerce, and the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, identified three priority areas where the action is needed by the federal government, including immigration. Among the priorities, the group called on the federal government to allocate more space for immigrants to reach a target of 10,000 immigrants by 2024, with 30 percent being French-speaking; to simplify and speed up the entire immigration process, especially for international students; and to increase investment in settlement services.

During the next decade, the province expects approximately 120,000 New Brunswickers to leave the workforce. Immigration was one of the main drivers of population and labor force growth in New Brunswick before the pandemic. The province welcomed a record 6,000 permanent residents in 2019. By 2020 that number had dropped to 2,740 and between January and June 2021 there were 1,470 new permanent resident arrivals.