The province of Nova Scotia held a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) draw on February 8. The Nova Scotia PNP officially called the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP), issued a Letter of Interest (LOI) to 278 nurses eligible for the Labour Market Priorities Stream to apply for provincial nomination.
Nova Scotia regularly invites applicants having valid Express Entry profiles, who fulfill the criteria for targeted occupations in the province to apply for a nomination under its Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). In this draw, NSNP invited candidates from the Express Entry pool who qualify for jobs under National Occupational Classification (NOC) 3012.
To get a nomination, the primary occupation of candidates must be registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse (NOC 3012). Candidates are also required to provide letters of reference from employers to demonstrate a minimum experience of 3 years in their respective occupation.
Along with that, Candidates must have proof of language proficiency and academic qualifications approved and issued by designated Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) organizations. Invited candidates must apply for nomination latest by midnight of March 10, 2022.
Applicants who meet the NSNP criteria successfully will be nominated by the province which helps them increase their chances to be selected in the next Express Entry draw for Permanent Residence.
Job opportunities for nurses
According to Job Bank Canada, Nova Scotia has ample jobs for registered nurses for the next 2 years as the ageing population has increasing health needs. This is one of the largest occupation groups in the province with a steady volume of postings. The work environment is also changing with the current situation as home-care services are now being preferred by many. Hospitals and long-term care facilities also offer job opportunities. Apart from that, there are numerous part-time and casual positions available for nurses with appropriate skills, qualifications, and licensing.
Earlier in September 2021, a news conference and rally was held by the Nova Scotia Nurses’ Union to bring attention to labour shortages in Canada’s health system.
In an interview with CTV News, union president Janet Hazelton said that there were about 1,100 vacancies for registered nurses in Nova Scotia, 250 open spots for licensed practical nurses, and 25 vacancies for nurse practitioners.
The critical situation of the healthcare system due to the shortage of nurses became worse during the pandemic. This led to Nova Scotia’s new Progressive Conservative government taking a pledge to fix the health system. In a news release, they mentioned “There are improvements to make, and our government is committed to making them to improve the system,”
Thus, plenty of job opportunities for nurses has opened up this year in Nova Scotia.
NSNP aligned with Express Entry
To apply for PR through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) of Nova Scotia, a candidate needs to have a profile in the Express Entry system.
The Canadian government uses the Express Entry system to manage permanent residence applications through three main Federal Economic Programs. Candidates are awarded Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points based on their human-capital skills. These points determine their rank in the pool. The highest-scoring applicants are invited to apply for Canadian permanent residency.
If an applicant receives a provincial nomination under NSNP, additional 600 CRS points are granted to their profiles. This evidently enhances their chances to receive an ‘Invitation to Apply’ (ITA) for permanent residence.
