Nova Scotia draws 430 registered nurses from federal Express Entry pool

All 430 individuals invited had a profile in the Express Entry system, which manages the pool of candidates for Canada’s three Federal High-Skilled economic immigration programs — the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class and the Canadian Experience Class. (Shutterstock Photo)

Immigration candidates with work experience as registered nurses or registered psychiatric nurses were the focus of a new Nova Scotia Labour Market Priorities draw held October 28. 

All 430 individuals invited had a profile in the Express Entry system, which manages the pool of candidates for Canada’s three Federal High-Skilled economic immigration programs — the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class and the Canadian Experience Class.

The Labour Market Priorities Stream allows Nova Scotia to search the Express Entry pool for candidates with work experience in occupations facing labour shortages in the province and invite them to apply for a provincial nomination for Canadian permanent residence.

A provincial nomination results in an additional 600 points toward an Express Entry candidate’s Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score and effectively guarantees an invitation to apply for Canadian permanent residence from the Government of Canada.

A spokesperson for the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) said there was no minimum CRS score required for this draw.

This was Nova Scotia’s fifth draw through the Labour Market Priorities Stream in 2019.

Previous draws have targeted carpenters, early childhood educators, financial auditors and accountants, and French-speaking Express Entry candidates.

Nursing candidates invited by Nova Scotia in the October 28 draw have to meet the following criteria in order to be considered for a provincial nomination:

• Have a primary occupation of registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse (NOC 3012);
• Have three years or more of work experience as a registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse supported with letters of reference from employers;
• Have a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) score of 8 or higher in English or French in all four language abilities;
• Hold a bachelor’s degree or have completed a program of three years or more at a university, college, trade or technical school, or other institute.
• Have an Express Entry profile that was submitted on or after November 1, 2018.

Those invited have 30 days from the date of their invitation from the NSNP to submit a complete application.

The NSNP allows Nova Scotia to nominate a set number of immigration candidates for Canadian permanent residence each year through nine streams tailored to specific economic needs in the province.