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The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program, one of Canada’s Provincial Nominee Programs, has reached its maximum allotment of 5,500 nomination certificates for 2017.

All applications that have already been submitted will be processed, the AINP said, but no further certificates will be issued until 2018. As of Dec. 4, the AINP reported that more than 3,050 applications were in the queue for assessing and processing.

It’s possible that Alberta will benefit from a slightly higher allotment in 2018 as a result of the federal government’s multi-year immigration plan, which was announced Nov. 1. The federal plan includes an of 55,000 for 2018, up eight per cent over 2017’s target of 51,000.

Through the AINP, Alberta can nominate prospective immigrants with skills and experience that match labour market demands in the province, which is the largest producer of oil and gas products in Canada.

• To find out if you are eligible to immigrate to Canada permanently, fill out a .

New Express Entry Stream coming in 2018

The new year will also see the introduction of Alberta’s two new provincial nomination streams — the Alberta Opportunity Stream and the Alberta Express Entry Stream.

The Alberta Opportunity Stream will combine the current and and 11 sub-categories and consolidate them under .

The Alberta Express Entry Stream will allow the AINP to nominate  a limited number of candidates in the federal government’s Express Entry pool, which includes candidates from the federal government’s three economic immigration classes — the , the , and the .

Express Entry candidates who receive a nomination through the Alberta Express Entry Stream receive an additional 600 Comprehensive Ranking System points and an Invitation To Apply for Canadian permanent residence in a subsequent Express Entry draw.

In order to be considered under the Alberta Express Entry Stream, candidates must have a profile in the .

When it announced the creation of the Alberta Opportunities and the Alberta Express Entry-aligned streams in October, the Government of Alberta also noted a number of projected labour shortages in the following sectors and occupations that will need to be addressed over the coming years:

• nurse supervisors and registered nurses (shortage of 5,434 workers by 2025)
• medical technologists and technicians (shortage of 2,322 workers by 2025)
• computer and information systems professionals (shortage of 1,426 workers by 2025)
• managers in construction and transportation (shortage of 1,386 workers by 2025)
• sales and service supervisors (shortage of 1,145 workers by 2025)

To find out if you are eligible to immigrate to Canada permanently, fill out a .

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