Atlantic Immigration Program

Endorsement Application Guidelines

NEW BRUNSWICK
Acronym Glossary:

AIP – Atlantic Immigration Program

ECA – Educational Credential Assessment

IRCC – Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

IRPA – Immigration and Refugee Protection Act

IRPR – Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations

PR – Permanent Resident

TR – Temporary Resident

PA – Principal Applicant

SPO – Service Provider Organization

MOU – Memorandum of Understanding

LMIA – Labour Market Impact Assessment

NOC – National Occupational Classification

TEER – Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities

TFW – Temporary Foreign Worker

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Guidelines for Endorsement – Atlantic Immigration Program (September/2023)
ENDORSEMENT APPLICATION FORM

Designated employers who have identified a candidate able to fill an existing vacancy are required to
complete the Endorsement Application for each Principal Applicant. Endorsement is required before an
applicant can apply to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada for a work permit and Permanent
Residency.

The endorsement process confirms:

1. Application Program
2. Position Information
3. Recruitment Activities
4. Principal Applicant’s Information
5. Commitment to settlement supports

APPLICATION PROGRAM SECTION

Employers must also indicate the previous work experience that qualifies the Principal Applicant for the
specific application category.

It is necessary to complete the table, indicating the candidate’s work experience, duration of employment,
the position, associated NOC code, employer and the location of the job.

POSITION INFORMATION SECTION

The province will require information on the position that the Principal Applicant is expected to fill if their
application for permanent residence is approved by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
Please complete the position description section to provide these details. Ensure that your job
advertisement correlates to the job description and that it clearly lists all requirements of the position
contained in the job advertisement.

Employer must ensure the job offer is sufficient to attract and retain Canadian citizens or permanent
residents. The wages offered must fall within the range of wages for that particular occupation within the
specified region, as identified by the federal government. The language requirement for the position must
only be English or French.

You must attach a copy of the position description, accepted job offer, as well as a completed federal Offer
of Employment to a Foreign National form (IMM 0157), with this endorsement application.

Failure to provide the intended hours of work, salary and other terms and conditions of the Endorsement
and Designation may also result in suspension from the Program.

Employers are required to notify the New Brunswick when the candidate arrives in Canada and begins
work.

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Guidelines for Endorsement – Atlantic Immigration Program (September/2023)
 Job Offer
Language Education Experience
TEER
0 CLB 5 Candidates must have a one- Candidate has accumulated
year Canadian post-secondary 1 year of work experience at
program credential, or a foreign the TEER 0,1,2,3, or 4 category
equivalency (demonstrated by a in the last 5 years.
valid ECA).
1 CLB 5 Candidates must have a one- Candidate has accumulated
year Canadian post-secondary 1 year of work experience at
program credential, or a foreign the TEER 1,2,3, or 4 category in
equivalency (demonstrated by a the last 5 years.
valid ECA).
2 CLB 5 Candidates must have either a Candidate has accumulated
Canadian educational 1 year of work experience at
credential (high school) or a the TEER 2,3 or 4 category in
foreign equivalency the last 5 years.
(demonstrated by a valid ECA).
3 CLB 5 Candidates must have either a Candidate has accumulated
Canadian educational 1 year of work experience at
credential (high school) or the TEER 3 or 4 category in the
foreign equivalency last 5 years.
(demonstrated by a valid ECA)
4 CLB 4, with employer Candidates must have either a Candidate has accumulated
commitment to support Canadian educational 1 year of work experience at
the candidate in credential (high school) or the TEER 4 category in the last
increasing their level to equivalency (demonstrated by a 5 years.
CLB 5 valid ECA).
Atlantic Job offer in TEER 0,1,2 or Post-secondary educational No work experience required.
International 3 = CLB 5 credential issued by an institution
Graduate Job offer in TEER 4 = CLB in an Atlantic province.
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RECRUITMENT ACTIVITIES SECTION

Employers must be diligent if using the services of an immigration representative, third-party recruiter, or
recruitment/placement agency to hire employees. Employers must follow fair recruitment practices, be
cautious in their hiring practices and respect applicable laws regarding the use of representatives and
recruiters, where they exist.

Employers must demonstrate that they have attempted to find workers through domestic recruitment
activities prior to recruiting for candidates abroad. The recruitment activities section asks that you provide
details on those efforts. Ensure that you have the verification of the dates your job advertisement was
posted, copies of the posting and a summary of the applications – indicating why a Canadian or
Permanent Resident was not selected. Do not provide personal identifying information for any unsuccessful
candidates.

Advertisements must demonstrate that the print media and website used to advertise the job target an
audience in Canada that has the appropriate education, professional experience, language ability and
skill level required for that job.

If the Applicant is related to you please detail why this person was hired over the other candidates.

If the Applicant is a shareholder, director or investor in your business please detail why this person was hired
over the other candidates.
*Please note that this program is not designed for self-employed applicants. If you are a self-employed
individual you may wish to consider other immigration pathways.
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Guidelines for Endorsement – Atlantic Immigration Program (September/2023)
You must also use the recruitment activities section to disclose whether you have obtained the assistance of
an immigration representative or a recruiter for any part of your recruitment or application process.
Immigration representatives whose services you obtain must be a member, in good standing, of one of the
following designated bodies:
• Lawyers and paralegals who are members in good standing of a Canadian provincial or territorial
law society;
• Notaries who are members in good standing of the Chambre des notaires du Québec; and,
• Immigration consultants who are members in good standing of the College of Immigration and
Citizenship Consultants.

PRINCIPAL APPLICANT INFORMATION SECTION

The information obtained in this section is to provide the province with the additional details on the Principal
Applicant, including the composition of their family. Minimum information is requested in this section as
additional details will be provided as part of the settlement plan. Please ensure that a settlement plan is
completed for the Principal Applicant and their accompanying family member(s).

Note that while settlement information is only required for those individuals over the age of 18, details on all
accompanying family members must be provided in this section. Children younger than 18 will have their
needs assessed through their parent(s).

COMMITMENT TO SETTLEMENT SUPPORTS

The Commitment to Settlement Supports section identifies all employer responsibilities related to settlement
services for a candidate.

As part of the endorsement process, employers must ensure Principal Applicants contact an approved
immigrant settlement service provider organization to complete a settlement plan for themselves and their
accompanying family member(s). The Principal Applicant is to provide a copy of each individualized
settlement plan to the employer. Please refer to the attached list of immigrant settlement service provider
organizations approved to provide pre-endorsement settlement plans for Program participants.

NOTE: Employers must identify the preferred official language of the Principal Applicant. When the preferred
official language is French, the employer must refer the Principal Applicant to an immigrant settlement
service provider organization that provides services in French. These organizations are noted on the
attached list.

Note that the Principal Applicant and their accompanying family member(s) or the immigrant settlement
service provider organization have the right to exclude information that they deem sensitive from the
version of the individualized settlement plan provided to the employer for the purpose of endorsement. The
settlement plan may be updated once the Principal Applicant and their family arrives in Atlantic Canada
should they receive another settlement plan at their local immigrant settlement service provider
organization.

Provinces review and approve Endorsement applications. Applications that do not include a settlement
plan completed by an approved immigrant settlement service provider organization will not be processed.
Furthermore, the provincial government monitors employer commitments and failure to support access to
settlement services as per the settlement plan may result in de-designation.

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Guidelines for Endorsement – Atlantic Immigration Program (September/2023)
Employers must read the specific settlement commitments outlined in this section carefully. By signing the
Employer Declaration section of this form, you are committing to facilitate access to, provide, and/or pay
for settlement supports , where necessary, for the Principal Applicant and their accompanying family
member(s) in the preferred Official Language of the applicant and their accompanying family member(s),
as identified in their settlement plans. This may include language training as needed for the Principal
Applicant to reach level five of the Canadian Language Benchmarks in English/niveau cinq des Niveaux de
compétence linguistique canadiens in French for the Principal Applicant;

It is important to note that, in cases where the Principal Applicant is accessing government-funded
language training programming, they are NOT entitled to priority access to these services. If government-
funded service providers do not have the capacity to provide services to Program applicants within the first
three months of arrival, employers will be responsible for arranging alternative language training options.
Please contact your local immigrant settlement service provider organization(s) to discuss availability of
language training and other settlement services.

TEMPORARY WORK PERMIT SECTION

Employers may request a provincial referral letter which, in combination additional documents, would
enable the candidate to apply for a temporary work permit to support working in your province for your
organization while the application for permanent residence is processed.

IRCC requires applicants for AIP LMIA Exempt Work Permits (exemption code C18) to provide proof of
language, proof of education and proof of work experience. Please attach copies of the candidate’s
language tests and educational credential assessment or equivalent Canadian education to the
application. Please ensure you have fully documented the candidate’s qualifying work experience.

Please note that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has committed to a one year processing
standard for all applications for permanent residence processed under the Atlantic Immigration Program.
Consequently, the Department expects that 80% of applicants will be provided with a decision on their
application for permanent residence within 12 months.

While the AIP is used to fill employers’ immediate labour needs, it is anticipated that most applicants who are
currently unable to work in Canada will require a temporary work permit. If you have indicated an immediate
labour need and requested a referral letter for a work permit, the endorsed candidate is expected to apply
to IRCC for a work permit as soon as possible and travel to Canada as soon as possible if the work permit is
issued. If the endorsed candidate does not do so for any reason, you must tell New Brunswick and provide an
explanation.

For your applicant to work on a temporary basis while their application for permanent residence is
processed, you will be required to submit an offer of employment via the Employer Portal and pay a $230
employer compliance fee to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada in order for the work permit to
be processed.

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Guidelines for Endorsement – Atlantic Immigration Program (September/2023)
 ENDORSEMENT COMPLIANCE SECTION

The endorsement compliance section reviews program requirements where an endorsement will be
rescinded if the outlined conditions are not met or adhered to:

• Provincial endorsement may be rescinded, at the discretion of New Brunswick, when they become
aware of disqualifying information that was not included in the endorsement application.

• New Brunswick will rescind the endorsement upon becoming aware that the job offer is not genuine,
full-time and based on labour market need identified by the province, or that the identified candidate
listed in the endorsement does not have a genuine intent to fill the job offer listed in the endorsement
certificate.

• New Brunswick will rescind endorsements of foreign nationals who have received a job offer from an
employer who is de-designated and do not have an application for permanent residence under the
Program that has been accepted into processing by Canada.

• New Brunswick may, but is not required to, request additional documents from applicant to confirm that
they meet the federal criteria of the Program, and will not issue an endorsement if they are not satisfied
that the applicant meets the federal requirements.

• New Brunswick has the ability to not issue an endorsement when the applicant is on a study permit, has
not completed their studies and the offer of employment is at the TEER 4 category.

• New Brunswick in its sole discretion determines that an applicant or anyone associated with an
application to this Program or another provincial immigration program has committed fraud with
respect to an application submitted to New Brunswick under this Program or any other immigration
program for which New Brunswick has obligations under an agreement with Canada, New Brunswick
may refuse the application and reject any future applications submitted by that individual from the
date the determination is made and for a period of up to five (5) years thereafter.

EMPLOYER DECLARATION SECTION

Your declaration in this section indicates that you have read, understand and agree to abide by the
commitments outlined in this application form.

Should you not fully understand any aspect of the form, please contact the Atlantic Immigration Program
representative in your province.

As an employer of a candidate, you are responsible for ensuring, to the best of your ability, that the
information provided in the Endorsement Application form is truthful, complete, and correct. You are also
agreeing that you have discussed the commitments required of the applicant under the Program, with the
applicant.

Please note that where the Principal Applicant has applied with a TEER 4 job offer and the application for
permanent residency has been refused by the Government of Canada, the employer will bear sole
responsibility for costs to return the Principal Applicant to his or her country of origin.

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Guidelines for Endorsement – Atlantic Immigration Program (September/2023)
EMPLOYEE DECLARATION SECTION

The Employee declaration indicates that the Principal Applicant agrees to participate in the Program per
the commitments outlined.

SUBMITTING THE APPLICATION

Ensure you have included all required documents:

• Endorsement application form

• IMM 0157 Job offer form
• Detailed job description
• Proof of recruitment efforts
• Evidence of the candidate’s previous work experience
• The Principal Applicant’s (including any accompanying family members’) Settlement Plan
• If the candidate is already in Canada, copy of their legal status in the country (work permit, visitor
permit or study permit)

If the candidate requires a temporary work permit, also include:

• IMM 0156 form: Undertaking for an application for a work permit exempted from a Labour Market
Impact Assessment (LMIA) as part of the Atlantic Immigration Program

NOTE:
Once the Endorsement application has been approved, the Principal Applicant then applies to Immigration,
Refugees and Citizenship Canada for permanent residency. See https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-
refugees-citizenship/services/immigrate-canada/atlantic-immigration.html

Submit completed applications to the address below:

Email
[email protected]

QUESTIONS

If you have questions, please contact the Government of New Brunswick by email: [email protected] or by
phone at 1-833-799-7966.

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Guidelines for Endorsement – Atlantic Immigration Program (September/2023)