Overview
This is the province's core employer-driven pathway. There is no published points grid: you submit a free Expression of Interest and Nova Scotia selects submissions from the pool according to its current priorities. Meeting every criterion makes you eligible; it does not make you selected.
Check your level before you build a file
Healthcare and skilled trades occupations at TEER 0 to 4 are the province's top priority and the only group open to candidates applying from outside Canada. NOC major groups 2, 4, 8 and 9 at TEER 0 to 4, and all other occupations at TEER 0 to 2, are considered only for temporary residents already living and working in Nova Scotia. TEER 5 occupations are not being considered at this time, even where the stream's own criteria are met.
See the full framework and what it means for your occupation.
Best suited to: workers already matched with a Nova Scotia employer whose occupation sits within the province's current selection priorities, and employers who need a specific person authorised and settled.
Core eligibility
These apply to every applicant under this stream, whichever sub-criteria you fall under.
- Job offer. Full-time and permanent, from a Nova Scotia employer, located in Nova Scotia. Full-time means at least 30 hours a week year-round; permanent means no predetermined end date. The wage must meet provincial employment standards and the provincial wage range for the occupation.
- Work experience. 12 complete calendar months within the last 5 years, totalling at least 1,560 hours of paid work related to the job offered. Volunteer work and unpaid internships do not count.
- Additional experience for TEER 4 and 5. 6 months of paid experience with the Nova Scotia employer making the offer. This requirement does not apply under the Occupations in Demand sub-criteria.
- Age. 21 to 55, except for physicians.
- Language. CLB 5 for NOC TEER 0 to 3, CLB 4 for TEER 4 to 5. For TEER 0 to 3, English or French as a first language is accepted as proof. For TEER 4 and 5, test results are required even if your first language is English or French, and must be issued within 2 years of your submission.
- Education. A high school diploma, plus the training, skills or accreditation the occupation requires.
- Financial capacity. Sufficient resources to settle in Nova Scotia and support your family, based on family size.
- Intention and status. You intend to live in Nova Scotia, and you can prove your immigration status in the country where you currently live.
What makes you ineligible
These disqualifiers catch more people than the positive criteria do. If even one applies, an EOI should not be submitted under this stream.
- You have been found to have committed misrepresentation on an immigration application in the last 5 years.
- You have received a nomination or endorsement, NSNP or Atlantic Immigration Program, within the last 12 months.
- You are currently living in a country where you are not legally allowed to live.
- You are currently studying at a Canadian post-secondary institution.
- You hold a federal Post-Graduation Work Permit and work in a NOC TEER 5 job. An exception applies under the Critical Construction Worker and Occupations in Demand categories.
- You are self-employed, plan to start a business or become self-employed, are a majority shareholder in a Nova Scotia business, or are a passive investor.
- You have been offered a sales role paid only by commission.
- You are in Canada under the Live-In Caregiver Program.
- You have applied to immigrate on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, have claimed refugee status, or have been refused refugee status in Canada.
- You have received a removal order from IRCC or the Canada Border Services Agency.
- You received a scholarship or award requiring you to return to your home country on graduation and have not yet done so.
- The job contravenes provincial policies on on-site or service home-based businesses, telework arrangements, or program integrity.
Some of these have more nuance than a list can carry, particularly a refused refugee claim, a past misrepresentation finding or a removal order. If one applies to you, that is a conversation, not a closed door.
The four sets of sub-criteria
Since the 18 February 2026 consolidation, three former standalone streams operate inside Skilled Worker. Each carries its own occupation list and its own variations on the core rules.
A · Skilled Worker
The base criteria above, with a high school diploma and the 12-month, 1,560-hour experience requirement.
B · Construction
Requires a full-time, permanent job offer from a Nova Scotia employer in the construction sector (NAICS 23) in one of the following occupations. Language test results are required even if your first language is English or French: CLB 5 for TEER 0 to 3, CLB 4 for TEER 4 and 5.
| NOC | Occupation |
|---|---|
| 70010 | Construction managers |
| 70011 | Home building and renovation managers |
| 72011 | Contractors and supervisors, electrical trades and telecommunications occupations |
| 72014 | Contractors and supervisors, other construction trades, installers, repairers and servicers |
| 72020 | Contractors and supervisors, mechanic trades |
| 72102 | Sheet metal workers |
| 72106 | Welders and related machine operators |
| 72200 | Electricians (except industrial and power system) |
| 72201 | Industrial electricians |
| 72310 | Carpenters |
| 72320 | Bricklayers |
| 72401 | Heavy-duty equipment mechanics |
| 72402 | Heating, refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics |
| 72500 | Crane operators |
| 73100 | Concrete finishers |
| 73102 | Plasterers, drywall installers and finishers and lathers |
| 73110 | Roofers and shinglers |
| 73200 | Residential and commercial installers and servicers |
| 73400 | Heavy equipment operators |
| 75101 | Material handlers |
| 75110 | Construction trades helpers and labourers |
| 75119 | Other trades helpers and labourers |
C · Physicians
Open to general practitioners and family physicians (NOC 31102) and specialist physicians (NOC 31100 and 31101) holding a signed, approved opportunity with the Nova Scotia Health Authority or the IWK Health Centre. The approved opportunity must be on NSHA or IWK letterhead, signed and dated by a person authorised to offer it and by the applicant accepting it, and must confirm eligibility for licensure with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia and eligibility to apply for privileges and credentials. Physicians are not subject to the 21 to 55 age range.
D · Occupations in Demand
Targets specific TEER 3, 4 and 5 occupations that the Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration identifies as in high demand. It requires a permanent, full-time job offer in a listed occupation, 1 year of related work experience, ages 21 to 55, a high school diploma, appropriate training or accreditation, CLB 4 proven by test results even if your first language is English or French, and sufficient settlement funds. The 6-month requirement for TEER 4 and 5 experience with the offering employer does not apply here.
The in-demand occupation list is set by the province and changes with labour market data. It also sits underneath the selection framework: a listed TEER 5 occupation may be eligible on paper while the province is not currently selecting TEER 5 candidates. We check both before advising you to file.
The process, step by step
- Confirm the offer, the wage and the classificationWe verify the job offer meets provincial employment standards and the wage range, and that the NOC classification is defensible; it drives your language floor, your experience requirement and your selection level.
- Expression of InterestA complete, documented EOI, free to submit. An incomplete EOI is closed rather than assessed. Valid for 12 months from submission.
- Selection from the poolNova Scotia selects according to its published priorities and remaining allocation. There is no minimum score and no published timeline.
- Assessment and feeFrom 1 September 2026, a $1,000 fee is payable within 7 calendar days of the selection notification. Documents and payment must both land inside that window or the EOI is closed.
- Nomination, then permanent residenceYou have 12 months from the nomination certificate to apply to IRCC, which decides the permanent resident visa.
Skilled Worker requirements checker
A structured way to see where you stand against the published criteria. It returns an indication only, not an eligibility decision, not legal advice, and not a prediction of whether the province will select you.
Your situation
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