Immigration Canada: Changes to Alberta Semi-Skilled Worker Program

English: Alberta Province within Canada. Español: Provincia de Alberta en Canadá. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) has created a short-term initiative geared towards supporting businesses in the hotel and lodging industry throughout the province.

The ‘2013 Hotel and Lodging Additional Allocation Initiative’ is effective immediately. It will allow Alberta employers to nominate as many eligible clerks/agents, food and beverage servers, and room attendants for Permanent Residency as they need. Workers in these positions are considered semi-skilled.

The AINP program is a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) that allows the province to nominate workers in key fields to the Federal Government for Permanent Residency processing. PNPs have been a great help to provinces, which are able to tailor programs to reflect the economic needs of their region.

Normally, employers in the hotel and lodging industry are restricted to nominating a certain number of workers each year. For instance, a hotel with 1-50 rooms may nominate up to 2 individuals a year, while a hotel with 451 or more may nominate up to 18.

Other recent changes to the AINP include permanently closing the Family and US Visa Holder streams, as well as the temporary expansion of the Long-Haul Truck Driver stream.

EDIT: On Thursday, June 7th, the AINP announced changes to the Manufacturing Industry category. The following work experience criteria must be fulfilled in order for a worker to be eligible for nomination:

1. Possess a minimum of two years work experience in a job similar to the employer's field of business
2. At least one of the two years must be completed in Canada.

The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) has reduced work experience requirements in its Semi-Skilled Worker stream.

Effective immediately, applicants to the Manufacturing Industry sub-division of the Semi-Skilled Worker stream are eligible to apply if they have two years of work experience in a job similar to the job they will be working in Alberta. At least one year of work must be completed in Canada.

The AINP is one of many Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) in Canada. Most Canadian provinces run their own PNP, which allows the province to nominate foreign nationals for Canadian Permanent Residency. Provinces are able to tailor their PNPs to target individuals with skills and experience that are in high demand in the region.

The AINP has streams for the following individuals: