Federal program changes reduce provincial immigration allocation

FREDERICTON (GNB) – Program changes made by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada will lead to significant reductions in permanent resident nominations this year.

“The federal government’s allocation provided to New Brunswick is a significant step back from previous years,” said Jean-Claude D’Amours, acting minister of post-secondary education, training and labour, and minister responsible for immigration. “Unfortunately, this move has forced us to make difficult decisions and we expect it will limit our ability to manage economic growth for our province and its businesses.”

New Brunswick is subject to a 50 per cent reduction in permanent resident nominations, which means New Brunswick’s allocation will drop to 2,750 this year, from 5,500 in 2024.

The allocation will be split between the Provincial Nominee Program (1,500) and the Atlantic Immigration Program (1,250).

“The changes go far beyond anything we could have anticipated, and the one-size-fits-all measure fails to recognize our province’s unique status as the only officially bilingual province,” said D’Amours.

The provincial government has presented its concerns to the federal government and conversations are ongoing.

New Brunswick immigration programs will open in the coming days. Applicants are encouraged to monitor program pages for updates and application requirements.

Due to limited space, the government will focus on priority sectors, such as health, education and construction trades, while supporting other sectors with limited allocations. Workers in some occupations will be restricted from participating.

“We empathize with New Brunswick businesses who may no longer be able to benefit from these programs, and we encourage them to reach out to WorkingNB to help fill job vacancies,” said D’Amours.

WorkingNB workforce consultants are available to help employers of all sizes meet their human resources needs.

Source: gnb.ca