News Release

MONCTON (GNB) – The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Project is underway in New Brunswick.

“Your government is working hard getting things done to create jobs, secure health care and grow the economy,” said Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour Minister Donald Arseneault. “In the midst of an aging and shrinking population, welcoming skilled foreign workers and repatriating former New Brunswickers will help our province meet its labour needs and grow the economy.”

The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Project is a three-year, employer-driven immigration program to attract and retain talented immigrants while supporting population growth and addressing labour shortages. The pilot project will welcome 2,000 additional immigrants and their families to the four Atlantic Provinces, a key component of the Atlantic Growth Strategy. Immigration and population growth is also an important part of the New Brunswick Economic Growth Plan.

Interested employers can find more information online about how to register and participate in the program.

“I am pleased to say we are off to a good start. Employers have been keen to get involved and provinces have started to receive applications from employers who wish to participate in the pilot,” said federal Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Ahmed Hussen. “I look forward to continuing to work with our partners – including provincial governments, employers and settlement service provider organizations – as we move forward with this dynamic component of Canada’s Atlantic Growth Strategy.”

Thursday, the provincial and federal governments signed the Canada-New Brunswick Immigration Agreement in Moncton during the first joint Forum on Francophone Immigration. The agreement supports New Brunswick in its goal to help fill labour shortages and grow the population by welcoming more immigrants, and also included the first francophone immigration annex in Canada.

“The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Project presents a unique opportunity for us to fill our labour gaps by recruiting eager and skilled workers and their families from other countries who have the skills we need,” said Day & Ross National Recruiting and Human Resources Administration Manager Jodi Martell. “With an aging population and a diminishing labour force in New Brunswick, programs like the Atlantic Immigration Project are instrumental in helping our company and provincial economy flourish.”

The province also recently launched www.weareallnb.ca, a website that serves as an immigration hub for New Brunswickers, employers, and skilled foreign workers.