In Canada, immigration is a shared jurisdiction between the province and the federal government via Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Provinces are able to nominate individuals for permanent residence (PR) through provincial nominee programs, but all decisions regarding admissibility to Canada, including work permits and permanent residence are entirely under the responsibility of IRCC.
The Nova Scotia Office of Immigration (NSOI) offers two dedicated pathways for Permanent Residency specific to Physicians who have accepted an offer to practice with the Nova Scotia Health Authority or IWK.
Your first step for Immigration is to apply to the Nova Scotia Nominee Program under one of the streams available: the Physician Stream or the Labour Market Priorities for Physicians stream. For more information on the differences with the application criteria and process, and to determine which stream is the best option for you and your family, please visit the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration website.
Once your application is approved, you will receive a Certificate of Nomination and a Letter of Support from the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration. You will use your Certificate of Nomination to apply for Permanent Residency and your letter of support to apply for a temporary work permit through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
Applying for a Temporary Work Permit
Once you receive these documents from the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration, please email your Physician Recruitment Consultant with your Certificate of Nomination, Letter of Support, and a copy of your passport. Before you apply for your Temporary Work Permit, the Physician Recruitment Consultant must register your offer of employment with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Your Physician Recruitment Consultant will provide you with an Offer of Employment Number (often referred to as the “A Number”), which you will use to apply for a Temporary Work Permit.
After receiving your offer of employment number from the physician recruitment consultant, you can move forward with your application for a temporary work permit with Immigration, Refugees, Citizenship Canada (IRCC ). There are two options for applying for your temporary work permit. Option 1 is to apply at the Border. Option 2 is to apply online and wait for your work permit to be issued.
As physicians, you are considered an essential service and as such, your work permit applications are processed as priority. Important to note: YOU WILL ONLY RECEIVE PRIORITY PROCESSING IF YOUR APPLICATIONS ARE COMPLETE WHEN SUBMITTING. Submitting incomplete applications will result in significant delays in processing. Many jurisdictions require upfront medicals to be completed before submitting applications. Please ensure you complete your upfront medical prior to submitting your application.
It is also very important that you apply for work or study permits for all of your family members who will be relocating with you under your application, otherwise their applications will not be processed as priority. Even if your family is joining you at a later date, we still recommend you apply for all permits at the same time to avoid delays and travel complications.
Please note: You are applying for a work permit with a Labour Market Impact Assessment exemption.
Option 1 – There is an option to apply for their work permits at the border or port of entry. However, since you are not arriving at the border with your work permit in hand, there is always a risk that your application at the border may be denied. If you would like to apply for your work permit at the border, please ensure you have all the required documents that you will need to present to the border officer:
Document checklist (This does not include an upfront medical which is a requirement for most jurisdictions. Please check the website to see if you require an upfront medical and have it completed prior to traveling): Click here.
Option 2 – Applying for your work permit outside of Canada with the online portal. Please begin here to create your checklist for online application: Click here.
Document checklist (does not include medical in this list- medical requirements are outlined in guidance document): Click here.
Guidance document for applying for work permit outside of Canada: Click here.
Help Centre: Click here.
