Nova Scotia is investing another $3 million in settlement funds to boost English language training, support healthcare workers and the francophone population and other community initiatives to improve the retention of newcomers through activities tailored for each region.

“We’re very pleased to have attracted so many skilled professionals to Nova Scotia last year in fields where we need them most,” said provincial Immigration Minister Jill Balser.

“I am thankful they chose Nova Scotia as their new home and that Nova Scotians across the province continue to welcome and help them settle into their new lives and communities.”

Last year, the Atlantic Canadian province saw a spike of 88.9 per cent in the number of healthcare workers and 85.8 per cent in construction professionals approved through immigration programs.

In 2023, Nova Scotia welcomed 763 healthcare and 244 construction workers.

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“The need for talented healthcare providers, nurses, continuing care assistants and more, has never been greater,” said Vanessa White, a vice president at healthcare services provider Shannex International.

“International recruitment and immigration is one of the ways we can meet our community’s need for care and services with talented, compassionate, and diverse teams that create more inclusive workplaces.”

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Construction firms in Nova Scotia got added help in recruiting construction workers from abroad last year with the launch of the Critical Construction Worker Pilot which targeted 21 occupations in the construction sector.

Those construction industry occupations and their corresponding National Occupational Classification (NOC) 2021 system codes are:

• 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
• 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

That new pathway to permanent residence in Nova Scotia is open to those who:

• have a full-time permanent job offer from a Nova Scotia employer in one of the eligible occupations;
• have one year of work experience related to the job;
• hold a high school diploma or proof they have completed a construction-specific industry training program;
• are 21 to 55 years old;
• can prove language ability equal to Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) Level 5 (NOC TEER 0, 1, 2, 3) or CLB Level 4 (NOC TEER 4 and 5) even if their first language is English or French, and;
• show enough financial resources to successfully settle in Nova Scotia.

Nova Scotia, whose population hit 1,066,416 on Oct. 1 last year, welcomed 11,800 new residents last year, including those who arrived through immigration programs and net migration from other regions in Canada.