The new Alberta tourism and hospitality stream launched March 1 2024; and no more AOS

Feb 27

The New Tourism & Hospitality Stream

On Tuesday, Feb 13, 2024, the AAIP site announced the launch of a new PNP stream that went live March 1, 2024. The AAIP only opened the new tourism & hospitality stream to 500 applicants and the flood of applications caused the stream to max out on the initial intake by the next business day. On Friday, March 1, AAIP said it would accept 500 initial applications and then perhaps over another 100 applications in another stage. As of Monday, March 4, the stream is not open to intakes until the AAIP processes the current applications. Stay tuned because the last few spots will be a race to file.

A benefit of the new stream is that it should have expedited processing (presumably to help the tourism and hospitality sectors fill labour shortages in time for this summer peak season).

What we know:

On March 1, 2024 the AAIP revealed that it was a stand alone stream and only people already working full-time in Alberta for over 6 months for an employer in the Tourism and Hospitality sector who have an employer-specific, LMIA-based work permit and a job offer from that employer would be eligible. The fine print includes requirements that, at the time of application and at the time AAIP assesses the application, the employer must belong to an eligible industry as defined by the Workers Compensation Board industry code or be exempt from WCB coverage but a member of an eligible sector association.

To be eligible, applicants must also prove 6 months of work experience, and an LMIA supported job offer, in one of the following 18 jobs:

Program leaders and instructors in recreation, sport and fitness (NOC 54100).
Restaurant and food service managers (NOC 60030).
Accommodation service managers (NOC 60031).
Food service supervisors (NOC 62020).
Chefs (NOC 62200).
Cooks (NOC 63200).
Maitres d'hotel and hosts/hostesses (NOC 64300).
Bartenders (NOC 64301).
Hotel front desk clerks (NOC 64314).
Tour and travel guides (NOC 64320).
Outdoor sport and recreational guides (NOC 64322).
Food and beverage servers (NOC 65200).
Food counter attendants, kitchen helpers and related support occupations (NOC 65201).
Support occupations in accommodation, travel and facilities setup services (NOC 65210).
Light duty cleaners (NOC 65310).
Specialized cleaners (NOC 65311).
Janitors, caretakers and heavy-duty cleaners (NOC 65312).
Dry cleaning, laundry and related occupations (NOC 65320).

5 Things you should be doing now

If you don’t want to miss out on the next very small intake under the new AAIP stream, we have a few tips and suggestions for what to do right now to prepare.

Tip #5: Make sure you have an Alberta.ca Account

The AAIP requires candidates to apply through the AAIP Portal. To create an AAIP Portal account, you must have your own basic (unverified) Alberta.ca Account. The candidate themselves must create this account and you cannot have an agent or representative create the account for you (if you want to work with an immigration lawyer like at Holthe Immigration Law, you create your account and then we assist with reviewing your application).

Tip #4: Understand your NOC and wage + your LMIA based work permit must be valid

Candidates in the new Tourism and Hospitality Stream will need to prove at least 6 consecutive months (30 hours per week minimum for a total of at least 780 hours) of work in one of the listed occupations. Check your 5-digit National Occupation Classification Code (NOC) carefully. Review the lead statement (opening paragraph) and the bullet points that list the main duties for that occupation and ensure that you are meeting the activities of the lead statement and the majority of the main duties (ideally at least 75%). Also make sure that your wage was reasonable for the job you are claiming. The AAIP requires candidates to show that their salary met the Job Bank median wage approved on the LMIA or exceeded the lowest starting wage for your occupation across all industries in Alberta.

Eligible candidates must be already living and working in Alberta (no teleworking or remote work) and must hold a valid employer specific work permit for an eligible employer in the Tourism and Hospitality sectors who obtained an LMIA. You cannot be on maintained or implied status. Your work permit must be valid at the time you submit your application and at the time AAIP assesses it. Independent contractors or temporary agency workers or people who work for home-based businesses are not eligible.

Tip #3: Gather your proof of employment and offer letter from an Alberta employer

You will need to get letters of employment from your employer to prove that you were already working in the occupation that you are claiming for at least 6 months and that the same eligible employer is offering you full-time (at least 30 hours/week) non-seasonal work going forward. Your job activities and duties must match an eligible NOC.

The letter of employment needs to be on company letterhead and should include your full name, and it should be signed by your supervisor or the HR Manager. The letter should contain the company’s physical address, telephone number and email address, full contact details for your supervisor or HR Manager, your start and end dates of work, your job title, a description of your activities of work, a list of your job duties that isn’t simply cut and pasted from the NOC, that your employment is on a full-time basis, number of hours of work per week you worked, and your annual salary and benefits (historical and what they are offering you going forward). Review the document checklist carefully to ensure you meet all AAIP requirements.

Make sure your employer is properly incorporated either Federally or Provincally, that they are in the tourism or hospitality sector according to WCB codes, that they have a valid business licence (if required), and that they have an office or place of work in Alberta where employees need to work on a regular basis.

Tip #2: Prove your language and education

Candidates have to meet minimum language requirements of CLB 4 for each of Speaking, Reading, Listening and Writing on language test results from an approved organization. You must also provide an Education Credential Assessment (ECA) to prove you have an equivalent of at least a Canadian high school diploma. If you completed certain types of Canadian education, you may be exempt from having to provide an ECA but check the AAIP eligibility requirements carefully.

Tip #1: Tell the truth

Only claim legitimate work experience that you can prove with employment letters and paystubs or tax records. IRCC and the Provinces share information. If you never listed a job in the tourism or hospitality industry on your prior study permit or work permit or Express Entry profile and now all of a sudden try to claim this work, beware of IRCC alleging that you have misrepresented. Misrepresentation is illegal and can get you barred from Canada as inadmissible for 5 years.

Need help?

We are immigration lawyers and are here to assist if you need help trying to figure out the new Alberta PNP landscape or if you want to retain us to work with you every step of the way. It all starts with a consultation.

The end of AOS?

I have bad news for those of you who have been working hard in Alberta and who may not have CLB language levels of 7: if you were relying on the AAIP Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS) for your PR, you will likely need to find another strategy. The Alberta PNP abruptly, and without warning, announced a pause in all AOS applications as of February 15, 2024.

Only if you were lucky enough to have completely submitted your AOS application through the AAIP Portal, including submitting the application processing fee of $500, before February 15, 2024 can you have a chance at being considered for nomination under AOS.

There is no guarantee that Alberta will open AOS again in 2024. Taking a look at the inventory which is updated to February 12, 2024 shows that the AAIP already has 5,093 AOS applications in the queue waiting for a decision on whether Alberta will nominate, with the AAIP taking about 6 months to process applications received before September 8, 2023. My guess is that AOS will not reopen in 2024 because there is already such a large number of applications under this category in the queue and Alberta only has a total of around 10,000 nomination spots for the entire year, across all streams (though Alberta’s exact allocation of nominations from IRCC for 2024 has not yet been announced). It is even possible that Alberta does not resurrect AOS and simply lets it fade away, to be replaced by streams that target prioritized occupations.

Which Alberta PNP streams are open in 2024?

Everyone who didn’t get their AOS application submitted in time and who did not get a nomination under AOS will have to find a different pathway to PR in Alberta. Keep in mind that AAIP still will issue nominations through:

Alberta Express Entry Stream, which includes the Dedicated Healthcare Pathway and the Accelerated Tech Pathway (make sure to watch our video that explains the Accelerated Tech Pathway);
Rural Renewal Stream;
Streams for Entrepreneurs (Rural Entrepreneur Stream, Graduate Entrepreneur Stream, Farm Stream and the Foreign Graduate Entrepreneur Stream); and
A new Tourism and Hospitality Stream launched March 1, 2024 but the first 500 spots out of less than 700 spots are already gone.

Which occupations does Alberta prioritize?

The good news for some is that the Alberta PNP is continuing to prioritize filling labour shortages in these sectors: