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Northwest Territories Immigration: Through the Northwest Territories’ Provincial Nominee Program (NTNP), people who want to move there and have the skills and experience for Northwest Territories immigration can get a Provincial Nomination Certificate, which lets them apply for permanent residence in Canada.

The NTNP takes applications for two different programs, and one of those programs has three different streams:

Employer Driven Program in Northwest Territories:

• Express Entry System for Skilled Workers
• A Skilled Worker
• Entry Level/Semi-Skilled Occupations

Business Immigration Program for the Northwest Territories Immigration:

• The Business Stream

The Employer Driven Program

Express Entry Stream: Northwest Territories

The NTNP Express Entry Stream for Skilled Workers is designed to nominate Express Entry candidates who meet the requirements for the Skilled Worker stream in the Northwest Territories. Foreigners who have been accepted into the government Express Entry pool may be eligible to apply to this Express Entry Stream for Skilled Workers.

The Skilled Worker Stream 

Through the NTNP Skilled Worker Stream, the government of the Northwest Territories can nominate people whom a company in the Northwest Territories has offered a skilled job. Applicants must have already worked in the job for at least six months in the Northwest Territories.

Entry Level/Semi-Skilled Occupations

Entry-level/Semi-Skilled Occupations in the NTNP allow the Northwest Territories Government to help employers fill entry-level job vacancies when they can’t find a Canadian candidate locally or nationally. Applicants must have already worked in the job for at least six months in the Northwest Territories.

Express Entry Northwest Territories

This stream lets the Northwest Territories use the government Express Entry immigration selection system to help fill jobs in areas where there aren’t enough people to do them. Hiring people from other countries accomplishes this.

Canada will grant permanent residency to those who accept the offer. The Northwest Territories Express Entry Stream works with the Express Entry system run by the federal government.

Qualified applicants can expedite their NTNP application through this Northwest Territories Nominee Program (NTNP) stream, and if selected, the processing of their application for permanent residence occurs more rapidly. The Northwest Territories Express Entry stream is one of three NTNP Employer Driven Streams that facilitate foreigners in obtaining permanent residency in Canada.

To get into the Express Entry pool, candidates must be qualified for one of the following federal economic immigration programs:

• Federal Skilled Worker Program
• The Federal Skilled Trades
• The Canadian Experience Class

For the government economic immigration programs, applicants must meet a minimum level of language proficiency and show that they have enough money to support themselves and their families when they get to Canada. For the Federal Skilled Worker Program, candidates must also show the results of an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA).

Minimum requirements for eligibility

To apply as a Skilled Worker through the Express Entry Stream in the Northwest Territories, candidates must:

• Be eligible for one of three government economic immigration programs: government Skilled Worker, Federal Skilled Trades, or Canadian Experience Class;
• Meet the requirements for the NTNP Employer Driven Program’s Skilled Worker Stream;
• Give the letter of acceptance from the Express Entry Pool run by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada;
• Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC) Express Entry Pool will give you an Express Entry Profile Number and a Job Seeker Validation Code.
• Have expressed interest that they would like to move to the Northwest Territories.

Foreigners who want to apply as Skilled Workers must also meet the following requirements:

• Plan to stay in the Northwest Territories permanently;
• Work in a job listed in the National Occupational Classification (NOC) with a skill level of 0, A, or B;
• If they live in Canada, they must have permission to work and a proper work permit.
• Have the right license or certification for the job based on the job description, the job ads (if any), and the NOC’s employment standards;
• In jobs that the government does not control, it is up to the employer to make sure that the applicant meets occupational standards and has the necessary work experience to do the job. To be considered for a job, individuals must also work full-time in that job for a year.
• Have the formal schooling and/or specialized training, certification, license, or registration that the Government of Northwest Territories requires for the specific job;
• Applicants who went to school outside of Canada must obtain an ECA from a group chosen by the Canadian government to evaluate their educational credentials and compare them to Canadian educational standards.
• Must apply for the job that the NWT employer is advertising, either in answer to a local or national job ad. If responding to an ad from an NWT employer, the foreign national must show in their application how they applied for the job and that they meet the educational and work standards for the job.
• Be able to talk to people in English and/or French well enough;
• Send the originals or confirmed true copies (they must be clear and easy to read) of the following documents, translated into English or French:
• Valid Work Permit
• Passport (only the page with your name);
• Certificate of birth;
• Marriage certificate or common-law union statement; and
• Birth certificate(s) and passport(s) for each child.
• Show that they have a real, full-time, stable job offer that shows they can support themselves in the Northwest Territories;
• Meet the minimum language standards by showing that you can talk in English or French, which are Canada’s official languages. The bare minimum for language skills is:
• Reaching the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 6 for NOC 0 and A or CLB level 5 for NOC B in English or French in all four areas (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) in all four areas (listening, speaking, reading, and writing).
• Applicants must provide valid test scores from one of the three language tests below, which they must have taken within two years of the application:
• The General Training part of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS);
• The Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP-General);
• The Test d’Évaluation de Francais (TEF) measures how well someone speaks French.

Minimums that employers must meet

Employers must do the following to be qualified for the Express Entry Stream in the Northwest Territories:

• Be a registered Northwest Territories business, industry group, local, municipal, First Nation, or territorial government;
• Be in good standing with the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission and the Employment Standards office of the Northwest Territories;
• Employers who have to follow the Employment Standards Act of the Northwest Territories have to send in more paperwork and follow the rules set by the NWT Provincial Nominee Program.
• You must have registered and operated your business in full-time for at least one year before submitting the application.
• Give the foreign national a job offer for a permanent, full-time role (at least 37.5 hours per week);
• Provide a job contract that is in line with the job Standards Act of the territories;
• The employment contract can’t go against any collective bargaining deals that are already in place.
• The NWT employer must send a detailed job description for the role that includes:

• The position title;
• The language requirements for the job are English, French, or another official language of the Northwest Territories (any other language will only be considered a plus).
• main responsibilities of the jobs;
• requirements for the job in terms of schooling and work experience; and
• any license or accreditation needed for the job, as well as any certification or accreditation needed for the job.
• Research and find the right NOC code for the job based on the requirements for education and work experience and the job tasks;
• Bring in a good LMIA or proof that the job was advertised. If an employer hires a foreign national based on a good LMIA, they must follow the LMIA agreement.
• If a company wants to nominate a foreign national without an LMIA, they have to show proof of local, national, or (optional) industry advertising and a summary of the results of that advertising.
• Employers must include the following in the job ad: application process, job requirements, and the wage for the position.

Employer Driven Program of NTNP

The Employer Driven Program of the NTNP lets businesses hire skilled workers from other countries who have the right skills and experience to fill jobs for which there are no qualified Canadians or Permanent Residents.

The Northwest Territories Nominee Program (NTNP) Employer Driven Program has three streams: the Critical Impact Worker Stream, the Skilled Worker Stream, and the Northwest Territories Express Entry Stream for Skilled Workers.

• Employer-Driven Skilled Worker Stream
• Employers-driven Critical Worker Stream
• How to Fill Out an Application

The Employer Driven Streams of the NTNP

The Skilled Worker Stream

This part of the NTNP Employer Driven immigration program is for qualified foreign workers who can help the Northwest Territories make up for a lack of skilled workers.

In this stream, applications are taken from people who have been offered a skilled job in the NWT (National Occupational Classification Skill Levels 0, A, or B) by an employer in the NWT. In this category, the process is led by the workplace, which means that NWT employers must sponsor qualified applicants for permanent residency.

Conditions for Eligibility for the Skilled Worker Stream

For the Skilled Worker Stream of the Employer Driven Program, foreign residents must:

• Plan to stay in the Northwest Territories for good;
• If they live in Canada, they must have permission to work and a proper work permit.
• Show that they have a valid offer of a full-time, permanent job in a field with a NOC Skill Level of 0, A, or B. This shows that they can live and work in the Northwest Territories.
• Have the right certifications or licenses for the job based on the job description, the job ads (if any), and the National Occupational Classification (NOC) requirements for work;
• In jobs that the government does not control, it is up to the employer to make sure that the applicant meets occupational standards and has the necessary work experience to do the job. To be considered for a job, individuals must also have worked full-time in that job for a year.
• Have the formal schooling and/or specialized training, certification, license, or registration that the Government of Northwest Territories requires for the specific job;
• Applicants who attended school outside of Canada must obtain an ECA from a group chosen by the Canadian government to evaluate their educational credentials and compare them to Canadian educational standards.
• Must apply for the job that the NWT employer is advertising, either in answer to a local or national job ad. If they are responding to an employer’s ad, the foreign national must show in their application how they applied for the job and that they meet the educational and work standards for the job.
• Send the originals or confirmed true copies (they must be clear and easy to read) of the following documents, translated into English or French:
• Valid Work Permit
• Passport (only the page with your name);
• Certificate of birth;
• Marriage certificate or common-law union statement; and
• Birth certificate(s) and passport(s) for each child.
• Meet the minimum language standards by showing that you can talk in English or French, which are Canada’s official languages. The bare minimum for language skills is:
• Reaching the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 6 for NOC 0 and A or CLB level 5 for NOC B in English or French in all four areas (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) in all four areas (listening, speaking, reading, and writing).
• You must provide valid test scores from one of the three language tests below, and these tests must have been taken within two years of the application:
• The General Training part of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS);
• The Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP-General);
• The Test d’Évaluation de Francais (TEF) is used to measure how well someone speaks French.

Stream for Entry-Level and Semi-Skilled Occupations

This stream was made to help businesses in the Northwest Territories (NWT) deal with critical shortages of workers that locals or Canadians can’t fill. It is made to help people in semi-skilled and untrained jobs (Skill Levels C and D in the National Occupational Classification).

Foreign skilled workers can apply through this stream if they have worked in the same job with the same company for at least six months and are following the rules of their temporary foreign worker permit.

Eligibility Requirements for the Entry-Level/Semi-Skilled Occupations Stream

For the Entry Level/Semi-Skilled Occupations Stream to consider a foreign national qualified, they must:

• If you live in Canada, you must have the right to work and a proper work permit.
• Follow the rules of their short foreign worker permit;
• Plan to stay in the Northwest Territories for good;
• Have the necessary licenses or certifications for the job based on what the company wants. Foreigners who have finished their schooling outside of Canada must have their credentials evaluated based on Canada’s national standards.
• This assessment must be done by an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) group that the Canadian government has approved.
• Have worked for the nominating company for at least six months in a National Occupational Classification (NOC) skill level C or D job right before the application was sent in;
• Meet any NWT licensing, certification, or registration standards for the job; 
• Send the originals or confirmed true copies (they must be clear and easy to read) of the following documents, translated into English or French:
• Travel document;
• Certificate of birth;
• Certificate of marriage; and
• Birth certificate(s) and passport(s) for each child.
• Give the results of one of the three language tests below that were taken within two years of your application:
• The General Training part of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS);
• The Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP-General);
• The Test d’Évaluation de Francais (TEF) is used to measure how well someone speaks French.
• Get at least a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 4 on the listening, speaking, reading, and writing parts of the test. You can do this in either English or French.
• Show that they have enough money to settle in the Northwest Territories with any dependents. The minimum amount is $10,000 for the main applicant and an extra $2,000 for each dependent.
• As proof of settlement funds, applicants must send notarized bank records in their names or an official letter from a bank that they have translated into English or French and notarized.

Employers’ Eligibility Requirements

For businesses to be able to take part in the Employer Driven Program, they must:

• Be a registered Northwest Territories business, industry group, local, municipal, First Nation, or territorial government;
• You must have registered and operated your business full-time for at least one year before submitting an application.
• Be in good standing with the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission and the Employment Standards office of the Northwest Territories;
• Give the foreign national a job offer for a permanent, full-time role (at least 37.5 hours per week);
• Provide a job contract that is in line with the job Standards Act of the territories;
• The employment contract can’t go against any collective bargaining deals that are already in place.
• if appropriate, submit a copy of a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Employment and Social Development Canada;
• The Skilled Worker Stream, the Express Entry System, and foreigners with open work permits do not need an LMIA.
• If you’re nominating a foreigner without an LMIA, you’ll need to show proof of local and national ads and a summary of how well it worked.
• The summary of results must include a list of all the applications that were sent in for the offered job, along with the reasons why people were not hired.
• Provide a comparable industry rate of pay based on the rate of pay for the companies’ current employees, the advertised rate of pay, and the rate of pay in the LMIA; and
• Follow the terms of the LMIA.

The application to apply for the NTNP Employer-Driven Program

The NWT employer or Authorized Representative must send a full application to the NTNP before submitting an application. The employer is responsible for ensuring that the application contains all the original or certified true copies of the required documents. These documents can be in either English or French.

Applicants must send all application packages by mail or bring them in person to the NTNP. The NTNP won’t look at incomplete applications, so people who want to apply should look over the application process before sending in their materials.

The NTNP will decide if a foreign national is qualified for nomination once the application has been reviewed. After receiving a complete application, it could take up to ten (10) weeks for it to be reviewed.

If an application is accepted, a nomination certificate will be sent to the employer, the foreign national (the Nominee), and/or the Authorized Representative. The nominee will have up to six (6) months from the date of nomination to apply with Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada for permanent residence in Canada.

Program for Business Immigration

The Business Stream

The NTNP Business Stream is for foreigners who can show they have the skills to start, buy, or invest in a business in the Northwest Territories that helps the economy or could help the economy and create jobs.

The Northwest Territories Business Stream

The Business Stream of the NTNP tries to get people who are good at business and have a lot of money to spend to move to the Northwest Territories and help the economy there.

The Northwest Territories Nominee Program (NTNP) has a business immigration stream for foreigners who can start a business, buy an established one, or invest in it. Most of the time, applicants are chosen based on how likely they are to create work for foreign nationals and other Canadians living in the area.

The first step in the application process is having a business idea that works and wanting to move to the Northwest Territories (NWT). The Department of Industry, Tourism, and Investment looks over full applications and business plans from people who want to apply. If the applicant is accepted and the business plan is carried out, a nomination certificate will be given. The applicant can then apply to Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for permanent resident status.

This page will tell you about the Northwest Territories Business Stream in the following ways: 

• Minimum requirements for the applicant to be eligible
• How to Apply for a Business Stream
• The Plan for Business
• Companies that don’t qualify
• Who can’t sign up for the NTNP Business Stream?

Requirements for the Applicant for the Northwest Territories Business Stream

Foreigners must do the following to be qualified for the Northwest Territories Business Stream:

Invest in:

• A minimum of $300,000 Canadian dollars into starting or buying a business in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories; or
• A minimum of $150,000 CAD to start or buy a business outside of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories’s corporate limits.

Have a net worth that is:

• At least $500,000 CAD if you are starting or buying a business in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, or
• If you want to start or buy a business outside of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, you will need at least $250,000 CAD.
• Show that they own at least one-third of the business (33.3 percent);

• If the applicant invests more than $1,000,000 CAD of his or her own money, he or she may own less than one-third (33.3%).
• Provide a good faith deposit of $75,000 CAD, which will be held in trust and returned when the terms of the Business Performance Agreement are met satisfactorily;
• Show that you know and understand the Northwest Territories and its economy to a decent degree;
• Have English or French skills equal to a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 4 in either language. To show language skills, test results can’t be more than two years old and must come from one of the following government-approved agencies:

• The General Training part of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS);
• The Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP-General);
• The Test d’Évaluation de Francais (TEF) is used to measure how well someone speaks French.
• Have the necessary experience and education to carry out the business plan properly;
• Be able to start a business, run it, and support themselves and anyone who depends on them for the whole time of the Business Performance Agreement.
• Not have any other NTNP Stream applications that are running;
• Show you can talk to people well enough to do business in the Northwest Territories and fit in with the local society; and
• Have the right education and skills to carry out the business plan well.

How to Fill Out an Application for the Northwest Territories Business Stream

The nomination method has eight steps:

Step 1: Evaluate yourself and do some preliminary research

If a potential applicant thinks he or she meets the standards for the Business Stream, he or she is encouraged to come up with a good business idea and start learning about the people, communities, and economy of the Northwest Territories. The working business idea could be finding a business chance in the Northwest Territories or making a full-fledged business plan for a new business. The applicant decides how much work needs to be done.

If an applicant wants to buy an established business, that business must have been run by the same owner for at least three years before the applicant applies. When a business is bought, neither the number of jobs nor the pay can be cut.

Step 2: Do more research and have face-to-face conversations.

Prospective applicants must take at least one business trip to the Northwest Territories before they can submit an application. This is so they can learn more about the business environment there and the steps that need to be taken to turn a business idea into a business plan.

The trip must last at least four (4) full work days, not counting travel days (to and from the Northwest Territories), interview days, or statutory holidays. 

After the business trip, applicants must take part in at least one face-to-face conversation with Nominee Program staff to go over the business plan and see how well they know the Northwest Territories and how good they are at business and communication.

One interview must take place at the head office of the Department of Industry, Tourism, and Investment in Yellowknife, and the other must take place with the office in charge of that area.

If a potential applicant wants to put money into an established business in the Northwest Territories, the owner of that business must also meet with NTNP staff for a separate interview.

Step 3: Expression of interest

After the interview, the candidate will be told how well he or she did. If the candidate did well in the interview, he or she will have sixty (60) days to send in the following:

• A written summary of the business idea and a general plan for how the money will be spent; and 
• A summary of what they learned while on work in the Northwest Territories. 

If the Department of Industry, Tourism, and Investment finds the information given to be sufficient, approves the business idea based on its ability to bring value to the territory, finds that the applicant has the necessary business and communication skills, and thinks the applicant is serious about wanting to move to and settle in the NWT, the applicant will be given an invitation to apply. 

Step 4: Make a formal request

Once a candidate has been asked to apply officially, they have nine months to send a full entry to the Nominee Program. Also, the application fee and any other fees must be paid in full, and the Third Party Financial Verification Report, a detailed business plan, and an up-to-date copy of the NTNP-05: Authorize or Cancel a Representative form must be filed within nine months. Applications that aren’t full won’t be looked at, and the applicant will be told. 

The NWT Nominee Program tells applicants not to invest or spend money until they have signed a Business Performance Agreement and gotten a work pass.

Step 5: Application Review

After the full formal application is sent in, both the applicant and the business plan will be looked at to see if they meet the standards for eligibility. The NTNP staff may ask for more paperwork or an extra discussion to check the information on the application.

The staff of the Nominee Program will then either recommend that the applicant join the NTNP or decide that he or she is not qualified. The Assistant Deputy Minister of the Department of Industry, Tourism, and Investment looks over this suggestion and decides whether or not to accept the application.

The following factors are used to review applications, but they are not the only ones:

• The business’s ability to give jobs to people in the area;
• Based on market studies in the NWT, how long the business will be able to stay in business there.
• Based on the local market study, how well the business will be able to help the Territory’s economy?
• The applicant’s skills and past experience show how likely they are to be able to run the business properly.
• the experience
• The potential applicant’s ability to run a business successfully based on how realistic the business plan is; and
• The submitted business plan should have accurate financial records that can be backed up.

Step 6: Get approval and sign the Business Performance Agreement

When a person is chosen, NTNP staff will let them know in writing. The NTNP will then start talking with the applicant about a Business Performance Agreement. This agreement spells out the rules for how the candidate is to carry out the business plan.

Once the agreement is signed and the refundable $75,000 CAD good faith deposit is received, the Department of Industry, Tourism, and Investment will send the applicant a letter of support for a two-year temporary work permit. The applicant can include this letter with his or her application to IRCC.

To meet the standards of the Business Performance Agreement and be nominated, applicants must live within 100 kilometers of the NWT business and must live in the Northwest Territories for at least 75 percent of the time while on a work permit.

Step 7: Developing the Business

The candidate must be ready to start the business and make the necessary investment six months after moving to the Northwest Territories. Staff from NTNP will keep an eye on how the business is doing and meet with the applicant every so often.

Part of this process is for the application to send the NWT Nominee Program an Interim Report every six (6) months. One of the most important things that needs to be in this report is proof that the needed eligible investment was spent. 

The Business Performance Agreement says that the applicant has two years to build the business mentioned in the business plan. The candidate must show that he or she is involved in and responsible for running the daily operations of the NWT business. The place of work in the Northwest Territories must be where management is done.

Step 8: Nomination

When the terms of the Business Performance Agreement have been met, the Government of Northwest Territories may give the application a nomination certificate. If nominated, the individual must apply to IRCC for permanent residency within six (6) months of being nominated.

THE BUSINESS PLAN

For effective settlement and business growth in the Northwest Territories, the business plan must be clear and well thought out. The plan should explain what the candidate will do to make sure the business has a good chance of succeeding and can be started as soon as they get there.

The candidate’s business plan should show that he or she has done a lot of study on the economic, market, and cultural factors that will affect the proposed business and that he or she has thought about his or her strengths and weaknesses as a manager.

A third party may help the applicant write his or her business plan, but it’s important that the candidate knows and understands the plan in full. If the person doesn’t know what’s in the plan, the application may be turned down.

Content Required

• The business plan must have the following, but that’s not all.
• Name of the business you want to start and a description of the business idea;
• Information about who owns a business: partnership, sole proprietorship, company, franchise, and purchase;
• Proposed business or industry;
• Applicants must declare:
• The North American business Classification code(s) for the business sector(s) that best fits their planned investment; and
• Based on the National Work Classification System, the work code(s) that best match their level of experience and skill.
• The suggested location of the business;
• Making plans to live in the Northwest Territories;
• What the applicant will bring to the suggested business in terms of management;
• The amount of the proposed investment and a description of how it will be used;
• estimated start-up money and costs;
• Financial information and a plan for support, if needed;
• number of jobs that will be made for people in the NWT;
• carried out market research and all other research to back it up;
• A list of planned trips to the Northwest Territories in the past and/or in the future, if relevant;
• Any training and preparation for starting a business in the Northwest Territories (please include course titles and names of institutions, if available);
• The name, organization, mailing address, phone number, and email address of contracted professional business service providers that the applicant has contacted and/or set up an ongoing working relationship or paid contract with; and
• A list of the names, organizations, mailing addresses, e-mail addresses, and phone numbers of all the people who were hired or contacted during the writing and/or putting together of the business plan.

Companies that don’t qualify

The Nominee Program Business Stream does not accept the following types of businesses:

• Restaurants that have been suggested for Yellowknife;
• Businesses that are only open for less than six months a year;
• Hotels and motels;
• Taking care of properties;
• Investing in real estate;
• businesses run from home;
• Associations and groups that don’t make money;
• Any registered business with the same address as another registered business;
• Payday loans, cashing checks, changing money, and cash machines;
• Pawn shops;
• Businesses that current or past Nominee Program business stream nominees have owned or run in the last five (5) years;
• Any investment plan linked to immigration under section 87(5)(b) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (“IRPR”);
• Section 87(6)(d) of the IRPR says that the rules of an investment must include a way to get your money back.
• A business that, by connection, could hurt the reputation of the Nominee Program or the Northwest Territories Government.

Who can’t apply for the Northwest Territories Business Stream program?

• Applicants are not qualified if they do any of the following:
• Not meet one or more of the above factors for eligibility;
• (or any dependent family member, whether they are travelling with them or not) have a serious health problem;
• (or any family member over 18 who depends on them and is with them or not) has a crime record;
• Have outstanding custody or child support issues that affect a family member;
• Are making claims to be refugees in Canada;
• Are in the process of a government appeal or removal;
• Have applications that are still pending with other state nominee programs;
• Have lied on their application;
• Have lied on their application on purpose; or
• Have suggested investing in a business that is mostly run to make idle investment income.