New Brunswick conducted its first Provincial Nominee Program (NBPNP) draws of 2025 on March 5 and 6, issuing a total of 498 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to candidates under two key pathways of the New Brunswick Skilled Worker stream. The draws focused on addressing labor shortages in healthcare, education, social services, and construction trades — sectors that are crucial to the province’s economic growth.
Also Read New Brunswick Conducts First Provincial Immigration Draws of 2025
Targeted Pathways and Occupations
Candidates were invited under the following two pathways:
- New Brunswick Skilled Worker – New Brunswick Experience Pathway – For individuals already working full-time in the province for at least six months.
- New Brunswick Skilled Worker – New Brunswick Graduates Pathway – For international graduates with a valid post-graduate work permit (PGWP) and a job offer from an eligible employer.
The province focused on high-demand occupations, including healthcare workers (nurses, support workers), educators, social service providers, and construction trades (carpenters, electricians).
Changes to New Brunswick Immigration in 2025
New Brunswick has received an allocation of 2,750 immigration spots in 2025 — 1,500 under the NBPNP and 1,250 under the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP). Significant changes to the NBPNP include:
- New Brunswick Express Entry Stream – The program now accepts applications under the Employment in New Brunswick and New Brunswick Interests pathways. However, the New Brunswick Student Connection pathway has been discontinued.
- New Brunswick Strategic Initiative Stream – Paused for 2025 due to high application volumes.
- New Brunswick Skilled Worker Stream – Now includes a third pathway, the New Brunswick Priority Occupations pathway, which targets high-demand jobs from government-led recruitment missions.
Certain occupations, such as administrative assistants, cooks, retail managers, and food service workers, have been excluded from eligibility under the updated program.
Also Read
- Canada Invites 4,000 Healthcare and Social Services Professionals Through Latest Express Entry DrawCanada has continued its targeted immigration strategy by inviting thousands of skilled professionals from the healthcare and social services sector through the latest Express Entry
- Canada Holds Second Physicians Express Entry Draw of 2026, Invites 271 Medical ProfessionalsCanada has continued its targeted immigration strategy by inviting more healthcare professionals to apply for permanent residence through the Express Entry system. In the latest
- Canada Invites 4,000 CEC Candidates in Biggest Express Entry Round Since MarchCanada has conducted another significant Express Entry draw, issuing 4,000 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to candidates under the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) pathway. The latest
- Canada Resumes Express Entry Invitations with Major Provincial Nominee Draw since May 2026Canada has restarted Express Entry invitations after a brief pause, issuing hundreds of new invitations to candidates who have secured a provincial nomination. The latest
- Manitoba Invites 124 Skilled Workers in Latest Immigration DrawManitoba has taken another step toward addressing labour shortages by inviting 124 immigration candidates to pursue a provincial nomination for Canadian permanent residence. The latest
New Brunswick’s revised immigration strategy reflects the province’s focus on attracting skilled talent to support its economic and labor market needs.
