Express Entry

The Northwest Territories Express Entry stream provides a pathway to permanent residence for candidates in the Express Entry pool with a job offer from a Northwest Territories employer. It is a stream of the Northwest Territories Nominee Program (NTNP).

With provincial nomination applications processed within 10 weeks and Express Entry applications processed within six months, NTNP Express Entry provides applicants with an accelerated path to Canadian permanent residence, provided they meet all requirements of the NTNP Skilled Worker stream, as well as those of one of three federal economic programs.

Program Requirements

Applicant Requirements

Express Entry Requirement

Northwest Territories Express Entry is aligned with the federal Express Entry system. To submit a profile to the Express Entry pool, applicants must be eligible for at least one of three federal Economic programs:

• Federal Skilled Worker requires candidates to have, at minimum, a high school diploma, as well as at least one year of continuous full-time, skilled work experience. Work experience is considered skilled if obtained in a position at National Occupation Classification (NOC) Skill Level 0, A, or B. Candidates must also demonstrate language proficiency in English or French consistent with Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 7.
• Canadian Experience Class has no minimum education requirement. CEC candidates must have a minimum of one year of full-time Canadian skilled work experience in the last three years. Work experience is considered skilled if obtained in a position at NOC Skill Level 0, A, or B. Candidates must also demonstrate language proficiency in English or French consistent with CLB level 7 for work experience obtained at NOC Skill Level 0 or A and CLB 5 for work experience obtained at NOC Skill Level B.
• Federal Skilled Trades has no minimum education requirement. FST candidates must have at least 2 years of full-time work experience in a skilled trade occupation. Candidates must also have either an offer of employment to work in a skilled trade in Canada or a certificate of qualification in their skilled trade issued by a Canadian authority. Candidates must also demonstrate language proficiency in English or French at CLB Level 5 for speaking and listening and CLB 4 for reading and writing.

Connection to Northwest Territories

The majority of applications accepted to this stream are from temporary foreign workers in the Northwest Territories. Applicants working in the Northwest Territories must demonstrate that they have legal status to work in Canada. Under exceptional circumstances, the Northwest Territories might accept an application from a candidate living abroad.

Job Offer

Candidates must have a full-time job offer from an eligible Northwest Territories employer. The position must be at National Occupation Classification (NOC) Skill Level 0, A, or B.

Language Proficiency

Candidates must submit language test results demonstrating language proficiency sufficient for the skill level of their job offer in either English or French. For positions classified as Skill Level 0 and A, candidates must demonstrate proficiency at Canadian language Benchmark (CLB) level 6 in all four language abilities. For positions classified as Skill Level B, must demonstrate proficiency at CLB level 5 in all four language abilities

Level of Education

All candidates must have sufficient education or specialization to perform the job offer they have received.

Work Experience

Candidates must have at least one year of full-time experience in the same occupation as the job offer they have received.

Employer Requirements

Job Offer Requirements

The employer must offer the foreign national a full-time, permanent job with a comparable industry and occupation salary that does not conflict with any collective bargaining agreements.

Business Requirements

Employers hoping to successfully nominate a skilled foreign worker must either be a registered and operational Northwest Territories business for at least one year, or a municipal, First Nations or territorial government of the Northwest Territories. Employers must have maintained good standing with the Northwest Territories’ Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commision as well as the territory’s Employment Standards office. These standings will be verified by the Department of Education, Culture and Employment.

Recruitment Requirements

Employers will be required to submit a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), or, if  nominating a candidate with an open work permit without submitting an LMIA, must prove they have advertised the open position both locally and nationally. They will also be required to provide a summary of all applicants and the reasons for refusing their application if an offer has been extended to the foreign national without an LMIA.

Application Procedure

The Northwest Territories Express Entry stream is open to new applications at any time. To apply to the stream, candidates who meet the minimum eligibility requirements must create an Express Entry profile. Once they have received a valid job offer from an employer, both the candidate and the employer must submit documentation to support their eligibility claims. Successful applicants will receive a nomination from the Northwest Territories.

After accepting the provincial nomination, the applicant’s Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score will increase by 600 points, virtually guaranteeing they will receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence in the next Express Entry draw. After receiving an ITA, the applicant must prepare and submit an official application for Canadian permanent residence within the designated timeframe. Applications for permanent residence submitted through Express Entry are generally processed within six months.

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