The provincial government recently announced that Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents living in Alberta can now sponsor their close relatives under a new section of theAlberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) for fast-tracked Permanent Residency.

"Albertans have family members with skills and knowledge Alberta needs," stated Alberta Minister of Employment and Immigration, Hector Goudreau. "Adding this family stream to the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program will help us meet our workforce needs while creating more diverse and welcoming communities for all our families."

Eligible Albertans can sponsor a parent, child, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, niece or nephew for provincial nomination, provided that the relative meets provincial eligibility criteria. Applicants do not need to have a job offer to apply but they do need to show their ability and intention to join Alberta’s strained labour market. They must have a post-secondary degree, diploma or certificate, work experience, and be between 21 and 45 years old. They, or their spouse, must have accessible funds of at least $10,000 CAD and another $2,000 CAD for each accompanying dependent.

Alberta is now short 30,000 to 40,000 workers, and will be short more than 110,000 workers in the next decade, according to Minister Goudreau. He stated that the new addition to the province's immigrant nominee program will help bring workers to the province on a permanent basis to help with thelabour shortage , and also help create a more welcoming environment for newcomers.