Newfoundland and Labrador PNP (NLPNP): 2026 Guide

The Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Nominee Program (NLPNP) is run by the Office of Immigration and Multiculturalism (OIM) in the Department of Jobs, Growth and Rural Development. It aims to attract people who can contribute to the province's economy and intend to settle there permanently. After a nomination, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) decides the permanent residence application.

The province's NLPNP overview lists five categories: Express Entry Skilled Worker, Skilled Worker, International Graduate, International Entrepreneur and International Graduate Entrepreneur. The province also manages the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP), a separate federal program, through the same EOI system.

Provincial application fee

$0

To submit a complete application after an invitation (temporary)

30 days

Before an unselected EOI expires

12 months

Before 2025, the program worked on a first-come, first-served basis. The province says demand in 2024 far outstripped its limited immigration spaces, so on February 19, 2025 it announced an expression of interest model for all economic immigration applications. Spaces are now spread across the year, and candidates whose profiles best match provincial priorities are more likely to be invited.

Only the Express Entry Skilled Worker category is linked to the federal Express Entry system. A nomination through it adds 600 points to your Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score. The other categories lead to a base nomination, and you apply to IRCC outside Express Entry.

Express Entry Skilled Worker. You must be accepted into IRCC's Express Entry pool and have a full-time job or job offer in a TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3 occupation. Your employer must have a valid Job Vacancy Assessment (JVA) or Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), unless you already hold a valid work permit for the job. You also need a Canadian post-secondary credential or an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA), a valid language test at the level your federal program requires, and documents for all work experience in your Express Entry profile. PGWP holders can qualify.

Skilled Worker. For a full-time job or job offer in any TEER level. If you do not already have a valid work permit for the job, the employer needs a valid JVA. TEER 4 and 5 jobs require a language test at Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 4 or higher, valid for the whole provincial process and your permanent residence application. PGWP holders cannot use this category and must apply as International Graduates or through Express Entry Skilled Worker.

International Graduate. You need a PGWP with at least four months left when you apply, and a full-time job in a TEER 0–3 occupation or a TEER 4 occupation the province lists as in demand. The job should match your field of study. Memorial University and College of the North Atlantic graduates may hold a job outside their field if it requires post-secondary education, is TEER 0–3 or in-demand TEER 4, and can lead to career advancement. Graduates of public institutions outside the province need a job related to their field and one year of work in Newfoundland and Labrador first. TEER 4 jobs require a language test.

International Entrepreneur. For business owners or senior managers who will start or buy a business and manage it daily for at least one year before nomination. The province's criteria include age 21 to 59, at least $600,000 in transferable personal and business assets, an investment of at least $200,000 with at least one-third ownership (or $1 million in equity), at least one new full-time job for a citizen or permanent resident, CLB 5, a Canadian high school diploma or equivalent, and either 2 years of business ownership in the last 5 or 5 years of senior management in the last 10. You need a Net Worth Verification Report from a designated verifier and, if you live outside the province, an exploratory visit. See the province's current criteria.

International Graduate Entrepreneur. For graduates of Memorial University or the College of the North Atlantic who completed a degree or diploma of at least two years of full-time, in-person study within the last two years, hold a valid PGWP, have owned at least one-third of a local business and managed it for one full year, created at least one full-time job and have CLB 7. A licensed Chartered Professional Accountant in the province must prepare a review engagement and a special purpose report.

• Full-time job or job offerAt least 30 hours a week, at least one year with a reasonable expectation of extension, from an eligible employer, paid by salary or hourly wage (not commission), meeting provincial employment standards and regional prevailing wage rates.
• QualificationsThe training, skills or accreditation the job requires, meeting the NOC employment requirements.
• Age21 to 59 years old.
• Valid status in CanadaIf you live in Canada, your permit must have at least four months left when you apply to the NLPNP.
• Settlement fundsEnough to cover living costs, travel, IRCC fees and housing. The province looks at family size, relocation costs, savings, assets, debts and expected salary.
• Intention to settleA plan to live permanently in Newfoundland and Labrador with your family.
• Ownership limitIf you own part of the business that employs you, your share cannot exceed 10%.
• Police certificates and translationsPolice certificates for places you lived more than 6 months since age 18, or in the last 10 years, whichever is more recent.

You are not eligible if you or a dependent family member over 22 have a criminal record, if you have an unresolved custody or child support dispute, if you or your employer misrepresent facts, or if you are an in-Canada refugee claimant. Claimants whose claims were rejected, abandoned or withdrawn must leave Canada before applying.

Your EOI captures key information such as your occupation, education and intention to live in the province. OIM reviews the pool and issues invitations to apply in batches through the year. Its published prioritization criteria (updated March 23, 2026) say it may prioritize:

• Health and health-related occupations.
• Sales and service jobs in rural or regional communities where employers struggle to recruit (St. John's metro jobs in these occupations may get lower priority).
• Jobs in rural and regional areas outside major urban centres.
• Occupations less used in the province than elsewhere, such as business and finance, science and research, and trades and transport.
• Employers with a strong compliance and retention record.
• Signs you will stay long term, such as community ties, family or past residence in the province.
• Graduates of Newfoundland and Labrador institutions in priority sectors.
• Francophone immigration objectives.
• Strong settlement and integration support from the employer or community.

From March 6 to November 4, 2026, the province issued 2,824 NLPNP invitations and 408 Atlantic Immigration Program invitations in 22 rounds (as published on the province's Invitations to Apply Updates page, updated November 4, 2026, checked November 4, 2026). The province does not say which NLPNP category each invitation went to and does not publish a cut-off score.

The Express Entry Skilled Worker category also requires 67 out of 100 points on the province's own point assessment grid. This is separate from the federal CRS score.

Examples from the grid: a master's or doctorate earns 28 points; CLB 8 or higher earns 27, CLB 7 earns 23; age 22 to 33 earns 12; a close relative in the province who is a citizen or permanent resident earns 7; and 12 months of work or one academic year of study in the province earns 3 each.

1. 1

   1. Secure a job offer (worker categories)

   If you do not already have a valid work permit for the job, your employer applies for a Job Vacancy Assessment. For Express Entry Skilled Worker, create your federal Express Entry profile first.

2. 2

   2. Submit an EOI

   Use the Immigration Accelerator Portal. Entrepreneurs use the entrepreneur EOI forms, which the province says are currently open.

3. 3

   3. Invitation to apply

   If selected, you receive an invitation. You then have 30 days to submit a complete application. The province says it temporarily reduced this from 60 days to process applications within the current year.

4. 4

   4. Assessment

   You get regular dashboard updates while OIM assesses your file, then a notice of approval or refusal.

5. 5

   5. Nomination

   For Express Entry Skilled Worker, the nomination is linked to your Express Entry profile and you wait for an IRCC invitation. For other categories, you apply to IRCC outside Express Entry.

6. 6

   6. Apply to IRCC

   Submit your permanent residence application. IRCC checks medical, security and criminal admissibility for you and your family and makes the final decision.

Tell OIM about any change in your situation, such as marital status, address or employment, before, during and after your nomination. Language tests must stay valid through the provincial process and the submission of your permanent residence application.

Newfoundland and Labrador removed its PNP application fees in Budget 2022 (April 13, 2022): the $250 skilled worker fee and the $1,000 entrepreneur fee. You still pay for language tests, credential assessments, translations and police certificates. Entrepreneurs also pay the net worth verifier or accountant and the costs of the exploratory visit and in-person interview. The province does not publish provincial processing times. IRCC's processing times for the second stage are shown below, live from IRCC's processing times tool.

A challenge to an IRCC refusal in Federal Court requires a lawyer.

1. April 13, 2022

   Provincial application fees removed

   The $250 skilled worker and $1,000 entrepreneur fees were eliminated.

2. February 19, 2025

   EOI model announced, replacing first-come, first-served

   All NLPNP and AIP applications now start with an EOI.

3. March 23, 2026

   Prioritization criteria updated

   Health, rural jobs, underrepresented occupations, retention and Francophone objectives.

4. May 2026

   Consultation on immigration legislation

   The province asked for views on recruiter licensing, an employer registry and penalties. This is a consultation, not law.

5. Date not stated

   Application window cut to 30 days

   Temporarily reduced from 60 days, as the year ends, to process applications within the current year.

Priority Skills NL is not among the five categories on the province's NLPNP overview checked on November 4, 2026. Do not plan around it unless the province lists it again.

The Atlantic Immigration Program is a separate federal program for designated employers in the four Atlantic provinces. In Newfoundland and Labrador, AIP candidates also go through the EOI model: its 2026 rounds up to November 4 included 408 AIP invitations. AIP needs a designated employer, a settlement plan and a provincial endorsement, and does not give the 600 Express Entry points. See the Provincial Nominee Program page for a comparison.

If IRCC approves your application, you receive a confirmation of permanent residence and then a permanent resident card. Entrepreneurs are nominated only after running their business for a year under the province's terms; the province publishes a sample business performance agreement. Your nomination is based on your intention to live in Newfoundland and Labrador, so plan to settle there.