Alberta.
AAIP, decoded.
Alberta runs the most sector-engineered nominee program in Canada. Where other provinces hold general draws, the AAIP holds dozens of targeted ones — 56 worker-stream draws in the first half of 2026 alone — aimed at construction, manufacturing, agriculture, aviation, technology, health care and even police officers. Its 2026 allocation of 6,603 is one of the country's largest, and Alberta was the rare province to win a mid-year top-up of 200 extra nominations from IRCC in August, a signal that it fully spends what it is given.
The program modernized sharply in 2026: a $135 fee now applies to each Worker EOI, job offers must carry wage and hours data, EOIs became editable, and invited candidates may now reject an invitation and return to the pool. The discontinued Family Connection pathway is a common trap — family in Alberta now earns points, not a stream.
How the AAIP works.
Alberta Advantage Immigration Program, run by Government of Alberta with IRCC. You qualify under a stream, get selected or nominated, then IRCC decides your PR. Official site →
Worker EOI · out of 100
AAIP points cut-offs in 2026 have ranged from 47 (aviation) to 73 (tourism), and the pool held roughly 36,900 EOIs in August — sector and stream choice matter more than raw score.
Allocation & fees
56 targeted draws in H1 2026; 36,932 EOIs in pool vs 2,419 spaces left as of August 12, 2026. IRCC granted 200 extra nominations in August (6,403 to 6,603). Figures change — verify on the official site. Data checked 2026-08-23.
Live tracker
Alberta in 2026, by the numbers.
| Date | Round | Invited |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 19, 2026 | 60 EOIDedicated Health Care Pathway – non-Express Entry | 24 |
| Aug 14, 2026 | 58 EOIAlberta Opportunity Stream | 743 |
| Aug 12, 2026 | 60 EOIDedicated Health Care Pathway – Express Entry | 57 |
| Aug 11, 2026 | 51 EOIRural Renewal Stream | 127 |
| Aug 7, 2026 | 55 EOIAlberta Express Entry Stream – Priority Sectors (Agriculture) | 38 |
| Aug 6, 2026 | 60 EOIAlberta Express Entry Stream – Accelerated Tech Pathway | 95 |
Alberta is the most transparent program in the country: it publishes a dated draw table plus live nomination counts. 4,184 of 6,603 nomination spaces are used and 2,419 remain, after the federal top-up on 10 August 2026.
Where people settle in Alberta
The Rural Renewal Stream requires a job offer from an employer in a designated rural community, so where you work changes which stream you can use.
Calgary
Energy, corporate head offices, logistics and a large tech sector.
Edmonton
The provincial capital: health care, public administration, petrochemicals and post-secondary institutions.
Red Deer
Central Alberta manufacturing and trades, and a designated community for rural pathways.
Lethbridge
Agriculture and food processing in the south, also a rural-designated centre.
Living in Alberta is what the AAIP is for: a nomination ties you to this province, and you are expected to settle here. Talk to a licensed RCIC before you commit to a destination.
AAIP points calculator (Worker Expression of Interest)
Alberta scores Worker Expression of Interest profiles out of 100 — 69 for human capital and 31 for economic factors. Fill this in to see your score, the breakdown, and how it sits against the minimum scores Alberta actually drew at in 2026.
Is your occupation eligible for the AAIP?
Alberta works the opposite way round to most provinces. The Alberta Opportunity Stream accepts every NOC from TEER 0 to 5 except a published list of 34 exclusions — so if your occupation is not on that list, it is not restricted. Separate lists govern the targeted pathways. Enter a NOC code or job title to check all of them at once.
Browse all 99 listed occupations
Ineligible for the Alberta Opportunity Stream 34
| NOC 2021 | Occupation | TEER |
|---|---|---|
00010 | Legislators | 0 |
40021 | School principals and administrators of elementary and secondary education | 0 |
40030 | Managers in social, community and correctional services | 0 |
40041 | Fire chiefs and senior firefighting officers | 0 |
60040 | Escort agency managers and massage parlour managers partial | 0 |
41100 | Judges | 1 |
41220 | Secondary school teachers | 1 |
41221 | Elementary school and kindergarten teachers | 1 |
51111 | Authors and writers (except technical) | 1 |
51122 | Musicians and singers | 1 |
42200 | Justices of the peace partial | 2 |
42202 | Early childhood educators without Alberta certification, or certified at Level 1 only partial | 2 |
43100 | Elementary and secondary school teacher assistants | 3 |
43109 | Other instructors | 3 |
33100 | Dental laboratory assistants and bench workers partial | 3 |
53121 | Actors, comedians and circus performers | 3 |
53122 | Painters, sculptors and other visual artists | 3 |
53124 | Artisans and craftspersons | 3 |
53200 | Athletes | 3 |
63101 | Real estate agents and salespersons | 3 |
44100 | Home child care providers | 4 |
44101 | Home support workers, caregivers and related occupations | 4 |
64321 | Casino occupations | 4 |
55109 | Other performers | 5 |
65109 | Other sales related occupations | 5 |
65211 | Operators and attendants in amusement, recreation and sport | 5 |
65229 | Other support occupations in personal services | 5 |
65329 | Other service support occupations | 5 |
75200 | Taxi and limousine drivers and chauffeurs | 5 |
85101 | Harvesting labourers | 5 |
85102 | Aquaculture and marine harvest labourers | 5 |
85104 | Trappers and hunters | 5 |
85110 | Mine labourers | 5 |
85121 | Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers | 5 |
Four entries marked partial exclude only the named job titles, not the whole NOC. Retail and wholesale trade managers (60040), paralegals (42200), Level 2 and Level 3 certified early childhood educators (42202) and dental assistants (33100) all remain eligible.
Nothing in this list matches your search.
Accelerated Tech Pathway 44
| NOC 2021 | Occupation |
|---|---|
00012 | Senior managers – financial, communications and other business services |
10011 | Human resources managers |
10022 | Advertising, marketing and public relations managers |
10030 | Telecommunication carriers managers |
11200 | Human resources professionals |
11202 | Professional occupations in advertising, marketing and public relations |
12101 | Human resources and recruitment officers |
20010 | Engineering managers |
20011 | Architecture and science managers |
20012 | Computer and information systems managers |
21210 | Mathematicians, statisticians and actuaries |
21211 | Data scientists |
21220 | Cybersecurity specialists |
21221 | Business systems specialists |
21222 | Information systems specialists |
21223 | Database analysts and data administrators |
21230 | Computer systems developers and programmers |
21231 | Software engineers and designers |
21232 | Software developers and programmers |
21233 | Web designers |
21234 | Web developers and programmers |
21300 | Civil engineers |
21301 | Mechanical engineers |
21310 | Electrical and electronics engineers |
21311 | Computer engineers (except software engineers and designers) |
22110 | Biological technologists and technicians |
22212 | Drafting technologists and technicians |
22220 | Computer network and web technicians |
22221 | User support technicians |
22222 | Information systems testing technicians |
22301 | Mechanical engineering technologists and technicians |
22302 | Industrial engineering and manufacturing technologists and technicians |
22310 | Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians |
32120 | Medical laboratory technologists |
32129 | Other medical technologists and technicians |
33101 | Medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations |
41402 | Business development officers and market researchers and analysts |
50011 | Managers – publishing, motion pictures, broadcasting and performing arts |
51120 | Producers, directors, choreographers and related occupations |
52120 | Graphic designers and illustrators |
60010 | Corporate sales managers |
72200 | Electricians (except industrial and power system) |
72201 | Industrial electricians |
72205 | Telecommunications equipment installation and cable television service technicians |
Your employer must also operate in one of 27 eligible tech industries by NAICS code. Both conditions apply — an eligible occupation at an employer outside those industries does not qualify. An initial pathway web form must be submitted before you register an EOI. Alberta’s published list is dated November 2022 and has not been refreshed since.
Nothing in this list matches your search.
Tourism and Hospitality Stream 18
| NOC 2021 | Occupation |
|---|---|
54100 | Program leaders and instructors in recreation, sport and fitness |
60030 | Restaurant and food services managers |
60031 | Accommodation service managers |
62020 | Food service supervisors |
62200 | Chefs |
63200 | Cooks |
64300 | Maîtres d’hôtel and hosts and hostesses |
64301 | Bartenders |
64314 | Hotel front desk clerks |
64320 | Tour and travel guides |
64322 | Outdoor sport and recreational guides |
65200 | Food and beverage servers |
65201 | Food counter attendants, kitchen helpers and related support occupations |
65210 | Support occupations in accommodation, travel and facilities set-up services |
65310 | Light duty cleaners |
65311 | Specialized cleaners |
65312 | Janitors, caretakers and heavy-duty cleaners |
65320 | Dry cleaning, laundry and related occupations |
Your employer must belong to an eligible sector association and hold WCB coverage in industry codes 80701 to 89702. This stream carries the lowest experience bar in Alberta — six consecutive months, 780 hours, with the same employer — but the highest cut-off, running 71 to 73 points all year. Only 22 nominations remained in August 2026.
Nothing in this list matches your search.
Law Enforcement Pathway 3
| NOC 2021 | Occupation |
|---|---|
40040 | Commissioned (management) police officers and related occupations in public protection services |
41310 | Police investigators and other investigative occupations |
42100 | Police officers (except commissioned) |
Your job offer must come from an Alberta Association of Chiefs of Police member organisation. This is the smallest pathway in the country: 12 nominations for all of 2026, and every draw is reported as fewer than ten invitations.
Nothing in this list matches your search.
Two pathways publish no occupation list at all. Priority Sectors names only construction, agriculture and aviation on its eligibility page, yet 2026 draws also ran manufacturing and health care rounds — sector scope is set draw by draw. Dedicated Health Care is defined by nine regulated professions and their colleges rather than by NOC. Transcribed from alberta.ca and verified 22 August 2026; confirm on alberta.ca before you file.
AAIP streams, criteria and process.
Choose the stream that fits your profile. Criteria and open or closed status change often — we confirm what is live before you file.
Alberta Opportunity Stream
The workhorse — 3,562 of the 2026 allocation. TEER 0–5, but only for people already working in Alberta for an Alberta employer; there is no overseas entry point. Mid-2026 cut-offs ran 50–65 points.
Rural Renewal Stream
1,057 spaces. A designated rural community — not just an employer — must endorse you before you can be invited. The endorsement letter is the real gateway document.
Express Entry — Accelerated Tech
619 spaces for tech occupations with Alberta ties; 2026 cut-offs ran 55–63. Requires both an eligible NOC and an employer in an eligible tech industry, and an initial web form before you can register. Adds 600 CRS points to a federal profile.
Express Entry — Priority Sectors
619 spaces drawn by industry: construction hit 65 points in July, agriculture 56, manufacturing 50, aviation 47 in June. Alberta publishes no occupation list for this pathway — sector scope is set draw by draw.
Express Entry — Law Enforcement
The smallest pathway in the country: 12 nominations for all of 2026, every draw reported as fewer than ten. Restricted to three NOCs — 40040, 41310 and 42100 — with a job offer from an Alberta Association of Chiefs of Police member service. Cut-offs 46–58.
Dedicated Health Care Pathways
518 spaces across Express Entry and non-EE tracks for physicians, nurses and other regulated health workers; 2026 cut-offs 52–64.
Tourism & Hospitality Stream
Just 156 spaces and nearly exhausted by mid-2026 — cut-offs of 71–73 made it the hardest AAIP draw of the year.
Entrepreneur streams
Rural, Graduate, Foreign Graduate and Farm streams share a tiny 60-space allocation. Farm Stream fee is now $3,500.
Where Alberta selection actually turns — the factors that decide whether a profile is invited.
A 36,932-deep pool
Demand dwarfs supply: 23,291 of the 36,932 profiles sit in the Alberta Opportunity Stream pool alone, against 4,991 in Priority Sectors, 3,490 in Tourism & Hospitality, 2,046 in Accelerated Tech, 1,728 in Rural Renewal, 1,335 in Health Care and just 51 in Law Enforcement. Targeting an undersubscribed sector draw beats waiting in the general queue.
Pay-to-play EOIs
Since April 7, 2026 each Worker EOI costs $135, non-refundable — Alberta is the first province to charge at the pool stage. The application fee itself is $1,500 for worker streams and $3,500 for entrepreneur and farm streams, and the entrepreneur EOI carries its own separate $200 fee.
Sector draws, not general draws
Construction, manufacturing, agriculture, aviation, tech, health care and law enforcement each get their own draws and their own cut-offs.
Fast, dated processing
Alberta publishes exactly which application date each stream is assessing — most streams sat 1–3.5 months behind in August 2026.
Four stages from first interest to a permanent-residence decision.
Register / submit an EOI
Create a profile in the AAIP pool; you are scored and ranked on Worker EOI.
Get selected / invited
Alberta invites or approves candidates who meet its priorities, then issues a nomination.
Provincial nomination
Add 600 CRS in Express Entry (enhanced) or apply on paper (base), depending on your stream.
Apply to IRCC for PR
Submit your permanent-residence application; IRCC makes the final decision.
A AAIP nomination = +600 CRS
Through the Alberta Express Entry Stream, an enhanced nomination adds 600 points to your Comprehensive Ranking System score — in practice, a guaranteed invitation to apply in the next Express Entry round.
AAIP FAQ.
Can I apply to the AAIP from outside Canada?
What happened to the Family Connection pathway?
What does the AAIP cost in 2026?
How competitive are AAIP draws right now?
Does a AAIP nomination guarantee permanent residence?
How does the AAIP connect to Express Entry?
What is the AAIP scoring system?
Can CHK Immigration help if I'm not in Ontario?
AAIP eligibility review
Would Alberta actually invite you?
Send a few details and a licensed RCIC will tell you where you would rank under Worker EOI, which AAIP stream fits, and whether another province is a faster route.
- Scored against the live AAIP cut-offs, not last year’s
- A written shortlist of the streams you realistically qualify for
- Reviewed by a CICC-licensed Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant; fees and thresholds verified September 2026
- Consultations are fee-based; you get the fee and available times by reply
CHK Immigration Services — Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (CICC). Offices in Brampton and London, Ontario. Submitting this form does not create a client–consultant relationship; IRCC makes all final decisions.
consultant
Brampton & London
nomination
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