New Brunswick PNP.
Three priority sectors, a bilingual advantage, and rationed space.
New Brunswick is running the tightest sector filter in Atlantic Canada. Since May 4, 2026 its main worker pathway — NB Experience — issues invitations only to health care, education and construction trades workers "until further notice", and accommodation and food-service occupations have been closed to new invitations since February, along with a published blacklist of NOC codes from cooks to retail supervisors. Candidates outside the priority sectors are told plainly that their EOIs can be withdrawn.
Two things set NB apart beyond the squeeze. As Canada's only officially bilingual province it runs a dedicated Francophone stream — the Strategic Initiative Stream, reopened in January 2026 — and it is the only Atlantic province that rations Atlantic Immigration Program endorsements through the same EOI pool as its PNP, so even the AIP runs through provincial draws here. New Brunswick has not published a 2026 allocation. IRCC allocated 43,999 nomination spaces nationally and the seven jurisdictions that published theirs account for 37,255, so roughly 6,744 is shared between New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI and Newfoundland and Labrador.
allocation
a nomination
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Brampton & London
How the NBPNP works.
New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program, run by Government of New Brunswick with IRCC. You qualify under a stream, get selected or nominated, then IRCC decides your PR. Official site →
EOI
New Brunswick invites from its EOI pool by sector rather than by a published points cut-off — since May 2026 the main worker pathway invites only health care, education and construction trades.
Allocation & fees
2,988 invitations across 23 rounds in 2026, latest July 18. Since May 4, 2026 NB Experience invites only health care, education and construction trades. Figures change — verify on the official site. Data checked 2026-08-23.
Live tracker
New Brunswick in 2026, by the numbers.
New Brunswick publishes round-level invitation data plus a long list of occupation and sector shut-outs - the restrictions are what actually decide your case. Has not published a 2026 nomination allocation. IRCC allocated 43,999 spaces nationally; the seven jurisdictions that published theirs account for 37,255, leaving about 6,744 shared between Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, PEI and Newfoundland and Labrador.
| Date | Round | Invited |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 18, 2026 | —NB Skilled Worker — NB Graduates | 209 |
| Jul 18, 2026 | —NB Skilled Worker — NB Experience / NB Priorities | 58 |
| Jul 16, 2026 | —NB Strategic Initiative — Francophone workers in NB / NB Francophone priorities | 254 |
| Jul 16, 2026 | —NB Express Entry — Employment in New Brunswick | 115 |
| Jun 4, 2026 | —NB Express Entry — Employment in New Brunswick | 75 |
| Jun 3, 2026 | —NB Skilled Worker — NB Experience | 243 |
New Brunswick issued 2,988 invitations across 23 NBPNP rounds in 2026, most recently 209 and 58 on July 18. Separately it selected 572 Atlantic Immigration Program applications for processing across six rounds, the latest on August 10 and 20. It also publishes a long list of live restrictions, and they are unusually aggressive. Since May 4, 2026 every new invitation under the NB Skilled Worker - New Brunswick Experience pathway is confined to healthcare, education and construction trades, because the stream is running out of allocation. Since February 3, 2026 no expression of interest or invitation is being considered under the NB Skilled Worker or NB Express Entry streams for candidates working in accommodation and food services (NAICS 72), nor for a long list of retail, cashier, service-station, shelf-stocking, meat-cutting and food and fish processing occupations regardless of sector. The same date paused new employer designation applications, and Atlantic Immigration Program endorsements are refused outright for NAICS 72 positions and for shippers and receivers, retail and wholesale managers, retail supervisors, buyers, retail salespersons and fish and seafood plant workers.
A separate federal program with its own allocation. These figures are not provincial nominations and are never added to the PNP totals above.
6 rounds in 2026
Latest round · August 10 and 20, 2026 — 68 selected
New Brunswick is the only Atlantic province that rations AIP endorsements through the same EOI pool as its PNP, so AIP runs through provincial selection rounds here. Endorsements are refused outright for NAICS 72 positions and for a published list of retail and warehouse occupations.
IRCC allocated 3,315 AIP spaces across the four Atlantic provinces for 2026.
Official source ↗ · checked 2026-08-23
Where people settle in New Brunswick
New Brunswick is officially bilingual, and French ability opens the Strategic Initiative stream wherever you settle.
Moncton
The largest and fastest-growing centre: transport, distribution, contact centres and health care.
Saint John
Port city with energy, shipping and industrial employers.
Fredericton
Provincial capital: public administration, universities and a technology cluster.
Dieppe
Majority-francophone city beside Moncton, relevant to the francophone streams.
Living in New Brunswick is what the NBPNP 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.
NB PNP points calculator (Express Entry stream)
The Express Entry stream is scored out of 100. You need 67 to be eligible.
Express Entry stream only. New Brunswick's other pathways publish no score — they invite by sector and labour-market need.
NBPNP 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.
New Brunswick Critical Worker Pilot
Employer-driven pilot for designated New Brunswick employers, running to the end of 2027.
Skilled Worker — NB Experience
The main pathway, currently restricted to health care, education and construction trades invitations only.
Skilled Worker — NB Graduates
For graduates of New Brunswick institutions with provincial job offers.
Express Entry — Employment in NB
Enhanced 600-CRS-point stream, with an expanded excluded-NOC list since February 3, 2026.
Strategic Initiative Stream
The Francophone stream — Francophone Workers and Francophone Priorities pathways — reopened January 2026 after a year paused; 189 invitations in the March round.
Atlantic Immigration Program
Endorsements rationed through the same provincial EOI pool (125 AIP invitations in March 2026); employer designation intake paused since February while NB reassesses designated employers.
Private Career College Graduate Pilot
Extended in limited capacity to the end of 2027.
Where New Brunswick selection actually turns — the factors that decide whether a profile is invited.
2,988 invitations in 2026
Twenty-three NBPNP rounds through July 18, plus 572 Atlantic Immigration Program applications selected across six rounds — New Brunswick does publish its round data, at gnb.ca.
Three sectors only
Health care, education and construction trades are the whole invitation universe for NB Experience right now — the bluntest priority filter of any PNP.
The bilingual card
French ability opens the Strategic Initiative Stream and its recruitment-mission pipeline — the one NB door not sector-restricted.
AIP behind the same gate
Unlike the rest of Atlantic Canada, you cannot simply find a designated NB employer and file for AIP endorsement — NB invites AIP candidates from its EOI pool.
Cheap but scarce
The fee is only $250 ($2,000 entrepreneurial), but NB warned in May 2026 that limited nomination spaces remain.
Four stages from first interest to a permanent-residence decision.
Register / submit an EOI
Create a profile in the NBPNP pool; you are scored and ranked on EOI.
Get selected / invited
New Brunswick 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 NBPNP nomination = +600 CRS
Through the New Brunswick 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.
NBPNP FAQ.
Does the New Brunswick PNP have a points system?
What score do I need for the NB Express Entry stream?
My occupation is not in health care, education or construction. Is New Brunswick closed to me?
How is the Atlantic Immigration Program different in New Brunswick?
Does speaking French help in New Brunswick?
What does the NBPNP cost?
Does a NBPNP nomination guarantee permanent residence?
How does the NBPNP connect to Express Entry?
What is the NBPNP scoring system?
Can CHK Immigration help if I'm not in Ontario?
NBPNP eligibility review
Would New Brunswick actually invite you?
Send a few details and a licensed RCIC will tell you where you would rank under EOI, which NBPNP stream fits, and whether another province is a faster route.
- Scored against the live NBPNP 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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