Citizenship and Immigration Canada
If you are thinking of moving to Nova Scotia, you should visit Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC)'s website (in both English and French) at www.cic.gc.ca. It is the website of the federal department with the primary responsibility for immigration. Among other things, areas covered include the rules for:
- visiting Canada (for example, as a tourist or on a business trip);
- nationalities who are required to have a Temporary Resident Visa;
- studying in Canada as an international student (over 130,000 foreign students studying in Canada each year);
- working temporarily in Canada as a foreign worker;
- immigrating to Canada (obtaining a permanent resident visa formerly called landed immigrant status)
- obtaining citizenship
If you are in Canada, you can contact the CIC Call Centre at 1-888-242-2100. Agents can help you with questions about CIC services and programs. They can also give you limited information about your immigration application.
If you are anywhere outside of Canada, you can contact the Canadian embassy, high commission or consulate responisble for your region. For a detailed list, go to: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/offices/missions.html
Nova Scotia Office of Immigration
Most provinces in Canada have an agreement with the Government of Canada that allows them to play a more direct role in selecting immigrants who wish to settle in that province. The Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) enables the Province of Nova Scotia to recruit and select immigrants who meet the labour market and economic needs of the province. A person who is "nominated" or recommended by Nova Scotia is eligible to apply for a permanent resident visa (formerly landed immigrant) at a Canadian visa office. The advantage of a nominee program is that applications are awarded priority processing and are typically processed faster than applications in other federal categories.
For more information on the immigration streams under the Nova Scotia Nominee Program, please go to website at: novascotiaimmigration.com or contact:
Nova Scotia Office of Immigration
1741 Brunswick Street, Suite 110A
PO Box 1535
Halifax, NS B3J 2Y3
Telephone: (902) 424-5230
Toll Free in Nova Scotia: 1-877-292-9597
Fax: (902) 424-7936
Email: nsnp@gov.ns.ca
Settlement Services
Even though Nova Scotia has fewer than one million residents, it is home to people from a wide variety of ethnic roots from all parts of the globe. For settlement information, contact the Metropolitan Immigrant Settlement Association of Nova Scotia at www.misa.ns.ca
7105 Chebucto Road, Suite 201
Halifax, NS B3L 4W8
Telephone: (902) 423-3607
Fax: (902) 423-3154
Email: info@misa.ns.ca
An organization that reflects our broad cultural life is the Multicultural Association of Nova Scotia. Contact them at www.mans.ns.ca
1113 Marginal Road
Halifax, NS B3H 4P7
Telephone: (902) 423-6434
For more information, visit www.movingincanada.com/NovaScotia/index.htm, or www.relocatecanada.com