Immigration to New Brunswick through the Strategic Initiative for French-speaking candidates
If you have at least an intermediate level of French, you can immigrate through the Strategic Initiative stream.
Applications under this stream are not currently accepted.
The Strategic Initiative stream of New Brunswick’s provincial program is designed for candidates who speak French and have some connection to the province, such as a job offer or an exploratory visit.
Eligibility
To be eligible to immigrate through the Strategic Initiative stream, you must meet the following requirements:
- be between the ages of 19 and 55;
- have at least a high school education;
- demonstrate French proficiency at level 5 on the CLB scale;
- have 1 year of work experience (not required for those who have completed at least a 2-year program at a provincial university);
- get a connection to New Brunswick:
- make an exploratory visit to the province;
- get a job offer from a local employer;
- receive a direct invitation from provincial representatives;
- make a settlement plan;
- show enough money to support yourself and your family members (see below);
- score 65 points out of 100 on the provincial evaluation system (see below).
Some professions are excluded from participation in the stream:
Evaluation system
New Brunswick evaluates candidates using the Expression of Interest system, in which you can score up to 100 points. Points are awarded as follows:
| Criterion | Points |
| Age (maximum 12) | |
| 19 to 24 years old | 4 |
| 25 to 44 years old | 12 |
| 45 to 50 years old | 4 |
| 51 to 55 years old | 0 |
| Language level (maximum 28) | |
| Points are given for each skill (reading, writing, listening, speaking) depending on the level. They must be added up. | |
| CLB 7 and higher | 7 |
| CLB 5, 6 | 6 |
| CLB 4 | 5 |
| Education (maximum 25) | |
| Master's or PhD degree | 25 |
| Professional degree required for a licensed profession (medical, veterinary, dental, optometry, law, chiropractic, or pharmacy professions only) | |
| Two or more certificates/diplomas from a college, university, or other institution (one must be for an academic program of 3 years or more) | 22 |
| Bachelor's degree or completed academic program of 3 years or more | 21 |
| Diploma/certificate in a 2-year academic program | 19 |
| Diploma/certificate in a 1-year academic program | 17 |
| High school diploma | 15 |
| Work experience (maximum 15) | |
| 6 or more years | 15 |
| 4 to 5 years | 12 |
| 1 to 3 years | 10 |
| Less than 1 year | 0 |
| Adaptability (maximum 20) | |
| An exploratory visit to New Brunswick | 15 |
| At least 1 year of work experience in New Brunswick | |
| A job offer in New Brunswick | |
| An invitation from representatives of New Brunswick | |
| Relatives in the province (children, brothers, sisters, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, nephews) | 5 |
| Your spouse or partner has a job offer in New Brunswick or a Canadian work permit | 5 |
Settlement funds
You must show that you have enough money for the first time living in New Brunswick. This requirement is waived if you have a job in the province.
| Number of family members | Required amount in Canadian dollars |
| 1 | $13,310 |
| 2 | $16,570 |
| 3 | $20,371 |
| 4 | $24,733 |
| 5 | $28,052 |
| 6 | $31,638 |
| 7 | $34,224 |
| Each additional family member | $3,586 |
How to apply
If you want to make an exploratory visit to the province to get a connection, you have to notify the provincial representatives by mail at least 30 days in advance. In the letter you must indicate the dates of your visit and attach a photo or scan of your passport.
Those who already have a connection to the province should create an account on the New Brunswick provincial website.
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To learn about other New Brunswick provincial program streams, see "Immigration to New Brunswick — Canada's provincial program".
