Alberta Self-Employed Farmer is one of the streams of the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) that comes under a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) operated by the province of Alberta. This stream is specifically designed to target experienced farm owners & operators who wish to own & operate a farm in the Canadian province of Alberta.
Candidates successfully nominated through this stream are invited to submit an official application for Canadian PR. The program requires a highly individualized application based on the type of farm a person is proposing to launch. As this stream is jointly managed by AINP and Alberta Agriculture and Forestry (AAF), the applicants are required to consult both organizations prior to submission.
| Program Requirements | |
| Express Entry Profile | No |
| Connection to Province | No |
| Job Offer | No |
| Language Proficiency | No minimum |
| Level of Education | No minimum |
| Work Experience | Farm Management Experience |
| Investment Required |
Investment: $500,000 Net Worth: $500,000 |
The candidates applying for PR through this stream must prove their farm management skills. To prove so, AINP requires the applicants to submit financial documents of their existing farming business along with proof of education, training, and work experience related to farm management. They must also provide an extensive business plan outlining their Alberta farm proposal, including the proof that a Canadian financial institution is willing to finance their proposed farming business.
Candidates must prove their financial resources to develop a sustainable farming operation, and must be able to invest a minimum of $500,000 CAD of equity in a primary production farming business in Alberta. Please note that the province of Alberta reserves the right to request applicants to demonstrate that they have the ability to invest more than the minimum.
To prove their financial resources, the candidates must provide financial documents demonstrating a minimum net worth of at least $500,000 CAD or that they have access to these funds from other sources.
The candidates must also create and submit a detailed business plan as to how they intend to invest in a primary production farming business in Alberta. Preference will be given to the applications representing the best opportunity for growth relevant to Alberta’s agri-food needs.
This stream is always open to new applications. The eligible candidates can submit their application any time, but the same is processed on a first-come, first-served basis. It is in the best interest of the candidates to first contact Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) and Alberta Agriculture and Forestry (AAF) prior to preparing their application, as the candidates are assessed by the Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development (AARD) before submission of any application.
As the application requires the applicants to provide evidence that they have researched the farming environment in Alberta (and Canada), candidates may want an exploratory visit to Alberta prior to submitting their application.
Interested candidates are required to prepare a complete a paper-based application, which must be submitted in a single envelope, by mail, to the office of Alberta Agriculture and Forestry (AAF). In case the application is approved by AAF, it is forwarded to AINP for further assessment. Furthermore, if AINP also approves the application, the applicant is notified of their provincial nomination through an official nomination package in the mail from AINP.
The applicant has six months to submit a federal application for Canadian permanent residence after receiving a provincial nomination. It must be noted that the paper-based PNP applications for PR generally take 18 months to be processed.
