Alberta AAIP 2026 — Streams, Worker EOI Scoring & How to Apply

What Is AAIP?

The Alberta Advantage Immigration Program (AAIP) is Alberta's Provincial Nominee Program, run jointly with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Alberta assesses and nominates candidates whose skills match its labour market; IRCC makes the final decision on permanent residence. AAIP operates eight streams across two categories — four for workers, four for entrepreneurs — and Alberta's 2026 allocation is 6,403 nomination spaces, part of a national PNP quota of 91,500.

The 8 AAIP Streams

Stream	Who it's for
Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS)	Temporary foreign workers already living and working in Alberta with a job offer. Carries roughly 80% of AAIP invitation volume and 53.5% of the 2026 allocation — the practical main route for most applicants.
Alberta Express Entry Stream (AEES)	Candidates already in the federal Express Entry pool with a CRS of at least 300. Targets Dedicated Health Care, Accelerated Tech, Law Enforcement, and Priority Sector (construction, agriculture, aviation) pathways specifically.
Rural Renewal Stream (RRS)	Directs candidates to designated smaller Alberta communities, with an optional Express Entry-linked route.
Tourism and Hospitality Stream	Workers already employed in Alberta's tourism sector with a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).
4 Entrepreneur streams	Farm Stream, Graduate Entrepreneur Stream, Rural Entrepreneur Stream, and the general Entrepreneur Stream — for business owners planning to start, buy, or expand a business in Alberta.

Alberta discontinued the Family Connection and Occupation in Demand pathways of the Express Entry Stream on March 17, 2025 — older guides that still list them are out of date.

How the Worker EOI Is Scored

Most AAIP worker streams use an Expression of Interest (EOI) system rather than first-come-first-served applications. You submit an online profile; Alberta scores it out of 100 points and ranks it in a pool against everyone else. The highest-ranked profiles receive invitations in periodic draws targeting specific streams and sectors.

Category	Max Points	What it covers
Human Capital	69	Age (highest for 21-34, declining toward 0 at 51+), highest education level (extra points for credentials completed in Alberta), language proficiency (CLB/NCLC, based on the lowest of your four test abilities, higher of English or French), total work experience, and having a parent, child, or sibling aged 18+ who is a PR or citizen living in Alberta
Economic Factors	31	Tied directly to your Alberta job offer — job location, whether the occupation is regulated and you meet Alberta's licensing requirements, and other employer-related criteria

Alberta has not published the complete internal point sub-grid for every tier within each category, so treat any online AAIP score estimate, including general guidance here, as directional rather than exact. A score of 60 or higher is generally competitive across most 2026 worker pathways, though targeted rural or sector draws have accepted scores as low as the mid-50s.

Fees & Processing Times (2026)

Item	Cost / Time
Worker stream EOI fee (since April 7, 2026)	CAD $135, non-refundable
Worker stream application fee (after invitation)	CAD $1,500
Entrepreneur stream application fee	CAD $3,500 + CAD $200 EOI fee
Provincial stage processing	Approximately 3–6 months
Federal PR stage, Express Entry-linked	Approximately 7 additional months
Federal PR stage, base (non-Express Entry) stream	Approximately 13 additional months

Alberta vs. British Columbia PNP

The two provinces score candidates on genuinely different logic. BC's SIRS system is heavily wage-driven (55 of 200 points ride on your hourly wage alone) and requires a full-time, indeterminate job offer before you can even register. Alberta's Worker EOI weighs Human Capital factors like age and education more heavily (69 of 100 points) and, through the Alberta Opportunity Stream specifically, is built around workers already living and working in the province rather than requiring an offer to be secured entirely from abroad first. If you have a genuine choice between the two, compare your profile against both point structures rather than assuming one is universally easier — see the BC PNP SIRS Calculator for a numeric estimate on that side.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is the Alberta Worker EOI scored?

Out of 100 points total: up to 69 points for Human Capital factors (age, education, language, work experience, and Alberta family connection), plus up to 31 points for Economic factors tied directly to your Alberta job offer (job location, regulated occupation status, and related criteria). Alberta does not publish the complete internal sub-grid publicly, but a score of 60 or higher is generally competitive across most 2026 pathways.

What is the difference between the Alberta Opportunity Stream and the Alberta Express Entry Stream?

The Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS) is for temporary foreign workers already living and working in Alberta with a job offer, and carries the largest share of AAIP's annual allocation. The Alberta Express Entry Stream (AEES) instead selects candidates directly from the federal Express Entry pool, requires a minimum CRS of 300 to be considered, and a nomination adds 600 CRS points to your federal profile.

How much does it cost to apply through AAIP?

As of April 7, 2026, worker streams carry a non-refundable CAD $135 Expression of Interest (EOI) fee at registration, plus a CAD $1,500 application fee if invited. Entrepreneur streams cost CAD $3,500 plus a CAD $200 EOI fee.

How long does AAIP take to process?

The provincial stage takes roughly 3-6 months. After nomination, the federal permanent residence stage adds approximately 7 more months if you're nominated through an Express Entry-linked stream, or roughly 13 months through a base (non-Express Entry) stream.