On April 17, 2026, the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia dismissed an application for judicial review in Singh v. Nova Scotia (Labour, Skills and Immigration), 2026 NSSC 120, upholding the Province's decision to refuse an application under the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP). The Court affirmed the immigration officer's assessment of the applicant's legal immigration status and program eligibility.The case concerned the NSNP Occupations in Demand stream and highlights the importance of maintaining valid legal status throughout the provincial nomination process.
The applicant, Ravinder Singh, an Indian national working as a transport truck driver in Nova Scotia, submitted his application under the NSNP Occupations in Demand stream on July 9, 2024, while holding a valid work permit.His open work permit was scheduled to expire on October 11, 2024. He submitted an application to extend his work permit on October 10, 2024, before its expiry. As a result, he benefited from maintained status and was authorized to continue working under the conditions of his previous work permit while Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) processed his extension application.However, on January 29, 2025, IRCC refused his work permit extension application, bringing his maintained status to an end.On April 7, 2025, Singh subsequently applied for restoration of his temporary resident status as a visitor. However, submitting a restoration application does not automatically reinstate legal temporary resident status.Nova Scotia immigration officials requested evidence of his valid legal status on multiple occasions and provided opportunities for him to submit additional documentation.As the applicant failed to provide sufficient evidence establishing that he continued to hold legal status in Canada, the Province closed his NSNP application on July 3, 2025.
The applicant argued that he had held a valid work permit when he initially submitted his provincial nomination application and that the NSNP application guide did not explicitly require applicants to maintain legal status throughout the entire processing period.He further argued that the immigration officer's decision was unreasonable and breached the principles of procedural fairness.Justice Michelle M. Kelly rejected these arguments.The Court found that the NSNP Occupations in Demand application guide required applicants to meet the program's eligibility criteria and expressly allowed the Province to withdraw a nomination if an applicant ceased to satisfy those requirements.The Court also confirmed that immigration officials had provided the applicant with opportunities to explain his immigration status and submit supporting documents, and that the evidence had been reasonably considered.Ultimately, the Court concluded that the July 3, 2025 refusal decision was reasonable and procedurally fair. The application for judicial review was dismissed, with costs awarded to the Province.
An important distinction must be made in this case:Following the refusal of his work permit extension, Singh applied for restoration of status. He was no longer benefiting from maintained status.Under federal immigration law, eligible applicants who apply to extend their temporary resident status before its expiry may maintain their legal status while awaiting a decision. However, maintained status generally ends once the extension application is refused.Submitting an application for restoration of status does not automatically restore legal temporary resident status.Separately, Nova Scotia's 2026 NSNP Skilled Worker Application Guide expressly requires applicants residing in Canada to hold a valid, unexpired temporary resident status document when submitting an Expression of Interest (EOI).The guide states:“Applicants in maintained status, formerly referred to as implied status, are not eligible to submit an EOI.”This means that even where an applicant is lawfully residing in Canada under maintained status pursuant to federal immigration law, they may still be ineligible to submit a new NSNP EOI under the Province's current requirements.Importantly, the Singh decision did not directly examine or determine the legality of Nova Scotia's 2026 policy excluding applicants with maintained status from submitting an EOI.Rather, the case confirms that, under the applicable NSNP program rules, applicants must continue to meet the relevant eligibility requirements, including requirements relating to legal immigration status, throughout the application process.
Scenario 1: Work permit expired, extension application pending, and no EOI submittedEven if an applicant is legally maintaining their temporary resident status and remains authorized to work while awaiting a decision, the current NSNP guidelines generally do not permit the submission of a new EOI based solely on maintained status.Scenario 2: EOI submitted while the work permit was valid, followed by maintained statusNSNP requires applicants to continue meeting the applicable eligibility criteria when their EOI is selected for assessment.Therefore, an EOI submitted while the applicant held a valid work permit does not automatically exempt them from subsequent immigration status requirements. Any changes in immigration status during the processing period should be carefully assessed.Scenario 3: A new valid work permit is issued while the applicant is waitingObtaining a new, valid and unexpired work permit may resolve this specific eligibility barrier.However, the applicant must still satisfy all other applicable program requirements, and the issuance of a new work permit does not guarantee selection for assessment or provincial nomination.
For foreign workers in Nova Scotia, the timing of work permit extensions and the submission of provincial nomination EOIs must be considered together as part of immigration planning.Maintaining lawful immigration status in Canada under federal immigration law does not automatically establish eligibility for provincial nomination.The Singh decision and Nova Scotia's current maintained-status policy involve distinct legal and administrative issues. The judgment should not be interpreted as a court ruling that specifically upheld or invalidated the Province's exclusion of maintained-status applicants from the EOI process.Foreign workers should carefully monitor their immigration status, work permit expiry dates and provincial nomination eligibility to avoid unexpected disruptions to their immigration plans.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for general immigration information purposes only. It does not constitute individualized legal advice or a comprehensive legal commentary on the judgment.LCK Immigration Consulting
Nova Scotia Immigration | Work Permits | Atlantic Immigration Program
