British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program
British Columbia, a province on Canada’s western coast, is one of the most popular Canadian immigration destinations due to its economic growth and labor market demands.
The BC PNP – British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program – allows in-demand overseas immigrants and skilled entrepreneurs to immigrate to Canada and earn permanent residency in the province. The program’s goal is to expedite the process for prospective immigrants who want to stay permanently in the province to receive Canada PR.
The program is managed by the British Columbia government in conjunction with Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the federal immigration department. Candidates interested in the BC PNP must go through a two-stage application process. First, they must file an application for nomination with the provincial government. Second, if they are successful in getting the provincial nomination, they must apply to the Federal Government for Permanent Resident status.
A few BC PNP immigration streams are linked to the federal immigration selection system, Canada Express Entry. Successful applicants using these channels receive 600 additional CRS – Comprehensive Ranking System points – as well as an ITA – Invitation to Apply for PR Visa – in the pool’s subsequent draw.
Furthermore, some of the BC PNP streams are controlled using a one-of-a-kind system called as the SIRS – Skills Immigration Registration System. This SIRS system requires potential applicants to first construct a SIRS profile. They must also provide select individuals with information about their educational background, language skills, employment experience, and a job offer in British Columbia.
The SIRS is based on an EOI (Expression of Interest) and an ITA (Invitation to Apply), in which registered candidates are given a score out of 200. The government of British Columbia then conducts draws on a regular basis, and candidates who meet the cut-off standard for their stream in that draw are offered an ITA for a provincial nomination.
While some BC PNP streams require candidates to have a work offer from a provincial company, SIRS-managed external streams do not have this restriction.
In 2017, the BC PNP also introduced the Tech Pilot Program, which allows IT and tech workers to come to BC and get Canadian PR status.
What are different BC PNP Immigration Pathways?
British Columbia’s Provincial Nominee Program provides immigrants with three avenues to Permanent Resident status in the province. Each stream offers sub-categories that you can select based on your international student status, career, or skill level under National Occupational Classification. The BC PNP draw, which invites candidates to apply for nomination through one of the qualifying streams under BC PNP, is held on a regular basis.
BC Skilled Immigration
Skilled and semi-skilled workers in British Columbia’s highly desired occupations can apply through Skills Immigration, which uses a points-based invitation system. The process involves online registration and application for BC PNP, as well as a paper-based PR application process.
Some subcategories of SI may not require prior work experience. Skilled workers can have international work experience, however semi-skilled and entry-level stream applicants must have work experience in British Columbia. Depending on the employment offer, fresh international graduates from a Canadian university or college may not need any work experience.
BC Skills Immigration seeks abroad nationals with the necessary skills to be contributing members of the province’s workforce. Its sub-streams focus on migrants with job opportunities in British Columbia and those who have the necessary experience to obtain and maintain employment as citizens of the province. The SI sub-categories are shown below:
- British Columbia Healthcare Professional
- British Columbia International Post-Graduate
- British Columbia Skilled Worker
- British Columbia International Graduate
- British Columbia Semi-Skilled and Entry-Level Worker
Applicants do not need to be Express Entry qualified to apply for the BC Skills Immigration sub-streams. Nonetheless, the majority of programs in this stream offer an accelerated PR option to qualifying candidates who have an active Express Entry profile.
BC Express Entry
British Columbia Express Entry is a faster way for qualified skilled workers to move to the province. You must also be eligible for the federal Economic Migration Program. BC Express Entry’s invitation system is based on points. It is entirely digital to register and apply for both PNP BC and PR procedures.
More precisely, the three main categories on which the invitations are based are:
- It demonstrates that you meet the minimum requirements for any of the three IRCC Express Entry schemes.
- Have accepted an indefinite, permanent job offer from a local firm. The employment must be a skilled occupation with a National Occupational Classification skill level of B, A, or 0.
- Be qualified to work in the position offered to you in the province.
- Have a minimum of two years of work experience directly connected to the position offered.
- Show that you can care for yourself and your dependents.
- Be qualified for or have legal immigration status in the nation.
- Complete the basic language requirements.
- Possess a job offer in accordance with the defined employment rates in BC for the relevant line of work.
BC Entrepreneur Immigration
British Columbia’s Entrepreneur Immigration category is for experienced entrepreneurs who plan to actively run a firm in the province. It uses a points-based invitation system, and applicants must have the required investment and personal assets.
The Regional Pilot Entrepreneur Immigration stream is for entrepreneurs who want to start a new firm in participating regional communities within the province.
BC’s Entrepreneur Immigration stream is intended at foreign nationals and businesses with a track record of success in business investment, management, and ownership. Entrepreneurs with a significant personal net worth and abroad companies with substantial annual income can relocate to the province by starting new businesses in British Columbia.
The sub-streams under BC Entrepreneur Immigration are:
- British Columbia Entrepreneur Regional Pilot
- British Columbia Entrepreneur
- British Columbia Strategic Projects
What is the BC PNP Tech Pilot Program?
The Tech Pilot program in British Columbia is aimed at abroad nationals working in any of the province’s high-demand technological occupations. It aligns with the province’s Skills Immigration stream. Interested applicants must thus evaluate the many sub-categories of the SI route. Tech Pilot allows qualified abroad citizens to access faster processing and additional resources through applications.
What is the processing time for BC PNP?
The projected BC PNP processing period for nomination applications under Express Entry BC and Skills Immigration is two to three months.
For Entrepreneur Immigration applications, the estimated processing time for the Registration Score Notification stage is six weeks from the date of registration. An additional 4 weeks for processing must be included from the date of application submission to the notice of decision (at the Work Permit stage).
Currently, IRCC at the federal level handles non-Express Entry nomination applications from provinces in 15 to 19 months. Express Entry streams follow a six-month average.
How to calculate points for BC PNP?
Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) allocates a certain quota of migrants to each of the country’s ten provinces. Every province is required not to exceed its immigration intake limit. The talented Immigration Registration procedure (SIRS) is a systematic selection procedure used in British Columbia to pick the most worthy and talented immigrants.
The SIRS point system allocates points based on the individual’s personal credentials, commonly known as Core Human Factors. These include educational background, age, English language competency, and age. Economic Factors refer to other wage-related factors. The BC PNP requires mastery in these defined credentials before considering applications for Provincial Nomination.
If you meet all of the standards set by British Columbia immigration, the province will grant you a nomination. This qualifies you to claim an extra 600 CRS points. Finally, the higher score increases your chances of being selected in the federal Express Entry draw. You can also apply directly to BC PNP when their allocation opens.
Allocation of Points under British Columbia PNP:
Scoring Sections
Maximum Points
Economic Factors (120)
Employments Regional District
10
A wage of the Job Offer in BC
20
BC Job Offers Skill Level
60
Human Capital Factors (80)
Language
30
Highest Education Level
25
Work Experience Directly Related
25
Total Available Points
200
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