British Columbia Nominee Program

British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP)

British Columbia is located in the far western part of Canada with the Pacific Ocean to the west, mountains to the east and thick forest to the north.

This province has the Skills Immigration Stream that identifies specific skill sets that are required in the province and that are processed on a much needed basis.

For example, B.C. has a critical need for more health care workers and early childhood educators (ECEs). Priority access is achieved through direct-to-apply streams, such as workers employed by a Health Authority, or targeted draws for qualified workers with a job offer as an ECE or in one of the following in-demand occupations in healthcare.

Care economy: Healthcare occupations

30010 Managers in health care

31300 Nursing coordinators and supervisors

31301 Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses

31102 General practitioners and family physicians

31110 Dentists

31201 Chiropractors

31120 Pharmacists

31121 Dietitians and nutritionists

31112 Audiologists and speech-language pathologists

31203 Occupational therapists

32120 Medical laboratory technologists

32103 Respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists and cardiopulmonary technologists

32121 Medical radiation technologists

32122 Medical sonographers

32123 Cardiology technologists and electrophysiological diagnostic technologists

32110 Denturists

32111 Dental hygienists and dental therapists

32101 Licensed practical nurses

32102 Paramedical occupations

41300 Social workers

42201 Social and community service workers

31100 Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine

31101 Specialists in surgery

31302 Nurse practitioners

31303 Physician assistants, midwives and allied health professionals

32103 Respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists and cardiopulmonary technologists

31209 Other professional occupations in health diagnosing and treating

31202 Physiotherapists

31204 Kinesiologists and other professional occupations in therapy and assessment

32120 Medical laboratory technologists

32129 Other medical technologists and technicians

32112 Dental technologists and technicians

32200 Traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and acupuncturists

32109 Other technical occupations in therapy and assessment

33100 Dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants

31200 Psychologists

41301 Therapists in counselling and related specialized therapies

33102 Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates

*For the purposes of the BC PNP, only health care assistants / health care aides are eligible under NOC 33102.

Care economy: Childcare occupations

42202 Early childhood educators and assistants

Other priority occupations

31103 Veterinarians

32104 Animal health technologists and veterinary technicians

BC PNP Tech provides B.C. tech employers with the ability to recruit and retain international talent in tech occupations when local skilled workers are unavailable. This initiative gives in-demand foreign workers and international students a pathway to permanent residence, so they can help grow our economy and build a great life in B.C.

BC PNP Tech helps ensure B.C. can continue to attract and retain the talent needed to sustain and grow the technology sector in the province. For Employers: PNPConcierge@gov.bc.ca

BC PNP in demand Tech Occupations

10030 Telecommunication carriers managers

20012 Computer and information systems managers

21100 Physicists and astronomers

21210 Mathematicians, statisticians and actuaries

21211 Data scientists

21220 Cybersecurity specialists

21221 Business systems specialists

21222 Information systems specialists

21223 Database analysts and data administrators

21230 Computer systems developers and programmers

21231 Software engineers and designers

21232 Software developers and programmers

21233 Web designers

21234 Web developers and programmers

21300 Civil engineers

21301 Mechanical engineers

21310 Electrical and electronics engineers

21311 Computer engineers (except software engineers and designers)

21320 Chemical engineers

21399 Other professional engineers

22110 Biological technologists and technicians

22220 Computer network and web technicians

22221 User support technicians

22222 Information systems testing technicians

22310 Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians

50011 Managers - publishing, motion pictures, broadcasting and performing arts

22312 Industrial instrument technicians and mechanics

51111 Authors and writers (except technical)

51112 Technical writers

51120 Producers, directors, choreographers and related occupations

52119 Other technical and coordinating occupations in motion pictures, broadcasting and the performing arts

52112 Broadcast technicians

52113 Audio and video recording technicians

52120 Graphic designers and illustrators

53111 Motion pictures, broadcasting, photography and performing arts assistants and operators

Priority Occupations

This section contains priority occupations that may be invited to apply in periodic targeted draws.

https://www.welcomebc.ca/Immigrate-to-B-C/About-The-BC-PNP#OtherOccupations

Skills Immigration Registration System (SIRS)

Skills Immigration Registration System (SIRS) is a points-based system gives candidates a registration score that determines whether they may be invited to apply. The score is based on a number of factors — such as level of education, years of direct work experience and a B.C. employment offer — that reflect an individual’s ability to succeed in the labour market and contribute to the provincial economy.

SIRS Scoring

The factors outlined below determine the number of points allocated to a candidate who has registered under SIRS. If and when a candidate is invited to apply, all the information provided in the registration will be verified against the information provided in the application.

	Scoring Sections	Maximum Points
Economic Factors (80)	Hourly Wage of the B.C. Job Offer	55
Economic Factors (80)	Regional District of Employment	25
Human Capital Factors (120)	Directly Related Work Experience	40
	Highest Level of Education	40
	Language	40
Total Points Available		200

Processing times & Fees

Program processing times are from the date we receive your complete application, and are based on 80 per cent of cases. Processing times are subject to change according to program capacity.

We will not refund application fees after we have begun reviewing your application.

Skills Immigration estimated processing time: 3 months

Post-nomination requests estimated processing time: 3 months

Stage	Estimated Processing time
Registration score notification	6 weeks; from the date registration received
Application decision notification (at work permit stage)	4 months; from the date application completeness
Application decision notification (at final report stage)	4 months; from the date final report completeness confirmed

BC PNP fees

Applicants will need to pay the fees upon registration or application in the BCPNP Online system.

Be aware that fee payments can only be made in the BCPNP Online application system. We do not accept payment in another form (for example, cheques, bank transfers, wire transfers, or gift cards).

Skills Immigration Fees

Registration	No Fee
Application	$1,150
Request for Review	$500

Entrepreneur Immigration Fees

Registration	$300
Application	$3,500
Request for Review	$500

Strategic Projects Fees

Registration	$300
Application	$3,500
Key Staff	$1,000
Request for Review	$500

Guides, forms and information sheets relating to the Skills Immigration and Express Entry BC streams of the BC PNP:

BC PNP guides

- Skills Immigration Program Guide (PDF, 1MB) (updated January 23, 2022)

- Skills Immigration Technical Guide (PDF, 1MB) (updated November 16, 2022)

- Skills Immigration Post-Nomination Guide (PDF, 1MB) (updated August 29, 2022)

BC PNP International Post-Graduate (IPG) Programs of Study

- BC PNP IPG Programs of Study in Eligible Fields (PDF, <1MB)

3. Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP)

Permanent Resident pathway for skilled refugees that have registered and applied under economic immigration pathways

The Process

B.C. employers looking to recruit an EMPP candidate for a vacancy in one of the BC PNP Tech occupations, that cannot be filled locally, can contact a designated NGO partner directly.

For assistance please complete a generic Pre-Qualification (Assessment) or navigate to our home page and you can choose which country you are immigrating from in the drop down.