Provincial Nomination Program

All Canadian Provinces have their unique element immigration programs that can either support a Federal Element Immigration application via ‘Express Entry’ or through a stand-alone PNP application. The Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) gives provinces and territories an active role in immigrant selection as it authorizes them to nominate for permanent residence individuals who will meet specific local labour market needs. Most PNPs include one or more employer-driven streams which allow workers to be nominated on the basis of a permanent, full-time job offer, provided they meet provincial or territorial nomination requirements (these may include specific occupations, education, work experience, official language proficiency and age). The provinces have various streams in their PNPs, but they tend to fall into five clusters:

1. Skilled workers
2. Semi-skilled workers
3. Business/Investors
4. International Graduates
5. Family/community connections

Choose a province or territory

British Columbia | Alberta | Manitoba | New Brunswick | Newfoundland and Labrador | Northwest Territories | Nova Scotia | Ontario | Prince Edward Island | Saskatchewan | Yukon

British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP)

British Columbia (BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, located between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. British Columbia is leading the country in economic growth and continues to rely on economic element immigration to meet labour market demand.

The BC Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) is the province’s only direct economic element immigration program for bringing in new British Columbians. It provides a pathway to permanent residence for highly-skilled, in-demand workers and experienced entrepreneurs, so they can settle in BC and raise a family.

The BC Provincial Nominee Program offers three ways to become a permanent resident in BC. Each pathway has different categories and eligibility criteria. These criteria are based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, income, work experience, skills or international student status.

BCPNP Pathways

The BC Provincial Nominee Program offers three ways to become a permanent resident in BC. Each pathway contains different categories a candidate can apply under, depending on candidate’s National Occupational Classification skill level, job, or international student status.

Skills Element Immigration

Skills Element Immigration is for skilled and semi-skilled workers in high-demand occupations in BC. It uses a points-based invitation system. The process involves registering and applying online for the BC PNP and a paper application process for permanent residency. You may not need prior work experience for some categories. Skilled workers may have work experience from abroad. Entry Level and Semi-Skilled category applicants need BC work experience. Recent international graduates of a Canadian university or college may not need any work experience, depending on the job being offered.

Entrepreneur Element Immigration

The Entrepreneur Element Immigration stream is for high net worth business people who can invest in and actively manage a valid business in BC. It is a points-based system. This stream provides a pathway to Canadian permanent residence for experienced business people who can establish themselves in BC and invest in and operate a commercially viable business that can provide significant benefits to the provincial economy.

British Columbia has introduced a mandatory online registration system, known as Entrepreneur Element Immigration Registration (EIR), for all prospective applicants to the Entrepreneur Element Immigration stream of the BC Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP). A maximum of 200 registrations may be accepted per month, and the BC PNP will periodically invite the highest-scoring registrants to submit applications. Successful applicants will obtain a work permit and, if the business operation in British Columbia fulfills the requirements of the stream on an ongoing basis, they will be able to apply for permanent residence in Canada through the BC PNP.

The BC PNP encourages applicants to make an exploratory visit to BC to learn more about opportunities and the local business environment before they register. Registrants and applicants are not advised to make any investments or financial commitments prior to signing a Performance Agreement with the BC PNP and obtaining a valid work permit from Element Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Any investment made before an applicant obtains a valid work permit is solely at his or her own risk.

Entrepreneur Element Immigration Requirements

Applications are assessed on various factors, including

• Business and/or work experience;
• Personal net worth and source of funds;
• Adaptability; and
• Business proposal, which includes proposed investment and job creation in BC

Minimum Personal Requirements

• Active and ongoing management of the day-to-day business operations in BC
• Demonstrated residence in BC within 100 kilometers of the business;
  • The applicant must demonstrate BC residence for at least 75 percent of the time while on a work permit.
• Admissibility to Canada
  • The applicant must not be prohibited from entering Canada; have been in Canada illegally; have an unresolved refugee claim in Canada or under a removal order in Canada
• Personal net worth of at least $600,000 CAD (including cash, assets in bank accounts, fixed deposits, real properties, investments, etc.) under the candidate’s name and/or candidate’s spouse’s name. The net worth must be legally obtained and verifiable;
• A minimum of 2 years of post-secondary education or experience as an active business owner-manager with 100 percent ownership of the business for at least three of the past five years. The 100 percent ownership may be shared between the applicant, the applicant’s spouse, and any dependent children.
• Work experience
  • The candidate must have enough knowledge and experience to successfully establish business in BC.
  • The candidate must have a minimum of more than three years of experience as an active business owner-manager, or
  • The candidate must have more than 4 years of experience as a senior manage, or a combination of at least one year of experience as an active business owner/manager and at least 2 years of experience as a senior manager.

Minimum Business Requirements

The registration must include a brief business concept that will be assigned points based on proposed commercial transferability, viability of the candidate’s skills, and economic benefits. If the candidate is subsequently invited to apply, he/she will be required to submit a comprehensive business plan. The BC PNP will consider registrations to establish a new business, purchase an existing business, form a partnership with an existing business, and partner with a local or foreign entrepreneur to establish a new business.

The proposed business must be operated for the primary purpose of earning profits by providing products and/or services. Additionally, the business must have strong potential for sustained commercial success. The BC PNP does not pre-approve or endorse business proposals.

Franchises may be considered as eligible businesses by demonstrating that the proposed franchise is well-established. The BC PNP will only consider the purchase of an existing franchise location as an eligible business if it includes an expansion/improvement plan that is consistent with franchiser requirements. The BC PNP will not consider a business proposal for a seasonal business unless the proposed business operates for at least eight months per year.

Ineligible businesses

The following types of businesses are ineligible under the BC PNP

• An element immigration-linked investment scheme pursuant to Provincial Element Immigration Programs Regulation section 6(e) and the Element Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) section 87(5)(b) and as defined in IRPR 87(9)
• Any business where the terms of investment include a redemption option pursuant to IRPR 87(6)(d)
• Bed and breakfasts, hobby farms and home-based businesses
• Payday loan, cheque cashing, money changing and cash machine businesses
• Pawnbrokers
• Scrap metal recycling
• Coin-operated laundries
• Automated car wash operations
• Businesses selling used goods (excluding businesses that provide value-added services such as repairs, refurbishing or recycling)
• Real estate development/brokerage, insurance brokerage or business brokerage
• Businesses involved in producing, distributing or selling pornography or sexually explicit products or services, or providing sexually oriented services
• Any other type of business that by association would tend to bring the BC PNP or the Government of British Columbia into disrepute

The BC PNP will not consider registrations for the following businesses proposed in Regional Districts with a population more than 300,000

• Convenience stores
• DVD rental stores
• gasoline service stations
• personal dry-cleaning services
• tanning salons

Minimum Investment Requirements

In order to register, the candidate must demonstrate that he/she will make an eligible personal investment of at least $200,000 CAD in the proposed business within 610 days (approximately 20 months) of arriving in BC on a BC PNP supported work permit. If proposing a key staff member, the candidate must demonstrate that he or she will make an eligible personal investment of $400,000 CAD.

Minimum Job Creation Requirements

Applicant must demonstrate that the business in BC will create at least one permanent new full-time equivalent job for a Canadian citizen or permanent resident in the proposed business as well as the likelihood of supporting long-term employment of Canadians or permanent residents in the business. Job creation requirements differ for candidates who proposed to include a key staff member on their application.

The Invitation to Apply

Meeting the minimum eligibility requirements does not guarantee that a candidate will be invited to submit a complete application. If a candidate has entered into the selection pool, his/her final registration score will be ranked along with other registrants. Periodically, the BC PNP will invite the highest-ranked registrants to apply to the Entrepreneur Program. If a candidate is invited to apply, he/she will receive an email notification and will have up to four months from the date of invitation to submit a complete application.

At this stage, the applicant must pay a $3,500 CAD processing fee to the province. His or her spouse and dependent children are included in the application fee. If requested, the applicant will be required to attend an in-person interview at the BC PNP office in Vancouver. Interviews are conducted in English or French only. If an application is approved, the BC PNP will issue a Letter of Confirmation. This serves as a work permit support letter in order to apply for a 2-year work permit to Element Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). This will enable the applicant, along with his/her family, to move to BC and implement the business plan. The applicant will sign a performance agreement and will have up to 20 months to implement the business proposal in BC. Applicants who are invited to apply will need to engage a qualified supplier to verify their personal net worth and accumulation of funds as part of the nomination process.

Transition to Permanent Residence

If the applicant meets the requirements of the performance agreement within the 20 months, the BC PNP will nominate him/her for permanent residence. He/she, along with his/her dependent family members can then apply for permanent residence under the BC PNP with IRCC. Once the entrepreneur completes the terms of the performance agreement, he/she can submit a final report to the BC PNP to be issued a nomination certificate. The entrepreneur must demonstrate to the BC PNP that he/she:

• Is actively managing a business (i.e. be accountable for the day-to-day operations of the business) in BC;
• Resides within 100 kilometers of the business;
• Has been physically present in BC for at least 75 percent of the time that he or she was on a work permit; and
• Has complied with any other terms of the performance agreement.

Contact us for assessment and more information