BCPNP SKILLS IMMIGRATION

BCPNP Skills Immigration Free assessment

The Skills Immigration (SI) stream of the BC Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) is for people with the skills, experience and qualifications needed by B.C. employers. If you would like to settle in B.C., the SI stream can help you become a permanent resident.

 

The SI stream has the following categories:

SKILLED WORKER

To qualify for this category, you must:

  • Have accepted an indeterminate* (no defined end date), full-time, job offer from a B.C. employer
  • Your job offer must be classified as NOC TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3
  • Be qualified to perform the duties of the job
  • Have a minimum of two years of full-time (or full-time equivalent) work experience at NOC TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3
  • Meet minimum language requirements
  • Have a wage offer in line with B.C. wage rates for the occupation
  • Show you can support yourself and your dependants

General employer requirements

Your employer must:

  • Be established in B.C.
  • Meet domestic labour market recruitment requirements
  • Offer full-time, permanent employment
    -BC PNP Tech occupations, university professors, lecturers and post-doctoral fellows working for a public university in B.C. do not need a permanent job offer
  • Offer a wage in line with industry standards
  • Provide a signed job offer
  • Complete and sign the employer declaration form
  • Submit supporting documents about the business
  • Follow laws and regulations
  • employer must have operated in B.C. for at least one year (two years if you are applying under the Entry Level and Semi-Skilled (ELSS) stream below).
  • If the employer is located within the Metro Vancouver Regional District, the employer must have at least five indeterminate, full-time employees (or full-time equivalents) who are performing their work from within B.C.
  • If the employer is located outside of the Metro Vancouver Regional District, the employer must have at least three indeterminate, full-time employees (or full-time equivalents) who are performing their work from within B.C.

HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS

1-The Health Authority stream

The Health Authority stream gives a permanent residence pathway to people working for a health authority in B.C.such as  a physician, midwife or a nurse practitioner. This stream does not require registration, and can be applied directly!

To qualify for this category, you must have one of the following:

  • An indeterminate* (no defined end date), full-time job offer from a B.C. public health authority
  • A letter from a health authority or midwife practice group that confirms that you are a physician, nurse practitioner, or midwife in British Columbia
  • Meet the education, training, experience and qualification requirements outlined by the public health authority
  • The health authority must agree to support your application. 
  • This stream also has the Express Entry BC (EEBC) option.

2- HealthCare Stream

Workers who are not employed by a health authority (and so must register in another stream) and who have a job offer in one of the following occupations may benefit from targeted invitations to apply.

Priority healthcare occupations:
30010 Managers in health care
31100 Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine
31101 Specialists in surgery
31102 General practitioners and family physicians
31110 Dentists
31112 Audiologists and speech-language pathologists
31120 Pharmacists
31121 Dietitians and nutritionists
31200 Psychologists
31201 Chiropractors
31202 Physiotherapists
31203 Occupational therapists
31204 Kinesiologists and other professional occupations in therapy and assessment
31209 Other professional occupations in health diagnosing and treating
31300 Nursing coordinators and supervisors
31301 Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses
31302 Nurse practitioners
31303 Physician assistants, midwives and allied health professionals
32101 Licensed practical nurses
32102 Paramedical occupations
32103 Respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists and cardiopulmonary technologists
32109 Other technical occupations in therapy and assessment
32110 Denturists
32111 Dental hygienists and dental therapists
32112 Dental technologists and technicians
32120 Medical laboratory technologists
32121 Medical radiation technologists
32122 Medical sonographers
32123 Cardiology technologists and electrophysiological diagnostic technologists
32124 Pharmacy technicians
32129 Other medical technologists and technicians
32200 Traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and acupuncturists
33100 Dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants
33101 Medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations
33102 Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates
33103 Pharmacy technical assistants and pharmacy assistants
41300 Social workers
41301 Therapists in counselling and related specialized therapies

42201 Social and community service workers

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

Occupations listed here are not the only ones eligible for the BC PNP. Priority occupations may receive a targeted invitation once a registration is submitted.

INTERNATIONAL GRADUATE

The International Graduate stream is a way for recent graduates with a degree or diploma from an eligible Canadian post-secondary institution to get permanent residence and stay in B.C.The Ministry of Municipal Affairs will be updating the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) in January 2025.

To be Eligible you must:
1-Have completed a degree, diploma or certificate from an eligible post-secondary institution in Canada in the past three years
2-Have accepted an indeterminate* (no defined end date), full-time job offer from a B.C. employer. The job must be classified as NOC TEER category 1, 2, or 3
management occupations (NOC TEER 0) are not eligible under this stream
3-Be qualified to work in your occupation in B.C.
4-Meet minimum language requirements:A minimum of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 8 is currently planned for the new graduate streams in 2025.

-For 2024 applicant: If you are registering or applying with a job offer for an occupation classified under NOC TEER 2, 3, 4 or 5, you must demonstrate English or French language proficiency at Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 4 in each of the four competencies: listening, speaking, reading and writing.If the position offered to you is classified under NOC TEER 0 or 1, you are not required to submit valid language test results at the time of registration unless you are claiming points for language.

5-Have a wage offer in line with B.C. wage rates for the occupation
6-Show you can support yourself and your dependants
7-Your employer must agree to support your application and must meet employer eligibility requirements. 

  • This stream also has the Express Entry BC option.

8- Your job offer does not need to be indeterminate if it is in a priority technology occupation

International Post-Graduate

The International Post-Graduate stream is for recent graduates of an eligible B.C. post-secondary institution with an eligible master’s or doctoral degree. PhD candidates at a public B.C. post-secondary institution may also be eligible.The Ministry of Municipal Affairs will be updating the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) in January 2025.The International Post-Graduate stream will be replaced by The Master’s stream and The Doctorate stream.

Currently in 2024, You do not need a job offer from an employer to apply to this stream.

You do not need to register for this stream. If you meet eligibility requirements, you can apply directly to the BC PNP.

To qualify for this stream, you must

1- Have obtained eligible graduate-level education from an eligible program of study at a post-secondary institution in B.C. in the last three years.

2-Eligible education includes:

  • Master’s degrees in an eligible program(BC-PNP-IPG-Eligible-Programs-of-Study) in the natural, applied or health sciences disciplines from a B.C. post-secondary institution. 
  • Doctoral degrees in any field of study from a public B.C. post-secondary institution
  • PhD students in any field of study who have been admitted to candidacy at a public B.C. post-secondary institution 

3-You must also demonstrate that you have the ability and intent to live, work and economically establish in B.C.

4-A minimum of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 8 is currently planned for the new graduate streams in 2025.

Childcare Priority

Workers with a job offer in the following occupation may benefit from targeted invitations to apply:

42202 Early childhood educators and assistants

Construction Priority

Workers in the construction sector must meet the following requirements to benefit from targeted invitations to apply:
The job offer must be for an indeterminate, full-time job in one of the priority construction occupations
You must have a valid trade certificate issued by, or an apprenticeship registered with SkilledTradesBC
Your trade certificate must correspond with the job you have been offered.

Priority construction occupations:

22114 Landscape and horticulture technicians and specialists 

72102 Sheet metal workers

72103 Boilermakers

72104 Structural metal and platework fabricators and fitters

72105 Ironworkers

72106 Welders and related machine operators

72200 Electricians (except industrial and power system)

72201 Industrial electricians

72300 Plumbers

72301 Steamfitters, pipefitters and sprinkler system installers

72302 Gas fitters

72310 Carpenters

72311 Cabinetmakers

72320 Bricklayers

72400 Construction millwrights and industrial mechanics

72401 Heavy-duty equipment mechanics

72402 Heating, refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics

72500 Crane operators

73100 Concrete finishers

73101 Tilesetters

73102 Plasterers, drywall installers and finishers and lathers

73110 Roofers and shinglers

73111 Glaziers

73112 Painters and decorators (except interior decorators)

73113 Floor covering installers

Technology Priority

The BC PNP offers skilled workers in select, in-demand technology occupations a pathway to permanent residence. To meet the unique needs of B.C.’s technology sector, priority technology occupations are not required to have a permanent job offer.

Workers in the technology sector must meet the following requirements to benefit from targeted invitations to apply: 

  • the job offer must be in one of the priority technology occupations
  • the job offer must be at least one year in duration (365 days)
  • there must be at least 120 calendar days remaining on the job offer at the time of application
 

Priority technology 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
22312 Industrial instrument technicians and mechanics
50011 Managers – publishing, motion pictures, broadcasting and performing arts
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

Veterinary Care Priority

Workers with job offers in one of the following occupations may benefit from targeted invitations to apply.

Priority veterinary care occupations:
31103 Veterinarians
32104 Animal health technologists and veterinary technicians

Entry Level and Semi-Skilled Immigration

The Entry Level and Semi-Skilled stream is a way for workers in select occupations in the tourism/hospitality or food processing sectors to gain permanent residence in B.C.

To qualify for this stream, you must:

  • Have accepted an indeterminate (no defined end date), full-time job offer from a B.C. employer
  • Your occupation must be on the list of eligible occupations for your sector. All ELSS-eligible occupations are classified as NOC TEER 4 or 5
  • For the Northeast Development Region of B.C., you may apply if you are working in any NOC TEER category 4 or 5 occupation, other than live-in caregivers
  • Have been working full-time for your employer for a minimum of nine consecutive months before registering.
  • Be qualified to do the job offered to you, including meeting any certification or registration requirements in B.C.
  • Meet minimum language and education requirements
  • Have a wage offer in line with B.C. wage rates for the occupation
  • Show you can support yourself and your dependants
  • Your employer must agree to support your application and must meet certain requirements. 
 

Eligible ELSS occupations
Occupations in travel and accommodation
64314 Hotel front desk clerks

Tour and recreational guides and casino occupations
64320 Tour and travel guides
64321 Casino workers
64322 Outdoor sport and recreational guides

Occupations in food and beverage service
64300 Maîtres d’hotel and hosts/hostesses
64301 Bartenders
65200 Food and beverage servers
65201 Food counter attendants, kitchen helpers and related support occupations

Cleaners (employed directly by hotels/resorts*)
65210 Support occupations in accommodation, travel and facilities set-up services
65310 Light duty cleaners
65311 Specialized cleaners
65312 Janitors, caretakers and heavy-duty cleaners

Other service occupations (employed directly by hotels/resorts*)
65320 Dry cleaning, laundry and related occupations
65329 Other service support occupations

*For the purposes of the BC PNP, a resort is defined as an accommodation facility that is associated with recreational activities. These activities can include skiing, golfing, boating, fishing, biking, swimming, horseback riding, hiking, nature-based or interpretive tours, etc.

Food processing
94140 Process control and machine operators, food and beverage processing
94141 Industrial butchers and meat cutters, poultry preparers and related workers
94142 Fish and seafood plant workers
94143 Testers and graders, food and beverage processing
95106 Labourers in food and beverage processing