On June 2nd, British Columbia held its largest Provincial Nomination Program (PNP) draw round since late March.

A total of 241 Skilled Worker and International Graduate candidates received invitations to apply under the province’s Express Entry BC (EEBC) and Skills Immigration categories. The minimum required score for candidates varied by category.

The cut-off score for Express Entry BC subcategories were:

• Skilled Worker: 105
• International Graduate: 105

Such candidates needed to have already submitted profiles under Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada’s Express Entry system. Following their invitation to apply for a provincial nomination by B.C., successful candidates will earn an additional 600 Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points which will effectively guarantee that they will receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence under IRCC’s Express Entry system.

The cut-off score for the three Skills Immigration subcategories were:

• Skilled Worker: 105
• International Graduate: 105
• Entry Level and Semi-Skilled: 81

The B.C. government indicated that there was an impact of the coronavirus on the draw. As has been the case in recent months, B.C. excluded several sales and service occupations from the draw.

Entrepreneur Streams

B.C. also invited candidates to its entrepreneurs streams for the first time in nearly two months. Two draws were held in what were the sixth and seventh entrepreneur draws held by the province in 2020.

A total of 29 invitations were issued under the BC PNP’s Entrepreneur Immigration Base Category. 

The cut-off score was 121.

The purpose of the Base Category is to welcome established entrepreneurs who either wish to start a business or take over one. Candidates are assessed based on criteria such as their business experience, net worth, education, business plan, and the amount of investment they plan to make.

B.C. also issued 9 invitations to Entrepreneur Immigration — Regional Pilot candidates who had a cut-off score of at least 118 points.

Launched in 2019, the purpose of the pilot is to encourage immigrant entrepreneurs to build a new life in smaller communities in the province. Candidates are assessed on similar criteria as the Base Category, however there are some different requirements such as lower net worth and minimum investment thresholds.

This draw round was BC’s largest since March 30 when it invited 311 candidates.

Find out if you are eligible for any Canadian immigration programs

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