British Columbia holds first-ever draw under new permanent residence pathway
On July 23, British Columbia held the inaugural selection round under its new temporary stream, inviting 60 cleaning and security workers employed by a B.C. health authority to apply for provincial nomination.
To qualify for selection, candidates were required to have nine months of work experience in one of three eligible occupations, in a qualifying rural or remote area.
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This selection round featured the province’s lowest cut-off score of the year, at 50 points.
The British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP) intends to nominate up to 250 health authority cleaners and security staff through this one-time initiative.
Registrations for the “Temporary Rural / Remote Health Support initiative” (TRHSI) opened on June 15 of this year and will continue to be accepted until August 31, 2026.
To be considered for nomination through this time-limited permanent residence pathway, foreign nationals must have a “regular, indeterminate, full-time job” in one of the following occupations, in a qualifying rural or remote region:
- Janitors, caretakers, and heavy-duty cleaners (NOC 65312);
- Light-duty cleaners (NOC 65310); and
- Security guards and related security service occupations (NOC 64410).
British Columbia did not disclose which occupations were represented among the invited candidates in its first TRHSI draw.
Before registering with the BCPNP, workers must accumulate a minimum of nine months of full-time employment in an eligible occupation with the same employer.
B.C. health authority workers require a valid job offer both at the time or registration and at the time of application—and must continue to work full-time in that position for the entirety of the application process.
Full details on job offer requirements can be found in the BCPNP’s Skills Immigration (SI) guide, in sections 3.5 and 6.6.
The BCPNP notes that health authority cleaners and security staff with job offers in certain regional districts will not be eligible under this initiative, including the following:
- Central Okanagan Regional District.
- Metro Vancouver Regional District.
- Capital Regional District.
- Exceptions: Galiano Island, Mayne Island, Pender Island, Salt Spring Island, and Saturna Island.
Further, certain situations do not count toward the minimum nine-month work requirement under this initiative, including employment gained while in Canada on a study permit or as part of a study program (e.g., co-op placement), and any leave longer than two weeks.
There are eight public health authorities in British Columbia that workers can be employed by, each of which has its own process to determine which applications it will support:
- First Nations Health Authority;
- Fraser Health;
- Interior Health;
- Island Health;
- Northern Health;
- Providence Health Care;
- Provincial Health Services Authority; and
- Vancouver Coastal Health.
BC PNP applications require confirmed support from an authorized representative of the relevant health authority.
Beyond these work-based requirements, candidates must also hold a high school diploma, meet the minimum income requirement for the full nine months prior to registration and application submission, and satisfy the general requirements applicable to all SI candidates.
Earlier this year, the BCPNP specified that in 2026, it would be organizing its efforts to attract skilled talent and addressing labour market needs around three core objectives, with the TRSHI falling under the "Care" pillar:
- Care—focused on strengthening healthcare and care-related services;
- Build—supporting infrastructure delivery and major projects; and
- Innovate—encouraging innovation to fuel long-term economic growth.
British Columbia first announced the TRSHI on April 23 as part of a complete restructuring of its provincial nominee program—which included a shift in nomination priorities toward healthcare and trades, the cancelled reopening of its student streams, and the removal of several provincial pathways.
The BC PNP said the changes were made in response to the federal government having reduced the PNP’s annual allotment of nominations.
The BC PNP's annual quota for provincial nominations declined from 8,000 in 2024 to 5,254 in 2026—the same total it was first granted in 2025, before two increases pushed it up to 6,124.
The Government of British Columbia initially requested 9,000 nomination slots for 2026.
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