British Columbia immigration selects 424 workers in healthcare, construction, and early childhood education

On September 10, the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP) invited no fewer than 429 workers in care-related and construction trades occupations to apply for provincial nomination.

Care-focused selections included workers across three areas: childcare, healthcare, and veterinary care.

Invited candidates may submit an application for provincial nomination, and if successful, apply for permanent residence to the federal government.

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Foreign nationals selected as nominees can get provincial support to obtain work permits from the federal government.

A nominee who has submitted their application for permanent residence can apply for a Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP).

Since June 9, 2026, nominees applying through the base PNP have been allowed to apply for BOWPs months sooner, under a temporary measure exempting them from the need to have received the acknowledgement of receipt (AOR) for their permanent residence application.

Draw details

Core objective	Occupational category	Number of NOCs targeted	Invitations issued	Minimum score
Care	Healthcare	31	143	76
Build	Construction trades	9	104	94
Care	Childcare	1	182	99
Care	Veterinary care	2	<5	90

Targeted healthcare occupations

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

*Candidates with a NOC 33102 job offer had to be registered with the BC Care Aide & Community Health Worker Registry to qualify for a targeted healthcare invitations.

Targeted construction trades occupations

To have been considered for a targeted construction trades invitation, candidates needed either a valid trade certificate issued by SkilledTradesBC or a SkilledTradesBC apprenticeship registration that aligned with their job offer.

Occupation	NOC
Carpenters	72310
Construction millwrights and industrial mechanics	72400
Electricians (except industrial and power system)	72200
Heating, refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics	72402
Heavy-duty equipment mechanics	72401
Industrial electricians	72201
Plumbers	72300
Steamfitters, pipefitters and sprinkler system installers	72301
Welders and related machine operators	72106

Targeted childcare occupations

Candidates were required to hold a one-year or five-year ECE Certificate from the ECE Registry.

Occupation	NOC
Early childhood educators	42202

Targeted veterinary care occupations

Occupation	NOC
Animal health technologists and veterinary technicians	32104
Veterinarians	31103

Candidates who were invited on Sept 10 have up to 30 days to respond by applying for provincial nomination.

The selections aligned with two of the province’s three core objectives—care and build—which are intended to attract skilled talent while addressing key labour market needs.

The province’s September 10 round was the province’s sixth occupation-specific draw of 2026, while other rounds saw candidates invited based on registration score thresholds, wages or salaries, and job offers.

As of September 10, the province has issued no fewer than 5,267 invitations to apply for provincial nomination to Skills Immigration (SI) candidates—and at least 104 invitations through its Entrepreneur Immigration category.

The province’s latest draw marked its 22nd overall selection and 13th round targeting skilled workers.

Makeup of the Skills Immigration registration pool

Foreign nationals seeking consideration under the BCPNP’s SI category must first submit a registration, also known as an Expression of Interest profile.

Once registered, candidates receive a score based on the details they provide and are placed into the applicable registration pool(s).

British Columbia periodically draws from its registration pools, inviting top-ranking candidates who meet targeted criteria to pursue provincial nomination.

As of September 1, the latest available update, the pool comprised 8,013 registrations.