Entry Level and Semi-Skilled Worker Category

Connection to British Columbia

To be eligible for this stream, the candidates must have been working in BC on a valid work permit for the last nine (9) months. The candidate must have been working full-time in an occupation on the ELSS In-Demand Occupation List or an occupation in the Northeast Development Region of BC.

Job Offer

Candidates must have a valid full-time job offer for indeterminate employment from a British Columbian employer. Furthermore, the wages for the position must be competitive as compared to average provincial wages for that particular occupation. The offer of employment must be for work at National Occupational Classification (NOC) Skill Level C or D.
Please note that the BC PNP job offer need not be supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).

Language Proficiency

The candidates must provide language test results proving English or French language proficiency at CLB (Canadian Language Benchmark) level 4 or higher.

Work Experience

The candidate must have work experience of at least nine (9) months in the province of BC. It should be in one of the ELSS In-Demand Occupations. Any work experience at NOC Skill Level C or D (except live-in caregivers) in British Columbia’s Northeast Development Region will fulfil the requirement whether or not included in the ELSS list. Of course, the candidate must also have the qualifications required to perform the job in British Columbia.
Employer Requirements

In order to apply to most of the BC Skills Immigration programs, the applicant must have a valid job offer from an eligible BC employer. Furthermore, the employers must also meet certain requirements in order for their job offers to be considered valid under these programs.

Job Offer Requirements

The job offered by the employer must be full-time, of indeterminate position and offer a wage meeting industry standard. Also, the position must meet British Columbia’s minimum wage requirements as per the applicant’s annual wage, location of residence in British Columbia, and the number of dependent family members.

Business Requirements

The business must be established and in good standing in British Columbia with a history of good workplace and business practices. It must also meet minimum employee requirements:
Inside Vancouver: Must have at least 5 full-time employees.
Outside Vancouver: Must have at least 3 full-time employees.

Recruitment Requirements

The employer must demonstrate that significant efforts were made to recruit a Canadian to fulfil the offered position before offering it to a foreign national. It should be noted that employers are not required to obtain a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) under the BC PNP for their positions to be valid.

Application Procedure

This stream (BC British Columbia Entry Level and Semi-Skilled Worker) operates on the system of Expression of Interest (EOI). The candidates meeting the minimum stream requirements may register themselves using British Columbia’s online immigration portal. Upon submission of the profile, the candidates are assigned a score and ranked using the BC Skills Immigration Ranking System. The candidates ranking higher are invited to apply to the stream in one of the stream’s regular intakes.

The candidates have only 30 days to submit a completed application form the day they receive the invitation to apply. A fee of $700 CAD is charged per applicant. If approved, the candidate is issued a provincial nomination for PR from the province of British Columbia. If not already working for a BC employer, candidates also have an option to request a letter of support for a temporary work permit to let them start working in Canada while their application is in the process; however, this process requires a separate application to IRCC.
After receiving the provincial nomination, the applicant gets 6 months to submit an official application for PR. A paper-based application must be submitted by mail to the appropriate application centre in such a case. It must be noted that paper-based PNP applications generally get processed within 18 months.

British Columbia ELSS In-Demand Occupation List

Unless the candidates have worked in an occupation in the Northeast Development Region of BC, they must have at least 9 months of work experience in British Columbia C in one of these occupations.