Yesterday, British Columbia invited 314 candidates through the Express Entry and Skills Immigration streams to apply for a provincial nomination. 

With over 314 invites sent out, this recent Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) draw is the largest that the province has held since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, and the second largest of 2020 overall. 

In the largest draw they held on March 10, prior to the implementation of travel restrictions, BC issued over 332 invites. 

The BC Express Entry stream allows the province to tap into the federal government’s Express Entry system, which oversees candidates for Canada’s three main economic immigration categories— the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class and Canadian Experience Class.

For candidates invited under the Skills Immigration stream, the BC PNP drew their nominees from the stream’s Skilled Worker, International Graduate, and Entry level and Semi-Skilled categories.

With the advent of COVID-19, BC did not extend invitations to candidates of all occupations, excluding those in the tourism, hospitality, and retail sectors. 

This latest draw’s minimum score requirements were between 79 and 100 for the five SI and EEBC categories that were involved. The scores were as follows: 

• SI – Skilled Worker: 98
• SI – International Graduate: 100
• SI – Entry Level and Semi-Skilled: 79
• EEBC – Skilled Worker: 98
• EEBC – International Graduate: 100

Candidates hoping to receive a provincial nomination through BC Express Entry Stream must be registered under both the federal Express Entry system and BC’s own Skills Immigration Registration System (SIRS). Skills Immigration candidates need only to register with SIRS.