British Columbia PNP invites 72 tech immigration candidates in new draw

British Columbia (B.C.) invited 72 immigration candidates with work experience in the IT sector to apply for a provincial nomination on June 15.

The invitations were issued through the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (B.C. PNP), specifically the B.C. PNP Tech stream.

Invited candidates must meet the requirements of either the Express Entry B.C. (EEBC) or Skills Immigration (SI) categories. These categories are managed by the Skills and Immigration Registration System (SIRS).

Those who received invitations were from the Skilled Worker and International Graduate sub-categories of the SI and EEBC. All candidates needed to meet the minimum provincial score requirement of 80 in order to receive an invitation.

Selected candidates now have thirty (30) calendar days to apply for the nomination.

B.C. has now issued a total of 5,321 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) for a provincial nomination through its various PNP streams, so far in 2021.

The B.C. PNP Tech originally launched in May 2017 as a pilot and was recently announced to be a permanent immigration stream. The program was initiated to address the issue that B.C. employers in the tech sector were facing – access to talent.

The B.C. PNP Tech is a fast-track immigration pathway for in-demand tech workers and international students. To be eligible, candidates need to be registered in one of B.C.’s existing provincial immigration streams and have a valid full-time job offer in one of 29 eligible occupations.

The job offer must be for a minimum of one year (12 months), with at least 120 days remaining at the time of application to the B.C. PNP. As well, the job offer must be from an eligible employer in B.C. and be for full-time work.

Invitations for this program are sent out weekly to the top-scoring candidates.