British Columbia Entrepreneur Immigration Stream

The British Columbia Entrepreneur immigration streams target foreign nationals with demonstrated experience having and operating businesses who want to invest their finances and expertise in business opportunities in British Columbia. Candidates for BC Entrepreneur immigration are need to purchase a new or existing business in British Columbia and become involved in the everyday activities of management.  Applicants must demonstrate management experience as well as significant personal net worth. This is a best opportunity for wealthy individuals with business management experience, as well as wealthy foreign-owned companies who wish to expand the reach of their enterprise into British Columbia. Firstly, Candidate has to determine their eligibility for the BC PNP entrepreneur stream. If they are eligible, they need to Once the EOI has been submitted. BC immigration authorities then invited the highest-ranked candidates to apply during periodic draws from this pool. If invited, you may submit an application. Successful applicants obtain a work permit. Successful applicants will receive a provincial nomination by the province of BC lead to  Canadian permanent residence.

Entrepreneur Immigration Program Requirements

1. Minimum invest of 20,000 CAD is required to start new or existing business
2. Must hold a minimum net worth of 6,00,000 CAD
3. Establish a new business or develop an existing business within British Columbia
4. Must create at least one full-time job for the Canadian citizen or PR holder of this province
5. Applicant must have relevant work experience in the field of management or business
6. Candidate should not have any criminal record.
7. Must have English or French language proficiency equivalent to Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 4 or higher.

British Columbia Entrepreneur Ranking System

Candidates have to score from200 to be eligible for British Columbia Entrepreneur program, Candidates has to meet minimum scores in each section in order to be entered into the selection pool.

British Columbia Entrepreneur Step by Step Process

• Step 1: Registration – applicant must submit a short overview of their business plan with a non-refundable registration fee of CAD$500 accompanied with CAD $4000 for application fee and CAD$6000 CAD for key staff application Post applying for the entrepreneurship program. the candidate will have to wait for a minimum period of 3 months purely based on the credibility of the submitted business plan.
• Step 2: Expression of interest (EOI) – Submit an online express of interest. Wait for an invitation to apply after the application is submitted. Candidate will get evaluated based on Age, English language, relevant work experience, and other factors. The applicants who have received an invitation to apply will get their net worth verified by a chartered accountant specialist who cross-checks the available funds and its supporting documents. The applicants have a scope to improve their points by submitting a fresh business concept. Within four months of receipt of an official invitation, candidate has to submit an online application to the BCPNP that includes a comprehensive business plan.
• Step 3: Performance Agreement – If investor immigration application is approved, sign a performance agreement and obtain a work permit.
• Step 4: Establishing the Business in Nova Scotia – Establish residence in British Columbia within 100 km of the business. Apply for work permit and establish and manage the business in British Columbia for 18 to 20 months. Submit the final report to province for the nomination and wait for confirmation from province.
• Step 5: Apply for Permanent Residence – After receiving a nomination by British Columbia the applicant can apply to IRCC for a Canadian PR within 6 months. If the PR application gets approved, Candidates and their family members would get a permanent residency approval from the British Columbia government provided if they have successfully met all the criteria.

Entrepreneur Immigration Regional Pilot Program

In 2019, the British Columbia PNP launched a new business immigration program to facilitate the settlement of immigrant entrepreneurs into less populated communities in the province. To qualify for this program, prospective entrepreneurs must make an exploratory visit to one of these small communities (must be less than 75,000 people) in order to obtain a community referral which is required in order to register with the BCPNP.

Entrepreneur Regional Pilot requirements.

Interested candidates must first register a profile with the BC PNP. After registering a profile, the candidate will be assigned a score based on the British Columbia Regional Entrepreneur Pilot Ranking System. The applicants with the most competitive scores will be invited to submit an official application to the program.

• Minimum personal net worth of CAD $300,000
• Applicant must invest at least CAD $100,000 into the proposed business
• At least three years of experience owning a business or four years of experience managing a business within the last five years
• Proposed business must create at least one new job for a Canadian citizen or permanent resident in BC
• Applicant must own at least 51% of the proposed venture
• The applicant must take a language proficiency test and have a score of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) Level 4 or above in either English or French. The proficiency score comprises four competencies: Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening.
• Interested candidates must participate in an exploratory visit where they travel to one of the program’s participating communities and meet with a program representative. All applicants to the program must be referred to the PNP by a participating community.

BC Entrepreneur Regional Pilot Ranking System

British Columbia Entrepreneur Regional Pilot Step by Step process

Step1: Registration – applicant must submit a short overview of their business plan with a non-refundable registration fee of CAD$500 for further guidance.

Step2: Exploratory visit in the community – The candidate then has to conduct an exploratory visit in the community in which he/she wants to establish the business and present a business proposal to a designated community representative.

Step3: Obtain a Community Referral – If the community finds the candidate’s business plan in according to the community’s economic demands and demonstrates long-term success, the candidate will receive a community referral. This will helps the candidate to be placed in a separate pool of registration which will get priority in the British Council Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP).

Step4: Submit the EOI – after receiving referral by the community candidate should submit an EOI online providing the required information such as education, language proficiency, work/business experience, net worth, investment and details about the proposed business plan.

Step5: Invitation to apply by BC PNP – British Columbia province authorities then invite the candidates with highest ranking to submit a full application to the program. The selected candidate will also be required to attend an interview in Vancouver to discuss the information provided in the application. Time taken for the application to be assessed is approximately 4 months.

Step6: Nomination from Province – Candidate has to sign a Performance Agreement and receives a letter of confirmation through which he/she will be allowed to apply for a 2 years’ work permit to IRCC leading to a Nomination by the province.

Step7: Application for Canadian Permanent resident – After establishing the business and running it successfully for at least 12 months, the applicant can submit a final report to the BC PNP. The BC PNP will then assess the report according to the Performance Agreement. Final reports are assessed within 4 months. After the approval of the final report, the entrepreneur will be issued a provincial nomination certificate and may then apply to Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship for Canada permanent residence.

BC Entrepreneur Regional Pilot Draws

List of Participating Communities

• Cariboo
  1. 100 Mile House
  2. Mackenzie
  3. McBride
  4. Prince George
  5. Quesnel
  6. Williams Lake
• Kootenay
  1. Akisqnuk First Nation
  2. Canal Flats
  3. Castlegar
  4. Invermere
  5. Kimberley
  6. Midway
  7. Nelson
  8. Radium Hot Springs
  9. Regional District of Central Kootenay (Area J)
  10. Regional District of East Kootenay (Area F)
  11. Regional District of East Kootenay (Area G)
  12. Regional District of Kootenay Boundary – Electoral Area E (West Boundary)
  13. Rossland
  14. Shuswap Indian Band
  15. Trail
• Mainland/Southwest
  1. Gibsons
  2. Hope
  3. Sechelt
  4. Squamish
  5. Sunshine Coast Regional District – Egmont and Pender Harbour (Area A)
  6. Sunshine Coast Regional District – Halfmoon Bay (Area B)
  7. Sunshine Coast Regional District – Roberts Creek (Area D)
  8. Sunshine Coast Regional District – Elphinstone (Area E)
  9. Sunshine Coast Regional District – West Howe Sound (Area F)
• Nechako
  1. Burns Lake
  2. Regional District of Bukley-Nechako – Electoral Area A (Smithers Rural)
  3. Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako – Electoral Area B (Burns Lake Rural)
  4. Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako – Electoral Area C (Fort St. James Rural)
  5. Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako – Electoral Area D (Fraser Lake Rural)
  6. Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako – Electoral Area E (Francois/Ootsa Lake Rural)
  7. Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako – Electoral Area F (Vanderhoof Rural)
  8. Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako – Electoral Area G (Houston Rural)
• North Coast
  1. Terrace
• Northeast
  1. Tumbler Ridge
  2. Northern Rockies Regional Municipality
• Thompson-Okanagan
  1. Barriere
  2. Clinton
  3. Columbia-Shuswap Regional District – Sorrento and Electoral Area C
  4. Columbia-Shuswap Regional District – Falkland and Electoral Area D
  5. Columbia-Shuswap Regional District – Malakwa and Electoral Area E
  6. Columbia-Shuswap Regional District – Scotch Creek and Electoral Area F
  7. Thompson-Nicola Regional District Area I – Spences Bridge
  8. Thompson-Nicola Regional District Area M – Nicola Valley North
  9. Thompson-Nicola Regional District Area N – Nicola Valley South
  10. Merritt
  11. Osoyoos
  12. Peachland
  13. Penticton
  14. Salmon Arm
  15. Vernon

• Vancouver Island/Coast
  1. Campbell River
  2. Comox
  3. Comox Valley Regional District – Baynes Sound – Denman/Hornby Island (Area A)
  4. Comox Valley Regional District – Lazo North (Area B)
  5. Comox Valley Regional District – Puntledge – Black Creek (Area C)
  6. Courtenay
  7. Parksville
  8. Port Alberni
  9. Powell River
  10. Sayward

Note: The Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) offers about 60 immigration programs with each program gathering to a different immigrant. Therefore, it becomes paramount to know which program will suit you the best and which program will get you a Permanent Resident visa in the quickest manner. But before that, you need to know all the details pertaining to a Canadian PR visa from India starting with what are PR visas and why getting one is a good idea if you are planning to live and work in Canada