BC PNP — Entrepreneur Immigration — Regional Pilot
Notice:
The federal government has implemented travel restrictions for air and land travel. Given the travel restrictions, you are unable to travel to B.C. to conduct the exploratory visit at this time.
The BC Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) Entrepreneur Immigration – Regional Pilot (EI – Regional Pilot) aims to attract experienced entrepreneurs who would like to settle in regional communities of this province. This will help meet the communities’ economic development needs and encourage investments outside urban areas.
The Regional Pilot program is a 2 stage program toward permanent residency. The successful applicants will receive a work permit which allows them to enter Canada and after managing the business in Canada in the prescribed timeline, they would be eligible to apply for permanent residency of Canada.
As the cost of living and running a business is usually lower in regional communities with smaller populations, the personal net worth and investment criteria is lower than the existing Entrepreneur Immigration – Base Category (EI – Base Category).
Participating communities refer foreign entrepreneurs to the BC PNP whose business concept aligns with the community’s economic priorities. The foreign entrepreneur must be invited by the community to conduct an exploratory visit and present their concept to the community’s designated contact person prior to receiving a referral.
foreign entrepreneurs who are referred by a participating community are placed in a separate registration pool dedicated to the pilot when they register. Regional pilot registrations and applications are prioritized.
Other Requirements:
- Minimum $100,000 investment in a new business in a BC regional community.
- Minimum Net worth of applicants must be at least $300,000.
- Must create at least one full-time equivalent job for a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada.
- Minimum language proficiency of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 4.
Entrepreneurs wishing to purchase an existing business can register and apply under the
EI – Base Category of the BC PNP.
