On September 10, the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program, BCPNP, extended invitations to 429 workers in occupations related to care and construction trades. These invitations allow individuals to apply for provincial nomination. The care focused selections included workers in three areas: childcare, healthcare, and veterinary care.
Those who receive an invitation can submit an application for provincial nomination. If successful, they may then apply for permanent residence with the federal government. Nominated foreign nationals also receive provincial support to obtain work permits from the federal government.
Furthermore, a nominee who has submitted their application for permanent residence can apply for a Bridging Open Work Permit, BOWP. Since June 9, 2026, nominees applying through the base Provincial Nominee Program have been able to apply for BOWPs months sooner. This is due to a temporary measure waiving the requirement for an acknowledgement of receipt for their permanent residence application.
The invitations were distributed across four main categories, each with specific minimum score requirements. Healthcare saw 143 invitations issued to 31 National Occupational Classification, NOC, codes with a minimum score of 76. Construction trades received 104 invitations across 9 NOCs, requiring a minimum score of 94. Childcare had 182 invitations for 1 NOC, with a minimum score of 99. Veterinary care issued 90 invitations for 2 NOCs.
Targeted healthcare occupations included a wide range of professionals such as audiologists, speech language pathologists, cardiologists, chiropractors, dentists, dietitians, general practitioners, family physicians, kinesiologists, licensed practical nurses, managers in health care, medical laboratory assistants, medical laboratory technologists, medical radiation technologists, medical sonographers, nurse aides, orderlies, patient service associates, nurse practitioners, nursing coordinators, supervisors, occupational therapists, paramedical occupations, pharmacists, physician assistants, midwives, allied health professionals, physiotherapists, psychologists, registered nurses, registered psychiatric nurses, respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists, cardiopulmonary technologists, social workers, specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine, specialists in surgery, and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and acupuncturists. Candidates with a NOC 33102 job offer, specifically nurse aides, orderlies, and patient service associates, needed to be registered with the BC Care Aide and Community Health Worker Registry to qualify for these invitations.
For construction trades, the targeted occupations included carpenters, construction millwrights, industrial mechanics, electricians except industrial and power system, heating, refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics, heavy duty equipment mechanics, industrial electricians, plumbers, steamfitters, pipefitters, sprinkler system installers, and welders and related machine operators. Applicants for construction trades invitations needed a valid trade certificate from SkilledTradesBC or an apprenticeship registration with SkilledTradesBC that matched their job offer.
Early childhood educators, NOC 42202, were the targeted childcare occupation. Candidates were required to hold a one year or five year Early Childhood Education Certificate from the ECE Registry. In veterinary care, the targeted occupations were animal health technologists, veterinary technicians, and veterinarians.
Invited candidates from the September 10 draw have up to 30 days to respond by applying for provincial nomination. These selections align with two of the province's three core objectives, "care" and "build", designed to attract skilled talent and meet critical labor market demands.
The September 10 round marked British Columbia's sixth occupation specific draw of 2026. Other rounds invited candidates based on registration score thresholds, wages or salaries, and job offers. As of September 10, the province has issued 5,267 invitations to apply for provincial nomination to Skills Immigration candidates, and at least 104 invitations through its Entrepreneur Immigration category. This latest draw was the province's 22nd overall selection and its 13th round targeting skilled workers.
Individuals interested in the BCPNP's Skills Immigration category must first submit an Expression of Interest profile, which serves as their registration. Once registered, candidates receive a score based on the details they provide and are placed into applicable registration pools. British Columbia regularly conducts draws from these registration pools, extending invitations to top ranking candidates who fulfill specific criteria for provincial nomination.
As of September 1, the most recent update available, the Skills Immigration registration pool comprised 8,013 registrations. The distribution of scores within this pool included 212 registrations in the 0 to 59 range, 376 in the 60 to 69 range, 750 in the 70 to 79 range, 1,236 in the 80 to 89 range, 1,444 in the 90 to 99 range, 1,559 in the 100 to 109 range, 1,273 in the 110 to 119 range, 940 in the 120 to 129 range, 193 in the 130 to 139 range, 22 in the 140 to 149 range, and 8 registrations with scores of 150 or higher.