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About the program
What is the B.C. Entrepreneur Program?
The B.C. Entrepreneur Program offers entrepreneurs a route to the Canadian Permanent Residence and citizenship. Successful applicants enjoy the same rights as any Canadian, including access to universal health care and education in the best schools.
Benefits
Flexible
In terms of age, education levels, and investment amount.
Direct path to permanent residence
Renewable every 5 years.
Issuance of a work permit
To allow coming to BC faster.
A pathway to citizenship.
Who can apply?
Business ownership or managerial experience
Within the last 10 years: 3+ years as a business owner-manager OR 4+ years as a senior manager OR 1+ year as business owner combined with 2+ years as a senior manager
Net worth
Minimum $600,000 CAD
Education
Post-secondary credential OR at least 3 years of experience as an active business owner in the last 5 years (100% ownership)
Business proposal
Must submit a business proposal to establish a new business or buy an existing one in B.C.
Investment
Minimum $200,000 CAD (and $1M equity investment in business if ownership will be less than 33.3%)
Job creation
Must create at least one full-time equivalent job for a Canadian citizen or Canadian permanent resident (average of 30 hours per week and 1,560 hours a year)
Steps of the program
1 – BC PNP Registration in the pool
Creation of online profile, completion and submission of the registration. The score will be received approximately 6 weeks later (according to the BC Immigration authorities). If the minimum score is reached, the applicant will be included in the pool.
2 – Invitation to apply
From time to time, BC PNP will issue invitations to apply (as a reference, BC PNP issued 10 invitations to apply in 2019, with required scores varying from 106 to 117). If invited, the applicant will receive an email notification with explanations on how to complete the application along with a list of authorized firms for the verification of his/her net worth.
The applicant will then have 120 days to submit his/her application.
After a review of his application, BC PNP will either ask to respond to any concerns regarding the application or contact the applicant to attend an in-person interview in Vancouver.
3 – Performance agreement and work permit
If the application is approved, the applicant will need to sign a performance agreement with the province of British Columbia. This is a legal document that outlines the terms and conditions for the nomination.
Upon signing of the Performance Agreement, BC PNP will issue a letter of confirmation allowing to apply to IRCC for a two-year work permit. The applicant and dependents will then be able to move to B.C. to start implementing the business plan. Applicant’s spouse/husband or common-law partner will be eligible for an open-work permit and dependent children for study permits to attend elementary or secondary school.
The applicant must arrive in B.C. within a 365-day period from the date of the letter of confirmation.
4 – Arrival in BC and Arrival Report
The applicant must submit an arrival report within 60 days of arriving in B.C.
Once the applicant arrives in B.C. with a work permit, he/she will have up to 610 days to implement his/her business plan, actively manage the business and satisfy the terms and conditions of the performance agreement.
If the applicant wants to vary any terms of the Performance Agreement, he/she will need to obtain approval from the BC PNP.
5 – Final report
The applicant needs to submit a final report between 550 to 610 days after the issuance date of the work permit. The report needs to show that the applicant met the terms and conditions described in the Performance Agreement.
If necessary, BC PNP may support the extension of the work permit based on their assessment of the final report.
If the applicant is nominated, BC PNP will issue a confirmation of nomination as a provincial nominee. This will allow the applicant and eligible dependant family members to apply for permanent residence to IRCC. In addition to the BC PNP confirmation of the nomination, the applicant will receive the conditions of nomination which outline the conditions he must continue to meet while the application for permanent residence is in process, including meeting the conditions outlined in the Performance Agreement (eg. operate the business, nature of the business, business location, ownership percentage, etc.).
6 – Application for Permanent Residency
After the applicant has been approved as a provincial nominee, he/she can apply for permanent residency at IRCC within 180 days of the confirmation of nomination.
IRCC will assess the application for permanent residence it meets the admissibility requirements, including medical and security checks.
Why choose Exeo?
With many years of experience in immigration, the Exeo team is here to assist you with your immigration and investment project, from A to Z.
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A new intake period for the program is scheduled to start on September 10, 2018, to March 15, 2019. The quota for this intake period is 1,900 applications, of which 1,330 applications will be accepted from China (including Hong Kong and Macau).





