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British Columbia issued 74 invitations to apply for a provincial nomination for permanent residence on February 9.

The (BC PNP) Tech Pilot draw issued invitations to candidates under the and categories.

Selected candidates who were from the and subcategories needed a minimum provincial score of 80.

The February 9 draw saw the minimum score remain in the low 80s, as has been the case for Tech Pilot draws since the beginning of the year.

The is a fast-track immigration pathway for in-demand tech workers and international students.

The pilot project was launched in 2017 and has been extended several times, most recently until June 2021.

In order to be considered eligible for this program, candidates need to be registered in one of B.C.’s existing provincial immigration streams and have a valid job offer of at least 12 months in one of the Tech Pilot’s .

To apply for the Skills Immigration or Express Entry BC categories candidates must first create a profile through the BC PNP’s online portal and register under its (SIRS).

Applicants are evaluated and issued a score that determines whether they may be invited to apply in a given invitation round. The score is based on a number of factors such as level of education, years of direct work experience and having a B.C. employment offer.

Express Entry candidates who receive a nomination from British Columbia will be given an additional 600 points toward their Express Entry (CRS) score and are effectively guaranteed an (ITA) in a future federal Express Entry draw.

Federal Express Entry draws are typically held twice a month and invite approximately 4,000 immigration candidates to apply for permanent residence in Canada.

The latest Express Entry draw, held on January 21, resulted in 4,626 invitations to apply for permanent residence – one of the largest round of invitations since the system’s launch in 2015. So far this year, IRCC has issued 10,000 ITAs and has stated that it will continue to make efforts to welcome high levels of new immigrants in the coming years and beyond.

So far in 2021, B.C. has 6 draws through its various PNP categories and streams and invited over 800 candidates to apply for a .

Invited candidates have 30 calendar days to apply for the nomination.

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