British Columbia issues invitations under Entrepreneur streams to foreign nationals wishing to immigrate to the province.
Applicants were issued ITAs based on their willingness to start a new business or buy a pre-existing business in the province, among other factors.
Draw Results
On May 28, the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program held draws under both its Entrepreneur Immigration (EI) stream. Cumulatively, these draws issued no more than 14 invitations, with varying cut-off scores based on the stream.
| Stream | Cut-off score | Number of invitations |
| EI Regional stream | 123 | <5 |
| EI Base stream | 115 | 9 |
The BC PNP’s entrepreneur streams have seen consistent draws throughout 2025 – in contrast to the other skills-based immigration streams run by the province.
To date, there has only been one skills-based immigration draw under the BC PNP in 2025.
Moreover, the BC PNP advises that ITAs issued under the EI Regional stream are issued roughly once per month to eligible entrepreneurs who have been referred by a participating community.
Targeted invitations to apply under the EI Base stream can be based on one or more of the following factors:
- The eligible applicant’s registration score
- The particular region where the applicant intends to establish a business
- The population size of the community where the business would be located
- Whether the proposed business is a start-up or involves purchasing an existing business
- Whether the business proposal aligns with priority sectors that have been identified
ITAs for the EI Base stream that are based solely on score-ranking will be held periodically, but may be limited to maintain normal processing times and to prioritize targeted invitations.
BC PNP Entrepreneur Immigration
British Columbia issues invitations under Entrepreneur streams. Entrepreneur immigration under the BC PNP is designed for foreign nationals who wish to begin a new business or purchase and operate an existing one in the province of British Columbia.
This branch of the BC PNP is distinct from the other skills-based immigration streams run by the province and contains two streams:
- The EI Regional stream
- The EI Base stream
The main distinguishing factor between these two streams is the location where the new business will be starting or is operating.
Moreover, EI Regional applicants must be willing to start a new business within a participating rural community in British Columbia. They must also obtain an endorsement from the participating community to be eligible for an ITA.
On the contrary, EI Base applicants have the freedom to purchase an existing business or start a new business and might do so anywhere in British Columbia. EI Base applicants do not require community endorsement.
Apart from these factors, the two streams have further distinguishing features, including but not limited to:
- Minimum net worth of applicants
- Minimum ownership stake in the business
- Minimum investment in the business
- Timeframe to submit a final report on the business
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