New requirements for the British Columbia Entrepreneur Program

With effect from 29^th January, British Columbia in Canada has changed the eligibility requirements for the Entrepreneur Immigration Base Category. The changes will apply to new applications and will have no effect on the ones that are already in processing.

Under the new eligibility requirements, applicants must be able to score at least CLB 4 in either English or French to qualify. BC Govt. states that applicants must be able to communicate basic needs, read simple instructions and follow basic conversations.

The new language requirements align with the language criteria of the Entrepreneur Immigration Regional Pilot. The BC Govt. says that these changes are necessary to integrate immigrants into Canada better.

Now, there are just three Entrepreneur Programs in Canada that do not have a language requirement. They are :

• Saskatchewan Entrepreneur Program
• Alberta Self-Employed Farmer Stream
• Yukon Business Nominee Program

Another new change in the requirements is that you will no longer be able to nominate key staff members in your Entrepreneur Immigration Base Category applications.

Earlier, prospective applicants could include key staff members in their Visa applications. However, it was imperative for these staff members to have the required expertise necessary for the success of your business in British Columbia.

Official data revealed that between July 2015 and November 2019, only 4% of all the Entrepreneur applications included staff members. This led the provincial Govt. to remove the key staff option altogether.

18 Entrepreneurs have so far been invited this year through the Entrepreneur Immigration Base Category. 7 Entrepreneurs have been invited through the Entrepreneur Immigration Regional Pilot.

In 2019, British Columbia issued 232 invitations through the Entrepreneur Immigration Base Category.  57 invitations were issued under the Entrepreneur Immigration Regional Pilot in 2019.

British Columbia also invited 284 candidates in the latest draw conducted on 28^th January. The cut-off score in the latest invitation draw was between 85 and 110 points.

Y-Axis offers a wide range of Visa and Immigration products as well as services for aspiring overseas students including Study Visa for Canada, Work Visa for Canada, Canada Evaluation, Visit Visa for   Canada and Business Visa for Canada. We work with Regulated Immigration Consultants in Canada.

If you are looking to Study, Work in Canada, Visit, Invest or Migrate to Canada, talk to Y-Axis, the World’s No.1 Immigration & Visa Company.

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