B.C. accepting only 1,100 new immigrant applications after feds slash provincial nominee program

Ashley Joannou · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Apr 15, 2025 8:44 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 minutes ago

The likelihood of caller applications from immigrants being accepted into British Columbia's nominee programme this twelvemonth person dropped to adjacent zero for anyone different than wellness workers oregon entrepreneurs.

The state said the changes are aimed astatine prioritizing wherever it spends its nominations aft the national authorities slashed the fig of disposable slots, but the B.C. Chamber of Commerce said a absorption connected the health-care assemblage unfairly advantages the government's needs implicit those of the concern community. 

A bulletin from the state says it was lone allotted 4,000 nominations this year, astir fractional of what it had past twelvemonth and substantially little than the 11,000 it wanted.

It says the program, which helps immigrants already surviving successful Canada summation imperishable residency if they capable cardinal jobs, volition judge 1,100 caller applications this year, chiefly for doctors, nurses and different wellness professionals arsenic good arsenic entrepreneurs. 

Anne Kang, the curate of post-secondary acquisition and aboriginal skills, called the alteration from the national authorities "drastic." 

"We are prioritizing health-care workers successful objective settings," Kang said successful an interview, adding that related positions similar societal workers, therapists and aboriginal puerility educators are besides portion of that group.

The state said astir of the remaining 2,900 slots volition beryllium utilized to nominate immoderate of the applications it has already received.

The bulletin says the programme anticipates nominating astir 100 different radical that it thinks are "likely to make precocious economical interaction in B.C." from the registration pool, which presently has much than 10,000 candidates.

WATCH | Why Canada is slashing migration programs: 

Fiona Famulak, president of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce, said successful a connection that Ottawa's determination to chopped the fig of provincial information programme slots "will beryllium felt by businesses successful each country of the province."

B.C. needs more, not fewer, "economic immigrants," she said. 

Famulak said the enclosure disagrees with the determination to prioritize nationalist assemblage occupation vacancies implicit the needs of the backstage assemblage this year.

"The determination to absorption the [program] on applicants successful the health-care assemblage unfairly advantages the government's needs implicit the concern community," she said. "We truthful telephone connected the provincial authorities to rebalance the nominee allocations for 2025 and prioritize economical immigrants arsenic the programme was intended."

Last year, then-federal migration curate Marc Miller announced plans to trim migration to alleviate pressures connected housing, infrastructure and societal services.

Vancouver migration lawyer Richard Kurland said Tuesday that a batch of radical and families "literally stake the farm" connected being capable to go a Canadian national done the nominee program.

"Now, alternatively of adding radical we severely need, we've got to propulsion radical retired of the lifeboat due to the fact that Ottawa chopped the fig of seats," helium said.

Kurland said radical locked retired of B.C.'s programme mightiness see moving to a antithetic province. Other jurisdictions are besides facing cuts to their nominee numbers but volition person their ain acceptable of rules for who tin qualify, helium said.

"If you're successful 1 of those high-demand occupations that B.C. says it needs, the chances are bully that other provinces person the aforesaid labour need," helium said.

"You'll inactive person to uproot yourself from B.C., transplant into different state and past anticipation for the best." 

Kurland is besides predicting a continued uptick successful exile claims from radical looking for different ways to enactment successful Canada. 

Kang said she's disquieted the simplification successful the disposable slots for the nominee programme could pb to the state not being capable to capable captious roles.

"My fearfulness is that we volition not beryllium filling the positions of the doctors and nurses and those who are successful objective work, those successful ERs, oregon health-care workers that are straight moving with our patients," she said.