BC PNP Priority Occupations and Additional Criteria

Program priorities

This section contains priority occupations and additional criteria that support the BC PNP’s strategic initiatives.

March 19, 2024

Childcare

Workers with a job offer in the following occupation may benefit from targeted invitations to apply:

42202 Early childhood educators and assistants

Occupations listed here are not the only ones eligible for the BC PNP.  Priority occupations may receive a targeted invitation once a registration is submitted.

Construction

Workers in the construction sector must meet the following requirements to benefit from targeted invitations to apply:

• The job offer must be for an indeterminate, full-time job in one of the priority construction occupations
• You must have a valid trade certificate issued by, or an apprenticeship registered with SkilledTradesBC
  • Your trade certificate must correspond with the job you have been offered

Priority construction occupations:

22114 Landscape and horticulture technicians and specialists
72102 Sheet metal workers
72103 Boilermakers
72104 Structural metal and platework fabricators and fitters
72105 Ironworkers
72106 Welders and related machine operators
72200 Electricians (except industrial and power system)
72201 Industrial electricians
72300 Plumbers
72301 Steamfitters, pipefitters and sprinkler system installers
72302 Gas fitters
72310 Carpenters
72311 Cabinetmakers
72320 Bricklayers
72400 Construction millwrights and industrial mechanics
72401 Heavy-duty equipment mechanics
72402 Heating, refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics
72500 Crane operators
73100 Concrete finishers
73101 Tilesetters
73102 Plasterers, drywall installers and finishers and lathers
73110 Roofers and shinglers
73111 Glaziers
73112 Painters and decorators (except interior decorators)
73113 Floor covering installers

Occupations listed here are not the only ones eligible for the BC PNP.  Priority occupations may receive a targeted invitation once a registration is submitted.

Healthcare

Workers who are direct employees of a provincial health authority or who are physicians, nurse practitioners, or midwives with the support of a provincial health authority can submit an application directly to the Health Authority stream.

Workers who are not employed by a health authority (and so must register in another stream) and who have a job offer in one of the following occupations may benefit from targeted invitations to apply.

Priority healthcare occupations:

30010 Managers in health care
31100 Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine
31101 Specialists in surgery
31102 General practitioners and family physicians
31110 Dentists
31112 Audiologists and speech-language pathologists
31120 Pharmacists
31121 Dietitians and nutritionists
31200 Psychologists
31201 Chiropractors
31202 Physiotherapists
31203 Occupational therapists
31204 Kinesiologists and other professional occupations in therapy and assessment
31209 Other professional occupations in health diagnosing and treating
31300 Nursing coordinators and supervisors
31301 Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses
31302 Nurse practitioners
31303 Physician assistants, midwives and allied health professionals
32101 Licensed practical nurses
32102 Paramedical occupations
32103 Respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists and cardiopulmonary technologists
32109 Other technical occupations in therapy and assessment
32110 Denturists
32111 Dental hygienists and dental therapists
32112 Dental technologists and technicians
32120 Medical laboratory technologists
32121 Medical radiation technologists
32122 Medical sonographers
32123 Cardiology technologists and electrophysiological diagnostic technologists
32124 Pharmacy technicians
32129 Other medical technologists and technicians
32200 Traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and acupuncturists
33100 Dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants
33101 Medical laboratory assistants and related technical occupations
33102 Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates
33103 Pharmacy technical assistants and pharmacy assistants
41300 Social workers
41301 Therapists in counselling and related specialized therapies
42201 Social and community service workers

*For the purposes of the BC PNP, only health care assistants / health care aides are eligible under NOC 33102.

Occupations listed here are not the only ones eligible for the BC PNP.  Priority occupations may receive a targeted invitation once a registration is submitted.

Technology

The BC PNP offers skilled workers in select, in-demand technology occupations a pathway to permanent residence. To meet the unique needs of B.C.’s technology sector, priority technology occupations are not required to have a permanent job offer.

Workers in the technology sector must meet the following requirements to benefit from targeted invitations to apply:

• the job offer must be in one of the priority technology occupations
• the job offer must be at least one year in duration (365 days)
• there must be at least 120 calendar days remaining on the job offer at the time of application

Priority technology occupations:

10030 Telecommunication carriers managers
20012 Computer and information systems managers
21100 Physicists and astronomers
21210 Mathematicians, statisticians and actuaries
21211 Data scientists
21220 Cybersecurity specialists
21221 Business systems specialists
21222 Information systems specialists
21223 Database analysts and data administrators
21230 Computer systems developers and programmers
21231 Software engineers and designers
21232 Software developers and programmers
21233 Web designers
21234 Web developers and programmers
21300 Civil engineers
21301 Mechanical engineers
21310 Electrical and electronics engineers
21311 Computer engineers (except software engineers and designers)
21320 Chemical engineers
21399 Other professional engineers
22110 Biological technologists and technicians
22220 Computer network and web technicians
22221 User support technicians
22222 Information systems testing technicians
22310 Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians
22312 Industrial instrument technicians and mechanics
50011 Managers – publishing, motion pictures, broadcasting and performing arts
51111 Authors and writers (except technical)
51112 Technical writers
51120 Producers, directors, choreographers and related occupations
52119 Other technical and coordinating occupations in motion pictures, broadcasting and the performing arts
52112 Broadcast technicians
52113 Audio and video recording technicians
52120 Graphic designers and illustrators
53111 Motion pictures, broadcasting, photography and performing arts assistants and operators