The three areas
| Area | Covers | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Area 1 | Metro Vancouver Regional District, including Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond and Surrey | 0 |
| Area 2 | Within the municipal boundaries of Squamish, Abbotsford, Agassiz, Mission and Chilliwack | 5 |
| Area 3 | Everywhere not in Area 1 or 2, such as Victoria, Kelowna, Nanaimo, Kamloops and Prince George | 15 |
| Additional | Regional experience or regional alumni (one only) | 10 |
| Maximum | 25 |
Squamish is in Area 2 and scores 5.
Source: BC PNP Skills Immigration Program Guide, section 8.5 (effective 2026-06-10), checked 2026-10-17.
Regional experience and regional alumni
These 10 points are open only when the job is in Area 2 or 3; a job in Area 1 does not qualify.
- Regional experience: at least one year of full-time (or equivalent) paid work in Area 2 or 3 (outside Metro Vancouver) within 5 years before you register.
- Regional alumni: graduation within 3 years before you register from a public B.C. post-secondary institution outside Metro Vancouver, attended while you lived outside Metro Vancouver; the program must be at least 8 months (two semesters) of full-time coursework, excluding co-op terms, practicums and internships. Private institutions, language training and distance education do not count.
If you qualify for both, you get 10 points, not 20.
Source: BC PNP Skills Immigration Program Guide, section 8.5, checked 2026-10-17.
Where your job counts
You are scored on your main work location: where you regularly and physically report to work and can reasonably perform the duties in your job offer. If you work from home, your area is set by your residential address. You get no area points if BC PNP finds you cannot reasonably perform the job from the location you gave. The score is calculated automatically when you register.
Source: BC PNP Skills Immigration Program Guide, section 8.5, checked 2026-10-17.
Employer size outside Metro Vancouver
- Employer in Metro Vancouver: at least 5 indeterminate, full-time employees (or full-time equivalents) working in B.C.
- Employer outside Metro Vancouver: at least 3.
- Full-time means an average of at least 30 hours a week; two part-time employees can count as one full-time equivalent if their hours add up to 30.
- Employees working from outside B.C. are not counted.
Source: BC PNP Skills Immigration Program Guide, section 6.8, checked 2026-10-17.
Entrepreneur Immigration Regional stream
The former Entrepreneur Immigration Regional Pilot is now an ongoing stream, the Entrepreneur Immigration Regional stream, for people starting a new business in a participating community outside Metro Vancouver.
- Personal net worth of at least C$300,000;
- an eligible personal investment of at least C$100,000 in the business;
- at least 3 years as a business owner-manager in the last 5;
- at least one new full-time job for a Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
- an exploratory visit to the community and a completed referral form from it; the business must match the community's economic development priorities.
Registration C$300, application C$3,500. The Regional draw on 2026-09-22 had a minimum score of 119 and issued fewer than 5 invitations. Participating communities include Mackenzie, Quesnel, Castlegar, Kimberley, Nelson, Rossland, Trail, Dawson Creek, Fort St. John, Penticton, Salmon Arm, Vernon, Campbell River, Comox and Powell River.
Source: WelcomeBC: Entrepreneur Immigration; WelcomeBC: participating communities; WelcomeBC: Invitations to apply, checked 2026-10-17.
Details are on the BC PNP page and the BC PNP Entrepreneur page.