British Columbia – Gateway to the Pacific!

British Columbia (commonly referred to by its initials, “B.C.”) is located on the southwest coast of Canada and is the country’s resource-rich gateway to the Pacific Rim region. It is also a top destination for Canadian immigration by those who are issued a Permanent Resident Visa for Canada.

Each year, British Columbia immigration has attracted to the province an average of 42,000 foreign nationals who have been issued Permanent Resident Visas for Canada (38,443 in 2017). British Columbia has also consistently attracted the third highest number of immigrants of any province or territory in Canada, after Ontario and Quebec.

This beautiful Canadian province is bordered by the province of Alberta to the east; the Pacific Ocean and US state of Alaska on the west; Northwest Territory and Yukon Territory to the north; and the US states of Montana, Idaho and Washington to the south.

Only Ontario and Quebec have populations larger than British Columbia’s 4.8 million residents (2017), many of whom were issued a Permanent Resident Visa for Canada under one of the various Canadian immigration visa types.

The capital city of British Columbia is Victoria, with a population of about 86,000 (2016) and metropolitan population of around 368,000 (2016), but the largest city in BC is Vancouver, with a diverse city population of about 631,486 (2016) and a metropolitan area population of 2.5 million (2016).

Vancouver has been assessed as being among the Top Ten “Most Livable Cities” in the world 14 times in the past 16 years by the well-respected, London-based Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)! In September 2019, the EIU ranked Vancouver as the sixth “Most Livable City” on Earth out of 140 cities from around the globe (Toronto and Calgary were also included in the 2019 list of the world's Top 10 “Most Livable Cities”). Furthermore, the international human resources firm Mercer rated Vancouver as the world's #3 "Best City for Quality of Life" in March 2019 (tied with Auckland, New Zealand, and Munich, Germany) and #1 in North America out of more than 230 cities examined throughout the world.

Vancouver is also the “Hollywood” of Canada (a $1.2 billon CAD industry in BC, employing approximately 35,000 people) and ranks third only behind the US cities of Los Angeles and New York in terms of the number of movies and television shows made there each year. The city also has the third largest park in all of North America (Stanley Park) which is a great place to spend a relaxing day!

With relatively mild weather and lots to see and do, you’re unlikely to be bored in BC!

Outdoors enthusiasts who make British Columbia immigration will discover a host of recreational offerings, including great places to go golfing, hiking, camping, backpacking, fishing, bicycling, picnicking, canoeing, kayaking, white-water rafting, whale-watching, sailing, bungee jumping, skydiving, and water and snow skiing! With pristine pine-covered mountains, spectacular seaside scenery, and around 1,000 provincial parks and other protected areas (including several national parks), amazing views await you almost everywhere you travel in BC. No wonder British Columbia immigration has skyrocketed over the past several years!

If you are issued a Permanent Resident Visa for Canada and move to BC, you will find that there are also numerous indoor activities to experience in British Columbia, including the Vancouver Aquarium, Ucluelet Aquarium, and the Royal BC Museum (located in Victoria). The BC provincial Parliament buildings and Hatley Castle, both in Victoria, also attract a lot of visitors who appreciate their architectural splendor. Sports fans will enjoy the excitement of cheering on the Vancouver Canucks NHL hockey team as they hit the ice!

With a strategic location next to the Pacific Ocean and the United States, British Columbia is a key center for Canadian international trade and has one of the strongest provincial economies in Canada. For example, British Columbia enjoyed a healthy GDP growth rate of 2.8% during 2019. British Columbia has also maintained one of the lowest unemployment rates of any Canadian province or territory. In fact, British Columbia boasted the #1 lowest unemployment rate of any province or territory in Canada (only 4.5 percent) in January 2020. The provincial capital city, Victoria, also had one of the lowest unemployment rates (just 3.5 percent) of any Canadian city in January 2020, while in Vancouver it was a very low 4.5 percent.

Much of British Columbia’s economic activity is related to its vast natural resources. For example, one-third of all hydroelectric power in Canada is generated in BC. British Columbia is also Canada’s second largest producer of natural gas. Additionally, the oil industry, forestry, mining, agriculture and eco-tourism are major contributors to British Columbia’s economy.

The largest categories of jobs in BC are: sales & service (25% of all workers); administrative, business and finance fields (20% of the workforce); and the trades, such as carpenters, pipefitters, mechanics, and plumbers (17%). It is forecast that the service industry (financial services, education, healthcare, retail, transportation, real estate, communication, etc.) in BC will expand by around 27% between 2008 and 2017 and the goods sector (e.g., manufacturing, agriculture, construction, fishing, mining, utilities, etc.) will grow by approximately 16% during this same time-frame. It is also projected that real GDP in British Columbia will increase by 24% in 2008-2017.

British Columbia is forecast to have over a million job openings during the 2010-2020 time-frame, many of which will be filled by foreign workers who have been issued a Permanent Resident Visa for Canada. Consequently, now is a prime time to make Canadian immigration (and particularly, British Columbian immigration) by applying for a Permanent Resident Visa for Canada!