Get started
  1. Home
  2. Data
  3. Provinces
  4. British Columbia
Province profile

Immigration to British Columbia.

50,635 new permanent residents named British Columbia as their destination in 2025, 12.9% of Canada’s total, or 8.9 per 1,000 residents.

Data through July 2026Retrieved October 8, 2026Updated monthly, mid-month

Permanent residents 202550,635−19.7% vs 2024
New study permits 202580,595
New work permits 2025132,520IMP + TFWP
Asylum claims 202511,385

Permanent residents by category

Per year.

CategoryEconomicFamilyRefugees and protected personsHumanitarian and other
201522,13011,0852,175235
201620,27012,9654,600185
201722,24013,3552,665155
201826,67514,7603,190185
201930,06016,2253,695200
202018,3408,0151,800245
202149,33014,2755,165665
202236,84516,4807,065840
202342,68018,0807,5452,510
202435,92517,4557,3502,335
202528,50515,1905,7351,205
2026 (Jan–Jul)14,5458,6554,535375

Source: IRCC, Permanent Residents – Monthly IRCC Updates (open data). 2026 covers January to July only.

Top programs, 2025

ProgramValue
Provincial Nominee Program12,150
Canadian Experience Class10,705
Spouses and partners10,320
Parents and grandparents4,105
Government-assisted refugees2,340
Privately sponsored refugees1,915
Federal Skilled Worker1,640
Caregivers1,585

Source: IRCC, Permanent Residents – Monthly IRCC Updates (open data).

Destination cities, 2025

Census metropolitan areas named as intended destination.

Metropolitan areaValue
Vancouver36,370
Victoria3,205
Abbotsford - Mission2,025
Kelowna1,715
Kamloops855
Nanaimo815
Prince George605
Vernon585
Chilliwack400
Courtenay260

Source: IRCC, Permanent Residents – Monthly IRCC Updates (open data).

Study and work permits

PeriodStudy permitsIMP work permitsTFWP work permits
201559,01035,34013,930
201668,68042,02516,035
201779,45544,00017,265
201884,59049,95020,890
201988,75562,01024,770
202062,62047,16020,105
202197,74566,02023,860
2022114,34085,73532,515
2023130,770130,51539,000
2024104,320117,58037,295
202580,59596,65535,865
2026 (Jan–Jul)37,28088,98020,825

Source: IRCC, Temporary Residents: Study Permit Holders – Monthly IRCC Updates; IRCC, Temporary Residents: TFWP and IMP Work Permit Holders – Monthly IRCC Updates. 2026 covers January to July only.

More context

Who lives here, who leaves.

  • Who lives in British Columbia today (origins, languages, recent immigrants): Census Atlas: British Columbia.
  • Statistics Canada estimates 24,305 people emigrated from British Columbia in 2025–2026. See emigration by province.
  • 12,150 of the 2025 admissions came through British Columbia’s nominee program. PNP data.

About this data. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. IRCC rounds every figure to the nearest 5 and suppresses values from 0 to 5; we count suppressed cells as zero, so totals here can be slightly below IRCC’s published totals. “Rounded, not for calculations.” Not an official IRCC publication. These pages describe what happened, using official statistics. They do not predict policy, estimate anyone’s chances, or rank communities. Intended province of destination at admission. See methods and definitions.