PGWP to PR: Your Complete Plan for Permanent Residence in Canada

1. Get a skilled job (TEER 0–3) as soon as possible after you apply for your PGWP.
2. Take a language test early and aim for CLB 9.
3. After 12 months of skilled work, you can usually qualify for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) in Express Entry.
4. In BC, apply to the BC PNP in parallel, especially if you have a job offer. A nomination adds 600 CRS points.
5. Plan for your PGWP end date from day one.

1. Canadian Experience Class (CEC), the most common route

You need: 1 year (1,560 hours) of paid, skilled (TEER 0–3) work in Canada in the last 3 years, plus CLB 7 (TEER 0–1 jobs) or CLB 5 (TEER 2–3 jobs).

Then: enter the Express Entry pool and wait for a draw with a cut-off at or below your CRS score. CEC-only draws are common.

Watch out: work you did while a full-time student (including co-op) doesn't count. Your 12 months usually start after you finish your program.

CEC guide →

2. BC PNP International Graduate (no longer offered)

BC's International Graduate stream, which needed a recent Canadian credential and a BC job offer but no work experience, is no longer offered. In April 2026, BC said it won't launch new student streams. Graduates now go through the Skilled Worker or Health Authority stream below, and still get extra points for studying in BC or Canada.

BC PNP options for international graduates →

3. BC PNP Skilled Worker

You need: a full-time BC job offer in a TEER 0–3 occupation and 2 years of full-time skilled work experience (any TEER 0–3 job) in the last 10 years. Work done on a study permit doesn't count, except paid, full-time co-op terms once you've graduated. Work on your PGWP does count.

Useful for graduates who already had skilled work experience before coming to Canada, or who've built it on their PGWP. Graduates of BC schools get 8 extra points (6 for elsewhere in Canada).

Skilled Worker guide →

4. BC PNP Health Authority

If you're hired by a BC public health authority (for example, as a nurse, care aide or lab technologist) and it supports your application, you can apply directly, without a draw. There's no fixed two-year experience rule, but you need the experience and qualifications the job requires.

Health Authority guide →

5. Express Entry category-based draws

If your Canadian work is in healthcare and social services, STEM, trades, education or transport, or you speak French at NCLC 7+, you may be invited in category draws with lower cut-offs. Most work-based categories need 12 months of full-time experience (or the same part-time) in an eligible occupation in the last 3 years, and it doesn't have to be continuous.

6. Other provinces and pilots

Other provinces run their own employer-driven and in-demand streams. Graduate-only streams are shrinking: BC no longer offers its graduate streams, and Ontario closed its Masters and PhD Graduate streams in 2026 as part of its program redesign. Rural and Francophone community programs may also fit some graduates.

You can, and often should, use more than one pathway at the same time. Being in the Express Entry pool doesn't stop you from applying to the BC PNP.

Example: 3-year PGWP, CEC route with a BC PNP backup.

If your PGWP is shorter (for example, 1 year after an 8-month program), you have very little room. Start the BC PNP or another job-offer pathway early, because you may not reach 12 months of experience before the permit ends.

Option 1: Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP)

If you've submitted a complete PR application (for example, under CEC after an ITA, or after a PNP nomination) and your work permit is about to expire, you may qualify for a BOWP so you can keep working while IRCC finishes your PR. For Express Entry applicants, you must be in Canada with valid status, and your work permit must expire in 4 months or less when you apply for the BOWP. Apply before your PGWP expires.

Option 2: BC PNP work permit support letter

If you've been nominated by the BC PNP, BC can give you a letter to support an employer-specific work permit.

Option 3: Employer-specific work permit (LMIA)

Your employer may be able to support an LMIA-based work permit. This takes time and has costs for the employer (who can't pass them to you).

Option 4: Spousal open work permit

If your spouse has a qualifying work or study permit, you may qualify for a spousal open work permit. Since January 21, 2025, the worker usually needs a job in TEER 0 or 1 (or a select TEER 2 or 3 job) with at least 16 months left on their permit, and the student must be in a master's program of 16+ months, a doctoral program or an eligible professional program.

Option 5: Go back to school

A new study permit gives you status, but you can't get a second PGWP. Choose this only if it fits your long-term plan.

Option 6: Visitor status

You can extend your stay as a visitor (visitor record), but you can't work. Your Express Entry profile can still be active.

Don't wait. Most of these options must be applied for before your PGWP expires. After it expires, you have 90 days to restore status, and you can't work during that time.

Past "PGWP extension" policies have ended. Don't plan around a possible new one.

1. Waiting too long to get a skilled job. Every month in a TEER 4–5 job is a month that doesn't count toward CEC.
2. Counting co-op or student work as CEC experience.
3. Picking the wrong NOC code for your job.
4. Taking the language test late. Results take weeks, and you may need a retake.
5. Only trying one pathway. Use Express Entry and the BC PNP together.
6. Letting the PGWP expire without applying for a BOWP or another permit.
7. Not keeping proof of hours, pay stubs and reference letters as you go.

• Apply for PGWP before your study permit expires (so you can keep working)
• Get a skilled TEER 0–3 job, or plan how to move into one
• Confirm your NOC code and TEER level
• Book a language test (aim for CLB 9)
• Get an ECA if you have foreign education (for extra CRS points)
• Calculate your expected CRS score at 12 months
• Check BC PNP eligibility if you work in BC
• Put your PGWP expiry date in your calendar, with reminders at 12, 6 and 4 months

Calculate my CRS score → · Calculate my BC PNP score →

We work with international graduates in BC and across Canada to plan their PGWP-to-PR path: choosing the right pathway, counting hours, picking NOC codes, raising scores, and protecting status if the PGWP runs out.

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