ISSofBC is still here to welcome and support newcomers settling in their communities, learning English, studying, and finding work in British Columbia (BC).
However, several ISSofBC locations and programs will change from March 2025. Please see below for all the latest updates as they are announced. If you are a client, please also check your emails for updates in your language.
Thank you for being so patient during this time. If you have questions about an ISSofBC program or location, please contact info@issbc.org. Please add the location (eg Burnaby, New Westminster or Surrey) in the email subject header. We will do our best to respond to you as soon as possible.
If you have feedback or concerns about support for newcomers in Canada, contact the IRCC via this Contact Form or call them at 1-888-242-2100 (from within Canada only, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time, except for statutory holidays). Remember, calling them can take a long time.
Summary of changes by Program or Location
Please read further down the page for more information on each change:
- Changes at our Burnaby office
- Changes to our English language classes
- Our Language and Career College (LCC) also offers affordable English classes. 99% of students recommend LCC. NEW: Enjoy a 50% discount for new students, equivalent to $5.50 per hour.
- NEW – Class expansions at our Surrey and Coquitlam locations.
- Permanent closure of our Langley office on 21 March 2025 (staff available til 31 March)
- Changes at our Victoria Drive office
- Changes at our Surrey office
- Changes at our Richmond office
- Change at our Prince George’s office
- End of all Entrepreneur programs (Business Quest, Spark, and Ignite)
- End of Job Quest
- End of the Gateway to Tourism and Hospitality program
- End of settlement and language support to CUAET (Ukrainian) visa holders.
- New titles for our Volunteer Coordinators
Changes at our Burnaby office
From 22 March 2025, all programs ended in Burnaby except:
Other programs are still available at other ISSofBC locations, so please check our website for more information in your language.
In Burnaby, the following service providers may still be able to support you:
Changes to our English language classes (LINC)
From 1 April 2025:
- The LINC English language program will only offer CLB 1-6 classes.
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There will be no classes for Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 or 8.
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All CLB 5 and 6 (Life & Work) classes will be online only, and space will be limited.
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- NEW: Class expansion in Coquitlam and Surrey. More details to follow!
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ISSofBC’s Language and Career College (LCC) offers affordable English classes. Visit LCC for more information.
- NEW: enjoy a 50% discount for new students, equivalent to $5.50 per study hour.
Permanent closure of our Langley office
Our Langley office closed on 21 March 2025. However, to help with this transition, our Langley staff will be available for online appointments until 31 March 2025.
For clients in Langley, settlement services are available at:
Changes to our Victoria Drive office
Our English language LINC classes will expand from 1 April 2025 (CLB 1- 6 only). Please contact linc.vancouver@issbc.org for further information.
Business Quest and Job Quest close on 31 March 2025.
Changes to our Surrey office
We will open English language LINC classes from 1 April 2025 (CLB 1 – 6 only). Please visit the website for updates.
The following employment programs will end on 31 March 2025:
- Job Quest
- Business Quest
- Spark & Ignite.
Changes to our Richmond office
The following settlement programs will close on 31 March 2025:
- Settlement Support Services
- Moving Ahead Program (MAP).
Change to Maple Ridge office
The following programs will close on 31 March 2025:
- Moving Ahead Program (MAP)
- Job Quest and Business Quest.
Change to New Westminster office
The Job Quest and Business Quest programs will close on 31 March 2025.
Change in our Prince George office
The Gateway to Tourism and Hospitality will close on 31 March 2025.
End of all Entrepreneur/’Start a Business’ programs
Our Business Quest, Spark, and Ignite programs end on 31 March 2025. Since their inception, these programs have supported over 500 newcomer entrepreneurs in finding and building their businesses in BC.
End of Job Quest
Applications for the Job Quest program are now closed.
A new IRCC-funded employment program will launch in April 2025 in Maple Ridge, Coquitlam, New Westminster, and Vancouver. More information to follow soon.
End of the Gateway to Tourism and Hospitality Program
This program will end on 31 March 2025. The Gateway program has supported over 400 newcomers and worked with 150 corporate partners to discover and develop careers in hospitality and tourism.
End of support for CUAET visa holders
After 31 March 2025, holders of Canada-Ukraine Authorisation for Emergency Travel with temporary resident status in Canada and their dependents will no longer be eligible for IRCC-funded language and settlement services.
Since the start of the CUAET program in 2022, we have supported over 800 Ukrainian newcomers as they settled, learned English, and found work.
Ukrainian visa holders may also be eligible for provincially funded programs, like the BC Newcomer Support Program (NSP).
NEW: Our Language and Career College (LCC) has a 50% discount on English classes.
Thank you to all the ISSofBC staff who have contributed to our work and supported many newcomers. Thank you to our clients for trusting us as you build your lives in British Columbia.
