Immigration to British Columbia has been one of the most important contributing factors to its growth over the past century. It is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and attracts many immigrants from Asia and India. It is famed for its natural beauty and boasts an diverse climate and culture; with robust economy. British Columbia is bordered by the Pacific Ocean on its west, by the American state of Alaska on its northwest. It's capital is Victoria, located at the southeastern tip of Vancouver Island.

BC's most populous city is Vancouver. Immigrants to British Columbia will find the Coast Mountains, Canadian Rockies and the Inside Passage's many inlets provide some of BC's renowned and spectacular scenery, which forms the backdrop and context for a growing outdoor adventure and ecotourism industry. Seventy-five percent of the province is mountainous (more than 1,000 metres or 3,280 feet above sea level); 60% is forested; and only about 5% is arable. The Okanagan area is one of only three wine-growing regions in Canada and also produces excellent ciders.

British Columbia has a very diverse ethnic population with a large number of immigrants having lived in the province for 30 years or less. Asians are by far the largest visible minority demographic, with many of the Lower Mainland's large cities having sizable Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, and Korean Canadian Immigration population communities. The Sikh population is also considerable, especially in Surrey and South Vancouver. BC's population had the second-highest proportion of new Canadian immigrant settlers of all the provinces. About 16%, or 177,800, of the 1.1 million new Canadian immigrants who came to Canada during the past five years settled in British Columbia. The Canada 2006 Census enumerated 1,119,200 foreign-born individuals in British Columbia. They accounted for 27.5% of the province's population, up from 26.1% in 2001 and 22.3% in 1991.