Express Entry-Canada

Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander today confirmed it’s one month and counting until Express Entry launches a new phase of active immigration recruitment to meet economic and labour market needs. Potential candidates can create their profile on January 1^st, 2015, with the first Invitations to Apply issued within weeks.

Express Entry will help select skilled immigrants based on their skills and experience. Those with valid job offers or provincial/territorial nominations will be picked first.

Express Entry will result in faster processing and will allow the Government of Canada to be more flexible and respond better to Canada’s changing labour market needs.

Quick facts

• Express Entry will manage applications for three federal economic immigration programs: the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program and the Canadian Experience Class.
• Provinces and Territories will be able to use the Express Entry system to select a portion of candidates for their Provincial Nominee Programs.
• Express Entry will launch at 12 noon EST January 1st, 2015. The first draw for an invitation to apply is scheduled for the last week of January.
• Once candidates have been selected from the pool they will need to complete the immigration process, which includes health and security checks. Applications will be processed in six months or less.
• Canada is one of the most multicultural countries in the world, with clean and friendly cities, world-class universities, and business and job opportunities. Choose Canada.

Quote

“With the launch of Express Entry in January, our Government will build on our strong and proven record of helping immigrants succeed, and helping Canada’s economy thrive. Starting January 1^st, we will be able to select the top economic immigrants who will contribute to our economy, labour market and communities.”

Chris Alexander, Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will launch a new electronic system called Express Entry to manage applications for permanent residence under these federal economic immigration programs:

• the Federal Skilled Worker Program,
• the Federal Skilled Trades Program, and
• the Canadian Experience Class.

Provinces and territories will also be able to recruit candidates from the Express Entry system for a portion of the Provincial Nominee Programs to meet local labour market needs.

The Express Entry system will be the first step to immigrate to Canada under these programs. Potential candidates will be able to complete an Express Entry profile at any time once the system is online. Note that there will be no deadline to complete a profile and there will be no caps on the number of candidates that will be accepted to the pool.

Anyone who is accepted into the Express Entry pool could get an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence. Draws to invite candidates to apply are expected to take place at regular intervals over the course of each year. We will only pick the top ranking candidates regardless of when they were accepted into the pool. The first draw is expected in late January. If you have been invited to apply, you will have 60 days to submit a complete Application for Permanent Residence online.

Express Entry will launch at 12 noon EST January 1st, 2015. The first draw for an invitation to apply is planned for the last week of January.

The Express Entry system has two steps:

Step 1) Potential candidates complete an online Express Entry profile

Potential candidates will complete an online Express Entry profile. This is a secure form that they will use to provide information about their:

• skills,
• work experience,
• language ability,
• education, and
• other details that will help us assess them.

Those who meet the criteria of one of the federal immigration programs listed above will be accepted into a pool of candidates.

Anyone who does not already have a job offer supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) (if you need one), or a nomination from a province or territory, must register with Employment and Social Development Canada’s (ESDC) Job Bank. Job Bank will help connect Express Entry candidates with eligible employers in Canada.

Candidates are also encouraged to promote themselves to employers in other ways, such as using job boards, recruiters etc.

In most cases when there is a job being offered to a candidate, employers will need an LMIA from ESDC. The LMIA process ensures employers have made an effort to hire Canadians for available jobs. There will be no LMIA fee for permanent resident applications.

Note: Entry into the Express Entry pool does not guarantee a candidate will be issued an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence. Invited candidates still have to meet eligibility and admissibility requirements under Canada’s immigration law (Immigration and Refugee Protection Act).

Step 2) The highest-ranking candidates in the pool will be invited to apply for permanent residence

Candidates will be ranked against others in the pool using a point-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System. Points are awarded using the information in their profile.

Candidates with the highest scores in the pool will be issued an Invitation to Apply. Candidates will be awarded points for:

• a job offer, and/or
• a nomination from a province or territory, and/or
• skills and experience factors.

A candidate can get additional points for:

• a job offer supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment, or
• a nomination by a province or territory

These additional points will make a candidate rank high enough to be invited to apply at the next eligible draw of candidates.

If someone is invited to apply, they will have 60 days to submit an online application for permanent residence.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada will process the majority of complete applications (meaning those with all the necessary supporting documents) in six months or less.

Candidates can stay in the pool for up to 12 months. If they do not get an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence within 12 months of submitting an Express Entry profile, they may submit a new profile. If they still meet the criteria, they can re-enter the pool. This will prevent backlogs and ensure quick processing times.

 

Express Entry – Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) criteria

Summary of points per factor for Express Entry candidates
A. Core / human capital factors	Points per factor - With a spouse	Points per factor - Without a spouse	C. Skill Transferability factors	Maximum 100 points
Age	100	110	Education	Maximum 50 points
Level of education	140	150	With good/strong official languages proficiency and a post-secondary degree	50
Official languages proficiency	150	160	With Canadian work experience and a post-secondary degree	50
Canadian work experience	70	80	Foreign work experience	Maximum 50 points
B. Spouse factors	Maximum 40 points		With good/strong official languages proficiency and foreign work experience	50
Level of education	10		With Canadian work experience and foreign work experience	50
Official language proficiency	20		Certificate of qualification (for people in trade occupations)	Maximum 50 points
Canadian Work Experience	10		With good/strong official languages proficiency and a certificate of qualification	50
A. Core/human capital + B. Spouse factors	Maximum 500 points (with a spouse)	Maximum 500 points (without a spouse)	A. Core/human capital + B. Spouse + C. Transferability factors	Maximum 600 points
D. Additional points (maximum 600)
Arranged employment		600
PN nomination		600
A. Core/human capital + B. Spouse factors + C. Transferability factors + D. = Grand total - 1200

CRS – Core factors

Core / human capital factors	With a spouse (Maximum 460 points)	Without a spouse (Maximum 500 points)
Age	Number of points (100 maximum)	Number of points (110 maximum)
17 years of age or less	0	0
18 years of age	90	99
19 years of age	95	105
20 to 29 years of age	100	110
30 years of age	95	105
31 years of age	90	99
32 years of age	85	94
33 years of age	80	88
34 years of age	75	83
35 years of age	70	77
36 years of age	65	72
37 years of age	60	66
38 years of age	55	61
39 years of age	50	55
40 years of age	45	50
41 years of age	35	39
42 years of age	25	28
43 years of age	15	17
44 years of age	5	6
45 years of age or more	0	0
Level of Education	With a spouse - Number of points (140 maximum)	With a spouse - Number of points (150 maximum)
Less than Secondary school (high school) credential	0	0
Secondary school (high school) credential	28	30
One-year post-secondary program credential	84	90
Two-year post-secondary program credential	91	98
Post-secondary program credential of three years or longer	112	120
Two or more post-secondary program credentials AND at least one of these credentials was issued on completion of a post-secondary program of three years or longer	119	128
University-level credential at the Master’s level OR an entry-to-practice professional degree. CIC only accepts as an entry-to-practice professional degree, those degrees issued in relation to an occupation listed at NOC Skill level A and for which licensing by a provincial regulatory body is required.	126	135
University-level credential at the Doctoral level	140	150
Official languages proficiency - first official language Reading, writing, speaking and listening total points for each ability: 32 with a spouse 34 without a spouse	With a spouse Maximum 128 points	Without a spouse Maximum 136 points
For each ability	32	34
Less than CLB 4	0	0
CLB 4 or 5	6	6
CLB 6	8	9
CLB 7	16	17
CLB 8	22	23
CLB 9	29	31
CLB 10 or more	32	34
Official languages proficiency - second official language Reading, writing, speaking and listening total points for each ability: 5.5 with a spouse 6 without a spouse	Without a spouse Maximum 22 points	Without a spouse Maximum 24 points
For each ability	6	6
CLB 4 or less	0	0
CLB 5 or 6	1	1
CLB 7 or 8	3	3
CLB 9 or more	6	6
Canadian work experience	Without a spouse Maximum 70 points	Without a spouse Maximum 80 points
None or less than a year	0	0
1 year	35	40
2 years	46	53
3 years	56	64
4 years	63	72
5 years or more	70	80
Subtotal - Core / human capital factors	Out of 460 points	Out of 500 points

CRS – Spouse factors (if applicable)

Spouse factors	With spouse - number of points per factor	Without spouse (0 points – does not apply)
Spouse's level of education	10	0
Less than secondary school (high school) credential	0
Secondary school (high school) credential	2
One-year post-secondary program credential	6
Two-year post-secondary program credential	7
Post-secondary program credential of three years or longer	8
Two or more post-secondary program credentials AND at least one of these credentials was issued on completion of a post-secondary program of three years or longer	9
University-level credential at the Master’s level OR an entry-to-practice professional degree. CIC only accepts as an entry-to-practice professional degree, those degrees issued in relation to an occupation listed at NOC Skill level A and for which licensing by a provincial regulatory body is required.	10
University-level credential at the Doctoral level	10
Spouse’s official languages proficiency - first official language Reading, writing, speaking and listening– total points for each ability	Maximum 20 points	0 (does not apply)
For each ability	5
CLB 4 or less	0
CLB 5 or 6	1
CLB 7 or 8	3
CLB 9 or more	5
Canadian work experience	Maximum 10 points	0 (does not apply)
None or less than a year	0
1 year	5
2 years	7
3 years	8
4 years	9
5 years or more	10
Subtotal - Core / human capital + Spouse factors	500	500

CRS – Skill transferability factors

Skill Transferability factors	Maximum 100 points for this section
Education	Maximum 50 points for Education
With good official language proficiency and a post-secondary degree	Maximum 50 points
	Points for CLB 7 or more on all first official language abilities, one or more under 9	Points for CLB 9 or more on all four first official language abilities
Secondary school (high school) credential or less (levels 1&2)	0	0
Post-secondary program credential of one year or longer (levels 3,4 & 5)	13	25
Two or more post-secondary program credentials AND at least one of these credentials was issued on completion of a post-secondary program of three years or longer (levels 6,7 & 8)	25	50
With Canadian work experience and a post-secondary degree	Maximum 50 points
	Points for education + 1 year of Canadian work experience	Points for education + 2 years or more of Canadian work experience
Secondary school (high school) credential or less (levels 1&2)	0	0
Post-secondary program credential of one year or longer (levels 3,4 & 5)	13	25
Two or more post-secondary program credentials AND at least one of these credentials was issued on completion of a post-secondary program of three years or longer (levels 6,7 & 8)	25	50
Foreign work experience	Maximum 50 points for Foreign work experience
With good official language proficiency and foreign work experience	50 points
	Points for foreign work experience + CLB 7 or more on all first OL abilities, one or more under 9	Points for foreign work experience + CLB 9 or more on all four first OL abilities
No foreign work experience	0	0
1 or 2 years of foreign work experience	13	25
3 years or more of foreign work experience	25	50
With Canadian work experience and foreign work experience	Maximum 50 points
	Points for foreign work experience + 1 year of Canadian work experience	Points for foreign work experience + 2 years or more of Canadian work experience
No foreign work experience	0	0
1 or 2 years of foreign work experience	13	25
3 years or more of foreign work experience	25	50
Certificate of qualification (trade occupations)	Maximum 50 points for this section
With good official language proficiency and a certificate of qualification	Maximum 50 points
	Points for certificate of qualification + CLB 5 or more on all first OL abilities, one or more under 7	Points for certificate of qualification + CLB 7 or more on all four first OL abilities
With a certificate of qualification	25	50
Subtotal: A. Core + B. Spouse + C. Skill transferability factors	600
Additional points	Maximum 600 points
1) Arranged employment OR	600
2) Provincial or territorial nomination	600
Grand total	Maximum 1200 points

 

 

Determine your eligibility – Federal skilled workers

Skilled workers are people who are chosen as permanent residents based on their ability to prosper in Canada.

We assess federal skilled worker (FSW) applications based on the factors set out below.

A) Basic eligibility

We will only process your FSW application if you have:

• at least one year of continuous and paid (full-time or an equal amount in part-time) work experience
• in a single occupation,
• within the last 10 years,
• at skill type 0, or skill levels A or B of the 2011 edition of the Canadian National Occupational Classification (NOC)

AND

1. You have this work experience in one of the eligible occupations,

OR

2. You have a valid offer of arranged employment,

OR

3. You are an international student who is enrolled in a PhD program in Canada (or who graduated from a Canadian PhD program within the past 12 months) and meet these criteria.

No matter what category above you apply to, you must meet ALL the minimum requirements below.

B) Minimum requirements

Work experience

If your application is eligible to be processed, we will then assess it to see if your work experience, as described above, is valid.

Your work experience must be:

• at least one year (1560 hours), full-time or an equal amount in part-time,
• paid work (volunteer work, unpaid internships, etc. do not count),
• in the same occupation, and
• within the last 10 years,
• at skill type 0, or skill levels A or B of the 2011 edition of the Canadian National Occupational Classification (NOC)

You must show that you did the duties set out in the lead statement of the occupational description in the NOC, including all the essential duties and most of the main duties listed. If you do not show that your experience meets the description in the NOC, we will refuse your application.

Language ability

You must meet minimum language levels and include the results of a language test from an agency approved by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) when you apply that shows you meet the minimum language requirement of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7.

Education

You must have:

• a Canadian diploma, certificate, or credential

OR

• a foreign educational credential, and an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) by an agency approved by CIC to show it is equal to a completed Canadian secondary or post-secondary educational credential.

About the application cap

Due to the large number of applications we get, we can only consider a limited number of applications per year. As of May 1, 2014, there is an overall cap of 25,500 for new federal skilled worker applications. This includes a cap of 500 applications from PhD students. There are also sub-caps of 1,000 for each of the 50 eligible occupations. The caps do not affect people with a valid job offer. These are the last applications we will accept under the current system before Express Entry launches in January 2015.

C) Six selection factors

If you meet all the conditions set out in sections A and B above, we will process your application based on the six selection factors in the skilled worker points grid.^{Footnote 1} They are:

• your skills in English and/or French, Canada’s two official languages,
• your education,
• your work experience,
• your age,
• whether you have arranged employment in Canada, and
• your adaptability (how well you are likely to settle here).

To see how many points you might get, read about the selection factors

If you are not sure if you should apply as a skilled worker, try the Come to Canada Wizard to get an idea if your application would be eligible to be processed.

D) Proof of funds

You must also show that you have enough money to support yourself and your family after you arrive in Canada.

E) Inadmissibility

Some people are inadmissible—they are not allowed to come to Canada. Several things can make you inadmissible, including being involved in:

• crime, or
• human rights violations.

You can also be inadmissible for:

• security,
• health,
• financial reasons, or
• other reasons.

Determine your eligibility — Skilled trades

The Federal Skilled Trades Program is for people who want to become permanent residents based on being qualified in a skilled trade.

Note: To avoid backlogs and ensure fast processing times, we will accept no more than 5,000 complete federal skilled trade applications for processing as of May 1, 2014. These are the last applications we will accept under the current system before Express Entry launches in January 2015.

Within the 5,000 cap, no more than 100 new applications for each job will be considered for processing. See which applications we are currently accepting.

To apply, you must:

• plan to live outside the province of Quebec (Note: The province of Quebec chooses its own skilled workers. If you plan on living in Quebec, see Quebec-selected skilled workers for more information),
• meet the required levels in English or French for each language ability (speaking, reading, writing, and listening),
• have at least two years of full-time work experience (or an equal amount of part-time work experience)^{Footnote *} in a skilled trade within the five years before you apply,
• meet all job requirements for that skilled trade as set out in the National Occupational Classification (NOC), and
• have an offer of full-time employment for a total period of at least one year^{Footnote **} or a certificate of qualification in that skilled trade issued by a provincial or territorial body.^{Footnote ***}

Footnotes

Footnote *

“Full-time work” means at least 30 hours of work over a period of one week, or an equal amount in part-time, paid work experience. For example:

·         if you worked 15 hours per week in one job over four years, or

·         if you worked a total of 30 combined hours per week in more than one job over two years.

Return to footnote * referrer

Footnote **

Up to two employers can commit to employing you for at least one year of continuous full-time work, meaning at least 30 hours of work over a period of one week.

Return to footnote ** referrer

Footnote ***

In Canada, only the provinces and territories can issue certificates of qualification in the skilled trades. To get this certificate, the provincial or territorial trades authority must assess your training, trade experience and skills to decide if you are eligible to write an exam to be certified.

Return to footnote *** referrer

You will likely have to go to the province or territory to be assessed. You may also need an employer in Canada to give you experience and training.

You should go to the website of the body that governs trades for the province/territory where you would like to live and work. The process is different depending on where you want to go.

Each website has more details about whether you need a certificate of qualification to work there in a specific skilled trade, and what you have to do to get one.

• Alberta
• British Columbia
• Manitoba
• New Brunswick
• Newfoundland and Labrador
• Northwest Territories
• Nova Scotia
• Nunavut
• Ontario
• Prince Edward Island
• Saskatchewan
• Yukon

National Occupation Classification (NOC) requirements

Skilled Trades currently eligible for the FSTP are organized under these major groups of the NOC:

• Major Group 72, industrial, electrical and construction trades,
• Major Group 73, maintenance and equipment operation trades,
• Major Group 82, supervisors and technical jobs in natural resources, agriculture and related production, and
• Major Group 92, processing, manufacturing and utilities supervisors and central control operators.

These major NOC groups are subdivided into different occupations. We will accept no more than 100 applications for each occupation. See which applications we are accepting.

FSTP applications must be made based on the 2011 version of the NOC. However, if the application includes a Labour Market Opinion from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada based on the 2006 version of the NOC, it will be accepted by CIC as long as the applicant’s occupation corresponds to a 2011 NOC code that is eligible for the program.

Language testing

You must show you meet the minimum requirements in English or French for each of the four language abilities:

• reading,
• writing,
• speaking, and
• listening.

To do this, you must take an English or French language test from an organization approved by CIC. You must then include the results of your test with your application.

Inadmissibility

Some people are inadmissible—they are not allowed to come to Canada. Several things can make you inadmissible, such as being involved in criminal activity, in human rights violations or in organized crime.

You can also be inadmissible for security, health or financial reasons. Find out more about inadmissibility.

Do not apply under the Federal Skilled Trades Program if you are not admissible to Canada.

Determine your eligibility – Canadian Experience Class

Note: As of May 1, 2014, there is an overall cap of 8,000 for new Canadian Experience Class applications. There are also sub-caps of 200 for each National Occupational Classification B applications. These are the last applications we will accept under the current system before Express Entry launches in January 2015.

You cannot use work experience in the following occupations to qualify for the CEC:

• Cooks (NOC 6322)
• Food service supervisors (NOC 6311)
• Administrative officers (NOC 1221)
• Administrative assistants (NOC 1241)
• Accounting technicians and bookkeepers (NOC 1311)
• Retail sales supervisors (NOC 6211)

In addition, we are not accepting online payments for permanent residence applications under the Canadian Experience Class at this time.

You need to meet these requirements to apply under the Canadian Experience Class. You must:

• plan to live outside the province of Quebec,
• have at least 12 months of full-time (or an equal amount in part-time) skilled work experience in Canada in the three years before you apply,
• have gained your experience in Canada with the proper authorization,
• meet the required language levels needed for your job for each language ability (speaking, reading, writing, and listening).

Skilled work experience

According to the Canadian National Occupational Classification (NOC), skilled work experience means:

• Managerial jobs (NOC skill type 0)
• Professional jobs (NOC skill type A)
• Technical jobs and skilled trades (NOC skill type B)

You must have at least 12 months of full-time, or an equal amount in part-time, skilled work experience. Full-time work means at least 30 hours of paid work per week.

To find out which group your job falls under, see the list of jobs and their NOC groups. Follow the steps to find the NOC group that matches your job.

If the details and list of main duties for a job under NOC skill types 0, A or B match what you did while you worked in Canada, your job is likely in that group. If it does not, look at the list to see if another job matches your experience.

If your existing work permit is about to expire you may be eligible for a bridging open work permit. Bridging open work permits allow qualified applicants to keep working while they await a final decision on their permanent residence application.

Principal applicant

If you are married or live with a common-law partner in Canada, and that person also meets the above conditions, you can decide which one of you will apply under the CEC as a principal applicant.

A common-law partner is a person who has lived with you in a conjugal relationship for at least one year. Common-law partner refers to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples.

If you are not sure if you should apply under the CEC, try the Come to Canada Wizard to find out if you would be eligible.

Language

You must meet the minimum language requirements for your job. You must also include the results of a language test (from an agency designated by CIC) that shows you meet them when you apply.

Your test results must not be more than two years old on the day you apply.

Inadmissibility

Some people are inadmissible—they are not allowed to come to Canada. Many things can make you inadmissible, such as being involved in criminal activity, in human rights violations or in organized crime.

You can also be inadmissible for security, health or financial reasons.

Do not apply under the CEC if you are not admissible to Canada.