EXPRESS ENTRY
Canada Express Entry is the fastest and most popular immigration system for newcomers seeking a new life in Canada, introduced by the federal government in January 2015. For potential skilled foreign workers, Express Entry will result in fast processing times of six months or less.
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Express Entry manages applications under these federal economic immigration programs:
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the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSW)
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the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FST)
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the Canadian Experience Class (CEC)
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Provinces and territories can also recruit candidates from Express Entry through their Provincial Nominee Programs to meet local labor market needs.
Criteria
All three programs under the Express Entry system are highly competitive. Immigration candidates are ranked against one another and only the highest-ranking candidates are selected to become Canadian permanent residents.
The Federal Express Entry Programs use a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) to evaluate, score and select candidates. The CRS attributes points to candidates based on:
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Age
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Education
- Work experience
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English and/or French Skills (Canada’s two official languages)
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Whether the candidate has a valid job offer
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Adaptability (how well you are likely to settle in Canada)
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Any person who submits a profile to the Express Entry pool of candidates is assigned a CRS score out of 1200 points. Approximately every two weeks, the Canadian government conducts an Express Entry draw, and the highest-ranking applicants are invited to apply for PR under one of three skilled immigration categories, FSW,FST to CEC.
Note that IRCC does not disclose information regarding the date of the draw, number of ITAs that will be issued, or minimum required CRS score in advance of the draw.
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CRS Criteria
A) Core Human Capital With Spouse Without Spouse
Age 100 110
Level of Education 140 150
Language Proficiency 150 160
Canadian Work Experience 70 80
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B) Spouse or Common-Law Factors
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Level of Education 10
Language Proficiency 20
Canadian Work Experience 10
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C) Skill Transferability Maximum Points
Factors 100
*Education Maximum Points 50
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Language and Degree 50
Canadian work experience 50
and degree
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*Foreign Work Experience Maximum Points 50
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Language and Foreign 50
work experience
Canadian and Foreign 50
work experience
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*Certificate of Qualification Maximum Points 50
(for Trades)
Language and certificate 50
of qualification
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D) Additional Points Maximum Points
600
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CC/PR Siblings 15
French Language skills 30
Canadian Degree 30
Arranged Employment 200
Provincial Nomination 600
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*A + B + C + D : Maximum Points 1200
Steps for Application
1. Create an EE Profile
2. If candidate does not have an LMIA supported job offer, register with job Bank.
3. If minimum criteria (FSW/FST/CEC) is met, will be put into the EE pool.
4. Receive a score by the CRS.
5. May get job offer or Provincial nomination for more points and higher ranking.
6. Candidates who exceeds the CRS cut-off score will be issued an invitation to apply (ITA) for PR.
7. If ITA is received, must apply for PR within 60 days under the program ITA indicated (FSW/ FST/ CEC/ PNP).
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Points To Be Noted
1. There is no fee to create an EE profile, but candidates given an ITA must pay fee when applying.
2. Both husband and wife /CL can make individual profiles.
3. If a person intends to live in Quebec, they cannot use EE.
4. If the candidate has a spouse /CL who is a PR or Canadian citizen, or is not immigrating to Canada, the candidate will be considered for CRS points without Spouse/CL.
5. Only the highest credential needs to be ECA-verified. Partially completed credentials do not count.
6. If spouse is inadmissible, both will become inadmissible.
7. For FSW, candidate must have Canadian Secondary or post-secondary degree equivalence and for FST, no education is required.
8. For FSW, language requirement is CLB -7 in all four skills and for FST CLB - 5 in speaking and listening, 4 in reading and writing.
9. For FST, experience will only be counted if it is after license.
10. For CEC, work experience gained in Quebec counts, but self employed or while waiting for refugee decision does not count.
11. For CEC, no need to prove settlement funds.
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