Overview: Express Entry System

Since its introduction in January 2015 Express Entry system successfully invited and proceeded 579,065 immigration applications till May 2022, making it by far the most popular program used by immigrants among many other programs offered by Canada’s federal government and provincial/territorial governments.

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Before we dive deep into details about Express Entry, a bit of history…

First-come, first-serve model

Before the Express Entry system was introduced, immigration applications were processed through Federal Skilled Worker Class (FSWC) program, Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC) program, and Canadian Experience Class (CEC) program on a first-come, first-serve basis with an average processing time of 12-14 months. 

With the aging Canadian population and increased labor demand, Canada needed to do more to fill the gap and do it much faster. Therefore a new system (guess which!) was required that allows Canada to select candidates based on skills and age among many other selection factors, to be more likely to succeed economically. 

What is Express Entry?

Express Entry is an online electronic management system that manages three major immigration programs used by Canada to attract skilled people to immigrate to Canada.

Express Entry also manages a portion of the Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP), which we will not cover in this article as it represents a tiny percentage compared to the other three programs mentioned before.

Unlike the three immigration programs we mentioned earlier, Express Entry is not yet another program but a gateway that streamlines the application process for the programs it manages. No matter which program candidates want to target to maximize their chance to successfully immigrate to Canada, they will follow the same application process under Express Entry and get a point-based score called a comprehensive ranking system (CRS) score after submitting the application.

How Express Entry works?

Express Entry is a two-step process.

Step 1 is to create an express entry profile. Anyone who wants to immigrate to Canada either through any of the three programs mentioned earlier must first create an express entry profile.

Upon successfully submitting the profile with all the required information, the application will then be placed in a pool with others who are also eligible, and a score(CRS) will be given to the applicant.

Express Entry draw:
Canada regularly holds Express Entry draws, usually once every two weeks but not necessarily, in which it issues a number of invitations to apply (ITA) to candidates who are already in the express entry pool. Candidates with the top score will be selected based on the number of ITA issued and how old their express entry profile is. The maximum allowed age of an express entry profile is one year, but not to worry as you can create a new profile, and there is no cap on the number of times you can create a profile. 

Example:
If IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) invited 2000 candidates in a draw, the top 2000 candidates would be selected from the Express Entry pool with the highest CRS score. The cut-off score of the draw will be the score of the last selected candidate, which will be the least of the 2000 candidates selected in that round. Let us assume the cut-off score for this round is 533 points. If there are multiple candidates with 533 points, then the age of the Express Entry profile will be taken into account with the oldest one selected. So it is always a good idea to submit your express entry profile as soon as you gather all the information required.

Step 2 is Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence. Once you get an ITA, you will be given 60 days to fill out and submit your application for permanent resident (PR) either online or offline paper-based. Here you will be asked to prove the information you have provided in your Express Entry profile by submitting the relevant documents such as a job experience letter, language test results, education credentials, and others mentioned in your Express Entry profile. Please note that this will be a new application and not the same as creating an express entry profile.

After submitting the application for PR, it may take up to 6 months to get your application approved and land in Canada as PR.

80% of immigration applications submitted through Express Entry are processed in under six months or less.

Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score structure

CRS is the point-based system used by IRCC to assign scores to profiles in the Express Entry pool.

A candidate in the Express Entry pool can get points up to a maximum of 1200, consisting of core points up to 600 and a set of additional points up to 600.

Core: up to 600 points:

  1. Skills and experience factors
  2. Spouse or common-law partner factors
  3. Skills transferability, education, and work experience

Additional: up to 600 points

  1. Canadian degrees, diplomas, or certificates
  2. a valid job offer
  3. a nomination from a province or territory
  4. a brother/sister living in Canada who is a citizen or permanent resident
  5. strong French language skills

In the below table, we have listed the breakdown of points you would get if you have applied to immigrate for yourself and your spouse/common-law partner together vs. if you were single. If your spouse or partner is not coming with you to Canada, or they are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, you will earn points as if you do not have a spouse or partner.

FactorsMax. points – with a spouse or
common-law partner
Max. points – Single or
without spouse or common law partner
A. Core/Human capital factors:
Age100110
Education140150
Official language proficiency150160
Canadian work experience7080
B. Spouse/common-law partner factors:
Education – spouse/common-law partner10
Official language proficiency – spouse/common-law partner20
Canadian work experience – spouse/common-law partner10
C. Skill transferability factors (maximum 100 points):
Education (maximum 50 points):
(A) Official language proficiency and education
(B) Canadian work experience and education

50
50
Foreign work experience (maximum 50 points):
(A) Official language proficiency and foreign work experience
(B) Canadian and foreign work experience

50
50
Certification of qualification (for trade occupations) (maximum 50 points)50
D. Additional points (maximum 600 points):
Brother or sister living in Canada (citizen or permanent resident)15
French language skills50
Study in Canada30
Arranged employment200
Provincial nomination600

To find out your official CRS score, you can visit the IRCC’s official CRS calculator here.

Eligibility criteria to apply under Express Entry

To become eligible to apply for permanent residence under the express entry system, a candidate must become eligible for at least one of the three immigration programs managed by the Express Entry system.

In the table below, we have provided very high-level but important key requirements to become eligible for each of the three programs.

NOC*: National Occupation Classification
CLB**: Canadian Language Benchmark
Eligibility criteriaCanadian Experience ClassFederal Skilled Worker ProgramFederal Skilled Trades Program
Language skillsEnglish or French
Before November 16, 2022:
CLB** 7 for work experience in NOC 0 or A
CLB 5 for NOC B

After November 16, 2022:
CLB 7 for TEER 0 or TEER 1 occupations
CLB 5 for TEER 2 or TEER 3 occupations

English or French
CLB 7
English or French
CLB 5 for speaking and listening
CLB 4 for reading and writing
Type work experienceBefore November 16, 2022: Canadian experience in 1 of the NOC*: 0, A, and B

After November 16, 2022:
Canadian work experience in  1 or more NOC TEER categories: TEER 0, 1, 2, 3
Before November 16, 2022: Canadian OR foreign experience in 1 of the NOC: 0, A, and B

After November 16, 2022:
Canadian OR foreign experience in 1 of these NOC TEER categories: TEER 0, 1, 2, 3
Before November 16, 2022:
Canadian or foreign experience in specific skill trades under NOC B

After November 16, 2022:
Canadian or foreign experience in specific skill trades under NOC TEER categories: TEER 2, and 3
Amount of work experienceAt least 1 year in past 3 years; non-continuous work is considered At least 1 year continuous as full-time OR 2 years continuous part-time in past 10 yearsAt least 2 years in past 5 years; non-continuous work is considered
Job offerNot requiredNot requiredRequired:
1 year full-time OR
a certificate of qualification in skilled trade issued by a Canadian provincial, territorial or federal authority
EducationNot requiredAt least secondary education
Not required

You can find out NOC for your work experience from IRCC’s official website here.
For language skills requirements, you can visit the official source here.