The Canada Express Entry Program is a points-based immigration program (CRS) for
professionals looking to settle in Canada. It awards points to professionals based on skills,
experience, Canadian employment status and provincial/territorial nomination.
The higher your points, the greater your chances of receiving an invitation to Apply (ITA) for
Permanent Residency in Canada. Typically, PR applications submitted through this route are
processed in 6-12 months or fewer. We are the leading authority on Canadian migration and
can help you plan every step of your immigration process.
Express Entry is the fastest and most popular pathway to permanent residence for immigrants
seeking a new life in Canada. Express Entry program is a selection system designed for
immigrants with the work skills and attributes needed to benefit the country and succeed in
Canada. In 2021–22, Canada welcomed more than 405,000 newcomers and set targets in the
new immigration plan for 465,000 permanent residents in 2023, 485,000 in 2024 and 500,000 in
2025.
Express Entry is an online system used by the Canadian government to organize and process
applications for skilled workers who wish to immigrate to Canada and acquire Canadian
permanent residence status. The system manages three main federal economic programs;
Federal Skilled Worker (FSW), Federal Skilled Trades (FST) and Canadian Experience Class
(CEC).
For potential skilled foreign workers, Express Entry will result in fast processing times of six
months or less. However, not all cases will proceed this quickly. Your Express Entry profile
will remain active in the pool of candidates for 12 months even if you do not receive an
invitation to apply (ITA). After 12 months you have not received an invitation, you must
resubmit your profile and remain in the pool for next draw.
We are the leading authority on Canadian migration and can help you plan every step of your
immigration process. We can help you to determine which program is right for you and start
making your dreams of living and working in Canada.
Eligibility for Express Entry Program:
- Have at least one year, in the last 10 years of continuous full-time (or equivalent part- time) work experience in a skilled occupation.
- Be able to demonstrate on an approved language test a minimum of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) seven in either English or French/ IELTS 0.6.
- Completed post-secondary education that is assessed against Canadian standards with an Education Credential Assessment.
- This Program relies on a points-based system to evaluate applicants (CRS), an average score 500 and above has more chance to be invited.
These are the minimum requirements to apply to Canada’s Express Entry system as a skilled
worker. Meeting these requirements doesn’t mean you will receive an invitation to apply for
Canadian permanent residence.
Candidates with stronger profiles will always be selected over candidates that simply meet the
minimum requirement. The CRS score is calculated by 6 factors Age, skills, education,
language ability, work experience, and other factors.
A. Federal Skilled Worker (FSW)
The Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) program is one of the three programs contained within
Canada’s Express Entry system for processing immigration applications. The FSW program
allows candidates with foreign work experience and no connections to Canada to apply for
permanent residency.
The Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) program is managed under the Express Entry system
and uses the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) to rank candidates who wish to settle
permanently in Canada.
Unlike the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidates, Federal Skilled Workers are not
required to have Canadian work experience to enter the Express Entry pool. Instead,
candidates must meet a minimum points requirement based on factors such as work
experience, language ability, and education. Once in the pool, applicants with the most
competitive CRS scores will receive invitations to apply for Canadian permanent residence.
To qualify for the FSW program, a candidate must meet certain minimum requirements
regarding years of experience, level of education, age, and English or French language
proficiency. If a candidate meets the requirements, they must also demonstrate that they
score a minimum of 67 out of 100 points on the FSW eligibility points grid. Only after
submitting an Express Entry profile the candidate be assigned a CRS score and be considered
for future Express Entry draws.
B. Federal Skilled Trades (FST)
The Federal Skilled Trades Program is for skilled workers who want to become permanent
residents based on being qualified in a skilled trade. To help you better understand which
trade best fits your abilities, the skilled trades have been categorized into four main sectors:
Construction, Motive Power, Industrial, and Service.
This program is for people who qualify as a tradesperson, specializing in a particular trade.
The applicant is required to have at least 2 years of full-time work experience in that skilled
trade and acquire the minimum language level in English or French.
C. Canadian Experience Class (CEC)
C. Canadian Experience Class (CEC) The Canadian Experience Class (CEC) program is ideal for candidates who have recent Canadian work experience and are seeking permanent immigration to Canada. CEC is also one of the fastest routes to Canadian permanent residence, taking as little as three to four months to process. To eligible for CEC, a candidate must have at least 12-months of full-time (or an equivalent amount of part-time), skilled work experience in Canada. The Canadian work experience must have been acquired within the previous three years from the date of the application’s is not an option for foreign nationals who do not have recent Canadian work experience. Your Canadian job should be lawfully obtained, paid work experience and your employment duties in Canada must fall under the NOC Code Skill Level 0, A, or B.
