Immigrate to Canada

Express Entry is a system used by Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to choose candidates for immigration to Canada using these programs: 

• Federal Skilled Worker Class
• Federal Skilled Trades Class
• Canadian Experience Class 
• Provincial Nominee Program

The Process

Immigrate through Express Entry

Determine Your Eligibility  

Candidates eligible to immigrate to Canada under a federal economic immigration program may enter the Express Entry pool. Consequently, the first step to be taken should be to determine your eligibility for one of these programs.

Build Your Express Entry Profile

Candidates for Canadian permanent residence who are eligible for one of the federal economic immigration programs make an expression of interest in immigrating to Canada by creating an online profile. They provide information about their skills, work experience, language ability, education, and other personal information.

Candidates who meet the criteria of one of the aforementioned federal economic immigration programs are placed in a pool of candidates who are ranked according to a Comprehensive Ranking System.

If a candidate does not already have a valid job offer from a Canadian employer or a provincial nomination, he or she may register with Canada's Job Bank. As of June 6, 2017, registration in Canada’s Job Bank is no longer mandatory. However, registering in the Job Bank may improve a candidate’s visibility to Canadian employers.

Increase Your Ranking

Candidates in the Express Entry pool are rated according to the Comprehensive Ranking System, which takes into account the following criteria:

• core human capital factors;
• accompanying spouse or common-law partner factors, if applicable;
• skill transferability factors; and
• factors relating to a provincial nomination, qualifying offer of arranged employment, Canadian study experience, a sibling in Canada, and/or French language ability. 

1,200 points are available under the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS).

The Government of Canada selects candidates from the Express Entry pool according to their ranking. Improving your ranking will maximize your chances of being selected from the pool.

Invitation to Apply (ITA)

Candidates with valid job offers or provincial nominations, will be invited to submit an application for Canadian permanent residence. From that point, candidates will have 90 days to submit an electronic application for permanent residence. IRCC seeks to process applications within six months of the date of submission.

All necessary forms must be completed and submitted with supporting documents within this timeframe. After completing the process, successful candidates and their dependents (spouse and children) will land in Canada as permanent residents.

Candidates in the Express Entry pool who do not receive an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence in Canada after 12 months may resubmit their profile and re-enter the pool if they still meet the criteria of at least one of the economic immigration programs.

Preparing for Express Entry 

How to prepare for Express Entry

• Prepare for language exams
  • English language testing, including the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) — General test and CELPIP: Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program — General Test.
• Get your foreign credentials assessed according to Canadian standards.
• Learn more about the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS)
• Deal with any medical inadmissibility or criminal inadmissibility issues you may have.
• Browse available Provincial Nominee Programs that have an enhanced stream aligned with Express Entry.
• Use the Job Bank to search for available positions across Canada.

To learn more about applying for Express Entry, contact us