Express Entry is a very important immigration process being used by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to manage and process applications initiated by three of Canada’s federal economic immigration programs for skilled workers. In short, it is a competitive enrollment policy, registering all qualified applicants and inviting the best ranking contenders to apply for Canadian permanent residency.

Step 1: Essentially, interested candidates require to submit an Express Entry form that serves as an Expression of Interest to show their willingness in becoming a Canadian permanent resident. Once a profile has been submitted, the candidate is granted a CRS record which ranks his/her ranking against the other competitors in the Express Entry pool. Express Entry profile is valid for 12 months and can be renewed after 12 months or when there is new information to add.

Almost every two weeks, the Canadian government offers an Express Entry draw, sending a round of Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to the competitors in the pool with the highest CRS scores. When applicants receive an ITA, they need to submit an application for permanent resident along with supporting documents and applicable fee.

Step 2: Once a candidate gets an ITA, he/she will have 60 days or 2 months to submit an electronic Application for Permanent Residence (eAPR). On the successful submission of this application, the applicant will be granted permanent resident status in Canada along with family members, spouse and/or children.

Federal Skilled Worker:

The Federal Skilled Worker program is designed to target younger candidates who have excellent work experience with a high level of qualification, language proficiency, and the skills to adapt to living in Canada. This program does not require a connection to Canada, therefore, this is ideal for skilled workers who do not hold Canadian education or work experience.

Canadian Experience Class:

This program is intended to target qualified applicants who have Canadian work experience. To be eligible, a candidate should have a minimum of 1 year of full-time, skilled work experience in Canada, attained within the last 3 years. This pathway is ideal for international students in Canada who have acquired Canadian employment using a Post-Graduation Work Permit or with experience as temporary immigrant workers.

Provincial Nominee:

Provincial Nominee Programs are immigration programs carried by Canada’s provinces and territories. Most of these programs are designed in connection with the Express Entry system.