IRCC finally resumes Express Entry FSWP and CEC draws!

by Sneha Chawla Best Immigration Consultants

For the first time since December 2020, Canada Express Entry has extended invitations to applicants for the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP).

Candidates from the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) were also selected in today's Express Entry draw. Since September 2021, CEC applicants haven't been selected in an Express Entry draw until now.

A total of 1,500 Express Entry candidates received invitations from Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to submit applications for permanent residence. The cut-off score for the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) was 557.

What's so different about this Express Entry draw?

For a number of reasons, the restoration of all-program draws is important. The Federal Skilled Worker Program was the principal method used by Canada to welcome skilled immigrants from its inception in 1967 until 2020. The FSWP made up around 45% of all applicants who were given an Express Entry ITA before the epidemic.

Another important development for CEC candidates is the resumption of all-program draws. The CEC is the main route for Canada's sizable population of foreign workers and students seeking permanent residency. Since Canada has relied on this pool to meet its immigration level goals, the CEC has gained notoriety. Just 9% of the 341,000 immigrants accepted into Canada under the economic, familial, and humanitarian categories combined made up the CEC prior to the pandemic. Nearly a third of the more than 405,000 immigrants who arrived in Canada last year were members of the CEC.

Sean Fraser, Canada's Minister of Immigration, stated two weeks ago that the IRCC was on schedule to hold an all-program Canada Express Entry draw on July 6 as planned. He acknowledged this on Monday via Twitter. This declaration was first made by IRCC in April. Furthermore, IRCC expects to resume processing the majority of Express Entry applications in six months.

All-program Canada Express Entry draws take place when the IRCC takes into account every applicant in the Express Entry pool and only awards Invitations to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence based on their CRS score. The Comprehensive Ranking System assigns candidates a score based on their human capital traits, including age, education, IELTS score for Canada PR, and work experience. The majority of the IRCC draws between the commencement of Express Entry in 2015 and December 2020 were all-program ones.

This implied that applicants for the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), Canadian Experience Class (CEC), and Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP) all stood a chance of receiving an ITA.

The IRCC narrowed its focus to just inviting CEC candidates as of January 2021. IRCC took this action because the majority of these applicants were Canadian citizens and were, therefore, less likely to encounter COVID-related obstacles than immigrants from other countries. However, in September 2021, IRCC put a halt to CEC invites in order to deal with its backlog of applications. In the interim, to assist the provinces and territories in addressing their labor market needs, IRCC has continued to run biweekly draws that only accept candidates from the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).

How does the Canada Express Entry work?

Express Entry involves two steps.

Candidates must initially certify they satisfy the requirements of at least one of the three Express Entry programs.

Candidates can upload their Express Entry profile to the IRCC website if they match the requirements. The Comprehensive Ranking System assigns candidates a score based on their human capital traits, including age, education, IELTS score for Canada PR, and work experience. The top-scoring applicants are invited by IRCC to submit an application for permanent residency every two weeks.

Those who have received invitations to apply for permanent residency have 60 days to do so. Most applications will be processed by IRCC in six months or less.

Take Away

Canada will accept more than 110,000 Express Entry immigrants annually by 2024. Canada is planning to open doors to more than 1.3 million new permanent residents between 2022 - 2024.

Around 57% of new permanent residents will be admitted under Canada Express Entry sub-streams i.e., Federal Skilled Workers Program (FSWP), Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP), and Canadian Experience Class (CEC).

Candidates showcasing a good score in the CRS points calculator - have higher chances of receiving an Invitation to Apply (ITA) to apply for Canada PR. Applicants with lower CRS have options to boost their scores in the CRS points calculator. Getting the maximum IELTS score for Canada PR, landing a job in Canada, and securing a provincial nomination - are some of the best result-oriented ways to increase chances of earning an invitation to apply for Canadian permanent residency.