Canada Express Entry First Draw After 2020
Canada is finally inviting Skilled Immigrants Overseas for the first time since 2020. The candidates who are included in this Express Entry draw are the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) and Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidates.
A total of 1,500 Express Entry applicants were invited to apply for permanent residency by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in this draw. CEC applicants have been included in an Express Entry draw for the first time since September 2021. The cut-off score for the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) was 557.
Resuming the all-program draw is a piece of big news for both FSWP and the CEC for as Express Entry’s Federal Skilled Worker Program is the main pathway to Canada for skilled immigrants. Before the pandemic, almost 45% of the candidates in the Express Entry draw got the ITAs under the FSWP. On the other hand, CEC is the primary means of obtaining permanent residency in Canada for the country’s substantial international student and foreign labour population. Before the pandemic, 9% of the total 341,000 immigrants were admitted to Canada under CEC’s economic, family, and humanitarian classes combined.
In early June, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser mentioned that the ICCRC is planning to resume the all-program Express Entry draw on July 6. Later on, he verified this on Twitter and also mentioned that the IRCC intends to resume processing most Express Entry applications within six months.
All-program Express Entry draws occur when IRCC examines all applicants in the Express Entry pool and awards invitations to apply (ITA) for permanent residence based only on their CRS score. Beginning in January 2021, IRCC centred on inviting solely the CEC candidates because the majority of these applicants were already in Canada and were less likely to suffer COVID-related issues than immigration candidates from other countries. However, in September 2021, IRCC suspended CEC invites in order to manage application backlogs. Meanwhile, IRCC has continued to run weekly draws for Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) applicants to assist provinces and territories in meeting labour market demands.
What Was The Immigration Minister’s Statement On This Draw?
Canada’s Immigration Minister Sean Fraser said that Express Entry draws have commenced and applications will be handled in 6 months. He also thanked applicants from all around the world for their patience. He also mentioned that they worked to minimize the backlog before restarting Express Entry drawings and he is eagerly awaiting the arrival of qualified people who will be critical in resolving Canada’s labour needs. He says that by 2024, Canada will welcome over 110,000 Express Entry immigrants per year.
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Express Entry
Express Entry is a two-step process.
In step one, candidates need to confirm they meet the eligibility criteria of at least one of the three Express Entry programs i.e. FSWP, FSTP, CEC
If they meet the criteria, they have to upload their Express Entry profile on IRCC’s website. A Comprehensive Ranking System score is assigned to candidates based on human capital factors such as age, education, language abilities, and job experience. Every two weeks, IRCC invites the highest-scoring candidates to apply for permanent residency. Those who have been asked to apply for permanent residency have 60 days to do so. IRCC strives to complete most applications in six months or fewer.
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