Skilled Worker Express Entry Immigration to Canada
Canada chooses skilled immigrants as permanent residents based on their ability to settle in Canada and take part in our economy. Our system to manage how people with skilled work experience apply to immigrate to Canada is called Express Entry.
Express Entry is used to manage applications for permanent residence for these programs:
Provinces and territories can also recruit candidates from the Express Entry pool through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) to meet local labor market needs.
Ministerial Instructions set out the rules for the Express Entry application management system.
An Express Entry profile is a form where you give us information about your:
- skills
- education
- language ability
- work experience and
- other details
The information in your profile will help them see if you are eligible for an immigration program managed by Express Entry. If you meet the criteria, we will accept you into our pool of candidates.
If you are in the Express Entry pool, you can start your job search by creating a Job Match account with Job Bank. Once you come to Canada, you can continue using Job Bank to find a job.
A Job Match account with Job Bank is an easy, online tool to help match you with employers looking for workers with your skills. To create an account:
- go to the Job Match sign-in page
- click the “Sign up now!” button
- read the privacy notice and click “I agree”
- follow the instructions to create an account
You can also promote yourself to employers in other ways, such as using:
- recruiters or
- job boards
You will be ranked in the Express Entry pool using a points-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System.
The CRS gives you a score from the information in your profile, including your:
- skills
- education
- language ability
- work experience
- other factors
You can also get points for:
- Canadian degrees, diplomas or certificates
- a valid job offer
- a nomination from a province or territory
We send invitations to apply to the candidates with the highest scores in the pool. If we invite you to apply, you will have 90 days to submit an online application for permanent residence.
We will process most complete applications that have all the supporting documents in six months or less.
You can stay in the pool for up to 12 months as long as you meet the criteria for one of the federal programs. You should update your profile anytime as your case changes.
If we don’t invite you to apply for permanent residence within 12 months of submitting an Express Entry profile, you can submit a new profile. If you still meet the criteria, you will re-enter the pool.
Federal skilled workers minimum requirements
Federal skilled workers Official Page
Skilled work experience
Your work experience must be:
- in the same type of job as your primary NOC
- within the last 10 years
- paid work (volunteer work, unpaid internships don’t count)
- at skill type 0, or skill levels A or B of the 2011 National Occupational Classification (NOC)
- at least 1 year (1,560 hours total / 30 hours per week), continuous:
- full-time at 1 job: 30 hours/week for 12 months = 1 year full time (1,560 hours)
- equal amount in part-time: 15 hours/week for 24 months = 1 year full time (1,560 hours)
- full-time at more than 1 job: 30 hours/week for 12 months at more than 1 job = 1 year full time (1,560 hours)
You must show that you did the duties set out in the occupational description in the NOC. This includes most of the main duties listed.
If you can’t show that your work experience meets the description in the NOC, you aren’t eligible under this program.
Language ability
You must:
- take an approved language test that shows you meet the level for:
- writing
- reading
- listening
- speaking
- get a minimum score of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 in all four abilities
- include the test results in your Express Entry profile
You must show that you meet the requirements in English or French. Your test results must not be more than two years old on the day you apply for permanent residence.
Education
If you went to school in Canada, you must have a certificate, diploma or degree from a Canadian:
- secondary (high school) or
- post-secondary school
If you have foreign education, you must have:
- an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) report from an approved agency showing that your foreign education is equal to a completed certificate, diploma or degree from a Canadian:
- secondary (high school) or
- post-secondary school
Selection factors
If you meet all the conditions set out in the minimum requirements, we’ll assess your application based on these selection factors:
- age
- education
- work experience
- Whether you have a valid job offer
- English and/or French language skills
- adaptability (how well you’re likely to settle here)
These factors are part of a 100-point grid used to assess federal skilled workers. You earn points for how well you do in each of the six factors. Your total points will show if you qualify for the Express Entry pool. The current pass mark is 67 points.
Proof of funds
You must show that you have enough money to support yourself and your family after you arrive in Canada, unless you:
- are currently able to legally work in Canada
- have a valid job offer from an employer in Canada
Principal applicant
If you are applying on your own, you are the principal applicant.
If you have a live-in partner, either you or they can apply under Express Entry as a principal applicant if:
- you are:
- married
- common-law partners, which means you:
- are an opposite-sex or same-sex couple
- have lived together in a marriage-like relationship for at least one year
- both meet the requirements to apply as a Federal Skilled Worker
Your principal applicant should be the one of you most likely to:
- meet the eligibility requirements
- earn the most points in the section factors
- earn the most points under the Comprehensive Ranking System for Express Entry
Other requirements
- You must be admissible to Canada. Find out more about inadmissibility
- You must plan to live outside the province of Quebec
If you have skilled work experience and want to live in Canada permanently, use our Come to Canada tool to see if you’re eligible for the Express Entry pool.
Skilled trades Minimum requirements
To be eligible, you must:
- plan to live outside the province of Quebec (Note: The province of Quebec selects its own skilled workers. If you plan on living in Quebec, see Quebec-selected skilled workers for more information),
- meet the required levels in English or French for each language ability (speaking, reading, writing and listening),
- have at least two years of full-time work experience (or an equal amount of part-time work experience) in a skilled trade within the five years before you apply,
- meet the job requirements for that skilled trade as set out in the National Occupational Classification (NOC), except for needing a certificate of qualification, and
- have an offer of full-time employment for a total period of at least one year or a certificate of qualification in that skilled trade issued by a Canadian provincial or territorial authority.
Canadian Experience Class Minimum Requirements
To qualify for the CEC through Express Entry, you must have:
- at least 12 months of skilled work experience in Canada, in the last three years (before you apply). The work was:
- full-time OR
- an equal amount in part-time
- gained your work experience in Canada with the proper authorization
- meet the required language levels needed for your job for each language ability
- writing
- reading
- listening
- speaking
- planned to live outside the province of Quebec
Self-employment and work experience gained while you were a full-time student (such as on a co-op work term) doesn’t count under this program.
Note: The province of Quebec does not use Express Entry. They select their own skilled workers. See Quebec-selected skilled workers to find out more.
Make sure stay up-to-date with CIC changes
Canada Visa Types
- Temporary Resident Permits Visa to Canada
- Family sponsorship Visa Immigration to Canada
- Study Visa to Canada
- Work Visa to Canada
- Start-up Visa to Canada
- Skilled Worker Express Entry Immigration to Canada
- Self Employed Visa Immigration to Canada
- Investor Immigrant Visa to Canada
- Official Visas to Canada
- Diplomatic Visas to Canada
- U.S. government officials Visa to Canada
- Temporary Residents Visa to Canada
- Facilitation Visas to Canada
- Super Visa to Canada
- Diplomatic and Official Visas to Canada
- Resources: Immigration and citizenship to Canada Offical Website