Skilled Worker Express Entry Immigration to Canada

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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

Skilled trades Official Page

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