Potential candidates will complete a secure online Express Entry profile. The applicant must include the following: skills, work experience, language ability, education and other details that will help the government with credential assessment. Those candidates that have met the criteria of one of the federal programs (FSW-Federal Skilled Worker, FSTW -Federal Skilled Trade worker, and CEC-Canadian Experience Class) will be accepted into a pool of candidates. Candidates that do not have a job offer supported by an LMIA or a Provincial/Territory nomination must register with the department of ESDC job bank.
Note: Entry into the Express Entry pool does not guarantee a candidate will be issued an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence. Invited candidates still have to meet eligibility and admissibility requirements under Canada’s immigration law (Immigration and Refugee Protection Act).
The highest-ranking candidates in the pool will be invited to apply for permanent residence
Candidates will be ranked against others in the pool using a point-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System. Points are awarded using the information in their profile. Candidates with the highest scores in the pool will be issued an Invitation to Apply. Candidates will be awarded points for:
** An offer of employment and/or a nomination certificate from a province or territory, skills and experience factors.
A candidate can get additional points for: both an employment offer supported by a Labour Market Assessment, or a nomination certificate from a Province or Territory. These additional points will make a candidate rank high enough to be invited to apply at the next eligible draw of candidates. If someone is invited to apply, they will have 60 days to submit an online application for permanent residence. Citizenship and Immigration Canada will process the majority of complete applications (meaning those with all the necessary supporting documents) in six months or less.
**Candidates can stay in the pool for up to 12 months. If they do not get an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence within 12 months of submitting an Express Entry profile, they may submit a new profile. If they still meet the criteria, they can re-enter the pool. This will prevent backlogs and ensure quick processing times.
Who can apply?
Provincial Nominee Programs
There are several provincial nominee programs which offer specific skilled worker categories based on the needs of the various provinces. The applicants are assessed under specific provincial selection criteria’s and must intend to live in the selected province. Manitoba for instances has 5 application streams such as employers direct, community stream, family stream, international students stream, strategic recruitment and the general assessment stream.