Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has issued Invitations to Apply (ITAs) in the latest Express Entry draw.
The department invited 964 candidates under the Provincial Nomination Program (PNP).
To be considered, candidates were required to achieve a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 686.
Get a free Express Entry assessment
Today’s draw was the eighth in an already busy month for Express Entry.
This month’s draws alternated between program-specific draws, such as the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), and category-based selection draws.
In the category-based draws, most ITAs have gone to candidates who demonstrate proficiency in the French language, with a total of 5,000 ITAs awarded across two draws. IRCC issued 3,750 ITAs to healthcare candidates on July 5 and 1,800 to candidates in trade occupations on July 4.
A large number of ITAs have also been issued in program-specific draws. As of July 18, IRCC has invited 6,300 Canadian Experience Class candidates and 2,311 PNP candidates. Candidates in both programs often already live and work in Canada as temporary residents. The return of program-specific draws on May 30 after a full year coincides with IRCC’s previously announced intention to hold more domestic draws.
In March this year, the department introduced a new goal of reducing and stabilising the number of temporary residents in Canada, while also meeting the permanent resident targets outlined in the Immigration Levels Plan.
What is Express Entry?
Express Entry is an application management system for the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Canadian Experience Class, and the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP).
These are Canada’s three most prominent economic immigration programs. They all use a comprehensive ranking system to evaluate candidates based on their human capital factors such as age, education, occupation, language skills, and work experience.
Each factor is given a score and together they form the candidate’s overall CRS score. Based on these human capital factors they are considered more likely to contribute to Canada’s workforce and strengthen its demographics. The higher the score, the more likely they are to receive an ITA.
Express Entry aims to facilitate a faster process for high-skill candidates. The department has published a six-month service standard for processing Express Entry applications.
What is range-based selection?
To further target the skills or attributes that Canada needs, IRCC introduced category-based selection draws in May 2023. The categories were selected after consultation with external and internal stakeholders. They are:
- Healthcare Business
- Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) professions
- Trade occupations, such as carpenters, plumbers, and contractors
- Transportation Business
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Business
- Proficiency in French Language
These categories will remain in place for the rest of 2024, but may change next year.
Get a free Express Entry assessment