Today, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) issued Invitations to Apply (ITA) in a new Express Entry round. (Latest Express Entry Draw)
In an all-program draw, the department invited 3,000 candidates. The ITA required a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 504.
This round is the culmination of several rounds held over the week of September 18. On September 19, IRCC held an all-program draw and welcomed 3,200 candidates.
The following day, on September 20, it held the first-ever category-based lottery for Express Entry candidates in a transportation occupation, inviting 1,000 people .
What Exactly is Category-based selection?
IRCC announced in May of this year that it would begin holding draws for Express Entry candidates based on, one specific quality rather than their overall CRS score.
Following a change to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) in 2022 that gives the immigration minister the authority to select Express Entry candidates, who are likely to help Canada meet its mandate to strengthen the economy and promote the French language outside of Quebec, the categories were expected to be implemented this year.
To that goal, six new categories for in-demand occupations and newcomers with good French-language ability were established. The five occupational categories are as follows:
Healthcare, STEM professions, Trades, Transport, Agriculture and Agri-food
IRCC has held draws in all of these categories except Agriculture and agri-food since the first category-based draw for healthcare personnel on June 28.Candidates with strong French abilities have received the most category-based ITAs (6,900).Those who desire to immigrate to Canada through category-based selection must be in the Express Entry pool and have a CRS score of at least 550.
What exactly is Express Entry?
Express Entry is a system for managing applications for economic immigration applicants in the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP), & Canadian Experience Class (CEC).
The Comprehensive Ranking System is used by each of these programs to analyze and rank candidates based, on specific human capital variables such as job experience, occupation, education, age, and language competence.
Each attribute has a point value, and candidates with the highest aggregate scores are more likely to be invited to apply in an upcoming Express Entry draw. The program determines whether or not you are eligible for Express Entry. The FSWP and FSTP programs, for example, have different minimum Canadian Language Benchmark requirements, and although the FSTP and FSWP demand a minimum amount of settlement monies, the CEC does not.
