The eighth, and latest, draw from the Express Entry pool was performed by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) during the period beginning on April 17, 2015 and ending on April 18, 2015. 715 invitations to apply for Canadian permanent residence were issued to candidates in the pool who each had 453 or more Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points.

This represents the fourth draw in succession in which CIC selected a portion of candidates who did not have a qualifying job offer from a Canadian employer or a provincial nomination at the time they were selected. The first four draws from the pool, made between January 31 and February 27, selected only candidates who had either a job offer or a provincial nomination.

Moreover, this latest draw matches the lowest CRS points requirement of any draw that has been held since Express Entry came into operation on January 1, 2015. At number of invitations to apply issue is the lowest of any draw so far.

Candidates in the Express Entry pool must be eligible for one of the following federal economic immigration programs: the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, and the Canadian Experience Class.

Eligible candidates may submit a profile into the Express Entry pool, where they are ranked according to the CRS. The government of Canada selects the top-ranked candidates on a priority basis when it performs one of its frequent draws from the pool. Candidates who are issued an invitation to apply for permanent residence then have 60 days to submit a complete e-application, from which point the government of Canada aims to process the application within six months. A number of early applicants have had their applications processed in under half that time.

Click here for more information on draws from the Express Entry pool that have taken place so far.

Express Entry quick facts, from January 1 to April 20 (All dates are for 2015)

• Launch date: January 1
• First draw from the pool: January 31
• Most recent draw from the pool: April 17
• Minimum CRS points required for selection in any one draw: 453 (March 27 and April 17 draws)
• Largest number of invitations to apply issued in any one draw: 1,637 (March 27 draw)
• Fewest invitations to apply issued in any one draw: 715 (April draws)
• Largest decrease in CRS points required between two consecutive draws: 254 (from February 27 to March 20 draws)
• Smallest decrease in CRS points required between two consecutive draws: 10 (from February 7 to February 20 draws)
• Largest increase in CRS points required between two consecutive draws: 16 (from March 27 to April 10 draws)
• Longest gap between two consecutive draws: 21 days (from February 27 to March 20 draws)
• Shortest gap between two consecutive draws: 7 days (on four occasions)
• Total number of invitations to apply issued: 7,566