Alexandra Miekus - 27 April, 2022
Canada invited 829 candidates in the federal Express Entry pool to apply for Canadian permanent residence in a draw held on April 27.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) only invited Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) candidates in this draw.
The minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score needed to get an Invitation to Apply (ITA) in the latest Express Entry draw was 772.
IRCC uses the Express Entry system to manage applications for those seeking permanent residence (PR) through Canada’s three main economic-class programs: the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), the Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC) and the Canadian Experience Class (CEC).
When travel restrictions were introduced at the beginning of COVID-19, Canada moved away from all-program draws and began holding draws for specific programs, mainly ones geared towards PNP candidates. This was a temporary pause and Canada's Immigration Minister, Sean Fraser, has announced last week that Express Entry invitation rounds for FSWP and CEC candidates should resume early July. At the same time, he announced that the processing standard for new candidates would return to six months.
Candidates start by creating an Express Entry profile after which they are given a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score. This score is based on age, education, work experience, language proficiency as well as other human capital factors. CRS points can be given to one person or to a couple if they are applying together.
PNPs are operated by the provinces and territories themselves and allow them to nominate candidates who have the skills, education and work experience to contribute to their local economies.
Each province and territory tailors their PNP "streams" to the current needs on their territory. Provinces like Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward and Saskatchewan have streams that are aligned with the federal Express Entry system. This means that the province can search the Express Entry pool for candidates who meet a set of specific criteria and who have declared their interest in settling on its territory.
Candidates who receive a provincial nomination from a province automatically earn an additional 600 CRS score points.
The highest-ranking candidates in the Express Entry pool are then invited to apply for permanent residence in Express Entry draws.
Once a candidate receives an invitation to apply for permanent residence (PR), they must submit their application to IRCC, which will then make a final decision.
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