Citizenship and Immigration Minister Diane Finley today announced the details of the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), a new category of Canadian immigration for Permanent Residency.

The Canadian Experience Class is designed to allow temporary foreign workers and international graduates, currently in Canada on temporary visas, to transition into Permanent Residents and eventually Canadian citizens. These individuals are very promising immigration candidates in that they have Canadian education and/or Canadian work experience and have already integrated into the workforce and settled into their communities.

This Canadian experience is a key selection factor for the CEC.

The requirements differ for the two different types of applicants. For both types, applicants must have valid temporary resident status in Canada at the time of application and they must have moderate or basic language abilities, depending on the skill level of their occupation

For international graduates with Canadian work experience, applicants must have successfully completed a program of study of at least two academic years at a Canadian post-secondary educational institution and obtained at least one year of skilled, professional or technical work experience within the past 24 months.

For temporary foreign workers, applicants must have obtained at least two years of skilled, professional or technical work experience within 36 months of the application date.

Previously there was no category specifically for immigration candidates currently working in Canada. However, with the significant increase of temporaryforeign workers in Canada and the recent expansion of the Post-Graduation Work Permit for international graduates, it makes sense to have an immigration category that recognizes the investment that these workers and their employers have made to the Canadian economy.

In making the announcement, Minister Finley noted that “international students and skilled workers would be more likely to choose Canada if they knew their time in Canada and contribution to Canadian society would assist in their eligibility to apply to stay permanently.”