The twelfth draw from the Express Entry pool was performed by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) on June 26, 2015. A total of 1,516 invitations to apply for Canadian permanent residence were issued to candidates with 463 or more Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points.

This is the third draw in succession in which the number of CRS points required has decreased, and the third in succession in which more than 1,500 invitations to apply were issued.

News of the twelfth Express Entry draw is likely to be welcomed by candidates who have been awarded a considerable number of CRS points for their core human capital factors, which includes level of education, age, work experience and language proficiency, as well as those who had obtained a qualifying job offer of arranged employment or an enhanced provincial nomination since the eleventh Express Entry draw , which occured on June 27. A number of candidates issued invitations to apply in this draw had been in the pool for some time; these candidates made efforts to increase their CRS score and ranking by, for example, re-taking language tests and achieving better scores, or gaining additional work experience.

The twelfth draw may also be seen as a positive development for candidates in the pool who did not receive an invitation to apply this time around, as the number of CRS points required has been decreasing across the most recent three draws. With an increasing number of Canadian provinces having introduced Express Entry streams as part of their Provincial Nominee Programs, candidates in the Express Entry pool are seeing an increasing number of options and opportunities for obtaining the all-important invitation to apply. The provinces of Ontario and Saskatchewan, as well as the Maritime provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, have all introduced such streams in recent weeks. These enhanced Provincial Nominee Program immigration streams have all been covered in-depth by CICnews.com in recent weeks:

• Ontario Core Human Capital Priorites and French-Speaking Skilled Worker streams
• Saskatchewan Express Entry
• New Brunswick Express Entry Labour Market Stream and Nova Scotia Experience: Express Entry

Express Entry

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 July 11 (All dates are for 2015)

• Launch date: January 1
• First draw from the pool: January 31
• Most recent draw from the pool: July 10
• 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
• Largest decrease in CRS points required between two consecutive draws: 273 (from May 22 to June 12 draws)
• Smallest decrease in CRS points required between two consecutive draws: 6 (from June 27 to July 10 draws)
• Largest increase in CRS points required between two consecutive draws: 302 (from April 17 to May 22 draws)
• Longest gap between two consecutive draws: 35 days (from April 17 to May 22 draws)
• Shortest gap between two consecutive draws: 7 days (on four occasions)
• Total number of invitations to apply issued: 13,519

Draws From The Express Entry Pool (Updated)