Seeking ‘Express Entry’ into Canada? Here’s how to go about it

Canada last week announced its new policy to allow workers from 16 new occupations to come to the country to meet its labour shortage. All these occupations are included in the list of ‘Express Entry’ to Canada.

Occupations added now were not in the Express Entry which deals in various programmes, including Federal Skilled Worker, Federal Skilled Trade, Provincial Nominee Programme (PNP) and others, says Gurpreet Singh, who has been running a Canadian immigration consultancy for over a decade. (GettyImages/File)

Written by: Anju Agnihotri Chaba

4 min readChandigarhNov 27, 2022 12:00 AM IST First published on: Nov 25, 2022 at 08:23 AM IST

‘Express Entry’ (EE) is a unique and a quick way to permanent residence for immigrants seeking a new life in Canada. EE plays a vital role in managing the immigrant inflow to the North American country judging through certain various parameters.

Last week Canada announced its new policy to allow workers from 16 new occupations to come to the country to meet its labour shortage. All these occupations are included in the list of ‘Express Entry’ to Canada where workers from these categories stand to gain, that is, to obtain permanent residency.

Canada immigration | Workers from 16 new occupations eligible for permanent residence

What is the ‘Express Entry’ process and how workers of these new occupations can use it to get into Canada?

Experts say that the ‘Express entry’ system was always there in Canada since 2015, but it got almost stalled during the Covid pandemic. Now, Canada has expanded by including 16 new occupations under its ambit.

Earlier these occupations were not included in the EE which deals in various programmes, including Federal Skilled Worker, Federal Skilled Trade, Provincial Nominee Programme (PNP) and others, says Gurpreet Singh, who has been running a Canadian immigration consultancy for over a decade.

Under the ‘Express Entry’ system the applicant has to apply online in his/her respective field and has to declare information about him/her. Then Canadian authorities select the applicants through a draw and send the Invitation to Apply (ITA) to the selected applicants on the online account who then has to apply through by filing a detailed and complete application for permanent residency in which he/she has to submit all the documentary proofs which he/she had declared in the online application, including the English proficiency test clearance proof, work experience certificate, police report, blood relations (if any) and other required documents like educational credentials, etc., adds Gurpreet Singh.

“There is a point system for everything, including educational qualifications, age, work experience, English proficiency test,” an expert says, adding that in most cases IELTS score goes quite high like 8 bands in listening, 7 bands each in speaking, writing and reading.

But as per the new list in which the Canadian government has also invited trained workers like truck/bus drivers, construction workers, and repairers through ‘Express Entry’, it might lower the bands for the English proficiency test, Gurpreet Singh says, adding that a moderate-level English understanding is a must even in these skilled workers’ categories because Canada wants a workforce which can communicate and understand the native language and can positively contribute to its economy.

Also, work experience does matter a lot, and even some provinces invite skilled workers on visitor visas just to check their work practices, say experts. Also, those in the 20-32 age group, they will get more points relatively.

The points are calculated based on the comprehensive ranking system (CRS) as there are totally 1,200 points, including 600 points for the PNP as several territories in Canada participate in ‘Express Entry’ on the lines of Federal Express Entry System and even accept candidates with low CRS points, say experts. Several applicants apply under PNP Entry also because in some provinces the entry is quite fast.

After calculating the points, the applications are processed which takes a minimum of six months and after getting through the applicants receive the invitation letter from the Canadian government. Experts say that while some applicants’ turn comes in just six months of submitting their application, some have to wait up to 3-4 years to get the chance.

In the new list, jobs include that of nurse aides, long-term care aides, hospital attendants, pest controllers, fumigators, repairers, heavy equipment operators, bus drivers, subway operators, pharmacy assistants, elementary and secondary school teacher assistants, transport truck drivers, etc.