Express Entry: Another 7,000 Invited to Apply, CRS falls to 481

Lowest CRS for an all-program draw since December 23, 2020 when the requirement was that of CRS 468 and above.

On March 29, 2023, the federal government of Canada held another all-program draw. This is the third consecutive week that Express Entry rounds of invitations have been held.

Express Entry draws come under Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Launched in 2015, Express Entry is an application management system used to accept, rank, and process applications for Canadian permanent residence.

Candidates from all 3 Express Entry programs were considered in the latest Express Entry draw. Those with CRS 481 and above were invited. 7,000 invitations to apply (ITAs) were issued.

A tie-breaking rule of February 14, 2023 07:35:00 UTC was applied. Profiles created at an earlier date are prioritized if the minimum CRS scores are the same. Those who received ITAs in the latest draw by IRCC were those who - (1) were eligible for any 1 of the Express Entry programs, (2) had CRS 481 or above, and (3) had created their Canada EE profile before the tie-break applied.

Express Entry is the primary Canadian immigration pathway for economic immigrants that can contribute to the Canadian economy.

To be eligible for applying for a Canada PR visa under Express Entry, a candidate must be eligible for at least 1 of the 3 Express Entry programs - FSWP, FSTP, or CEC.

67 points must be scored for creating an Express Entry profile on the IRCC online portal.

Once the profile has been created, it joins the other Express Entry profiles in the IRCC pool of candidates. Here, another score comes in. This is the CRS score allotted out of 1,200 points based on the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS).

As on March 29, 2023, there were a total of 234,947 profiles in the Express Entry system. Of these, only 59,427 were in the CRS 451+ range -

• 261 were in the CRS 601-200 range,
• 468 were in the CRS 501-600 range, and
• 58,698 were in the CRS 451-500 range.

The CRS score is given based on different criteria, such as - age, education, work experience, language skills etc.

A nomination under Canadian PNP, such as through Ontario PNP, is worth CRS 600 points under the criteria of “D. Additional Points”. A job offer in Canada, on the other hand, can fetch you -

• CRS 200 if your job is in National Occupational Classification (NOC) TEER 0 Major group 00
• CRS 50 if your job is in NOC TEER 1, TEER 2, TEER 3, or any TEER 0 group other than Major group 00

Express Entry draws are usually held every 2 weeks, with ITAs being issued to the highest-scoring candidates.

However, recently IRCC has not kept up with their once-a-fortnight draw schedule. Draws were held in consecutive weeks - on March 15, followed by March 23. Both had 7,000 ITAs issued, tying them for the largest all-program Express Entry draws ever.

An all-program is said to occur when no program is specifically specified, allowing IRCC to consider candidates eligible for any of the 3 EE programs. Program-specific draws, on the other hand, are when only a particular Express Entry program is considered by IRCC.

IRCC follows a standard processing standard of within 6 months for Canadian permanent residence applications submitted through Express Entry. If your Express Entry application is approved, you can move to Canada as a permanent resident.

As per the latest Immigration Levels Plan, IRCC has set a target of granting 14,50,000 Canada PR visas in 2023-2025. Of these, 3,05,900 will get Canada PR by Express Entry in 2023-2025 -

• 82,880 in 2023
• 109,020 in 2024
• 114,000 in 2025

Express Entry is not the only pathway to immigrate to Canada. There are many ways to get your PR visa for Canada. The right pathway for you will be as per your specific profile.

For more information, get in touch today. Free consultation available.