IRCC invites 2,750 Express Entry candidates to apply in November 15 draw

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has invited 2,750 candidates in the Express Entry pool to apply for Canadian permanent residence in a draw that took place on Nov. 15. The Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of the lowest-ranked candidate issued an Invitation to Apply (ITA) was 439.

All candidates with a score above 439 were invited to apply. While some candidates with a score of 439 received ITAs, IRCC said a tie-break procedure was necessary, meaning only those candidates with a CRS score of 439 who entered their profiles in the Express Entry pool prior to a specified date and time were invited to apply. In this case, that time and date was October 19, 2017, at 12:02:28 UTC.

Today’s cut-off CRS score of 439 is 19 points lower than last week’s draw, which had a cut-off score of 458.

It is interesting to note that this latest draw was the fourth in three weeks, which has only happened once before since Express Entry was introduced. Canada announced new three-year immigration targets on Nov. 1 and more frequent draws could have the effect of increasing the number of ITAs issued and lowering the CRS cut-off score as candidates with higher scores are removed from the pool.

Under its recently announced Immigration Levels Plan, Canada is planning to welcome nearly one million new permanent residents between 2018 and 2020. Nearly 250,000 of those newcomers to be admitted through programs managed under the Express Entry system, namely: the Federal Skilled Worker Class (FSWC), the Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC), and the Canadian Experience Class (CEC). The number admitted through these programs is set to increase year-on-year.

This latest draw was the 78th draw to take place since the Express Entry system was introduced on Jan. 1, 2015, and the 28th since the start of 2017. So far this year, 80,523 ITAs have been issued.

With fluctuating CRS thresholds, it is helpful to look at which sorts of candidates are receiving ITAs following the latest draw. The following examples below are entirely hypothetical.

Mary is 36, has a Master’s degree and recently wrote her IELTS and obtained a score of 8 in each category (reading, speaking, writing and listening). She has been working as a university professor for 4 years. Her CRS of 440 would have been sufficient to obtain and ITA during the most recent draw from the Express Entry pool.

José is 32 has been working in Canada as a retail manager for 2 years. He studied commerce in Canada and obtained a bachelor’s degree. Jose has an intermediate English language proficiency. Before coming to Canada to study, Jose worked as a retail manager overseas for two years. His CRS of 441.

Rupa is a 29 year old who has been working as a computer programmer for five years. She has a bachelor’s degree and an advanced English language proficiency. Rupa has never worked or studied in Canada. Her CRS of 441 would have been sufficient to obtain an ITA during the most recent Express Entry draw.

"This latest draw is a good sign for the coming year," said Attorney David Cohen. "More frequent draws from the Express Entry pool and a greater number of ITAs could have the effect of lowering the minimum CRS score required. As Canada strives to achieve a higher target, we're hoping more ITAs being issued continues into 2018."