New Express Entry draw invites 3,600 candidates to apply for Canadian permanent residence

The Government of Canada invited 3,600 Express Entry candidates to apply for permanent residence in a new draw held November 13.

Today’s draw brings the total number of invitations to apply (ITAs) issued so far this year through Canada’s Express Entry system to 75,300.

The minimum required Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score in today’s draw was 472. This is a three-point decrease from the previous draw, which was held October 30 and had a cut-off score of 475.

The Express Entry system manages the pool of candidates for Canada’s three Federal High Skilled economic immigration categories — the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class, and Canadian Experience Class.

Eligible candidates are ranked in the Express Entry pool based on a score awarded under the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS), which provides points for factors such as age, education, skilled work experience and proficiency in English or French.

A job offer is not required in order to be eligible for an Express Entry ITA, though additional points are awarded if a candidate has one.

A set number of the highest-ranked candidates are issued an invitation to apply for Canadian permanent residence through regular draws from the Express Entry pool, which typically take place every two weeks.

Find out if you are eligible to enter the Express Entry pool

The 3,600 ITAs issued in today's draw bring Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to within 14,500 ITAs of tying 2018's invitation record of 89,800 with six weeks left in the year.

It was expected that IRCC could exceed its 2018 ITA record this year given its higher admissions targets for the three Express Entry-managed economic immigration categories and Canada's Provincial Nominee Program for both 2019 and 2020.

The 3,600 ITAs issued today put IRCC 1,100 ahead of last year's record-setting pace as of November 13.

The fact the minimum score decreased in today's draw may be attributed to IRCC maintaining a two-week interval between this latest invitation round and its previous Express Entry draw on October 30.

The time between draws can influence the cut-off CRS score, as this graph shows:

The tie-break used in the November 13 draw was October 8, 2019, at 10:46:01 UTC. This means that all candidates with a CRS score above 472 received an ITA, as did those with a score of 472 whose Express Entry profiles were created before the tie-break date and time.

Express Entry-linked provincial nominee streams

Candidates with scores below today’s cut-off who want to improve their ranking have a number of potential options, the most valuable being a provincial nomination through an enhanced nomination stream.

Express Entry candidates with a provincial nomination receive an additional 600 CRS points and are effectively guaranteed an invitation to apply for Canadian permanent residence.

The last few weeks have seen Saskatchewan, Alberta, Nova Scotia, Manitoba and British Columbia issue invitations through their Express Entry-aligned provincial nominee programs.

A draw held November 12 by the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP)'s International Skilled Worker: Express Entry Sub-Category invited 303 Express Entry candidates to apply for a provincial nomination for permanent residence. This draw followed 627 invitations that were issued by the SINP to Express Entry candidates on October 31.

Alberta selected 401 Express Entry candidates in its last two selection rounds through its Alberta Express Entry Stream. Its October 24 draw saw 372 Express Entry candidates with CRS scores as low as 300 invited and another selection round held October 30 invited 39 candidates with CRS scores as low as 350.

British Columbia has sent out invitations to apply for a provincial nomination for Canadian permanent residence to Express Entry BC candidates through regular weekly draws.

On October 28, Nova Scotia issued invitations to 430 Express Entry candidates with work experience as registered nurses or registered psychiatric nurses through its Labour Market Priorities Stream. Nova Scotia said there was no minimum CRS requirement for these candidates.

The first step to being considered for a provincial nomination through one of these streams is to enter a profile in the Express Entry pool.

Who's invited?

The following are hypothetical examples of candidates who would have obtained an ITA in today's draw:

Saad is 29 years old, has a master’s degree and has been working as an engineer for four years. He wrote his IELTS and scored an 8 in listening and speaking, and a 7 in reading and writing. While Saad has never worked or studied in Canada, his CRS score of 472 would have been high enough to obtain an ITA in the November 13 Express Entry draw.

Charles and Joelle are married and are 35 and 29 years old, respectively. They each hold bachelor’s degrees and have been working as software developers for three years and both have advanced French language proficiencies. While they have never worked or studied in Canada, Charles does have a brother who is a Canadian permanent resident living in Ottawa.

They entered the pool with Joelle as the principal applicant. Joelle’s CRS score of 473 would have been high enough to obtain an ITA during the November 13 draw.

"IRCC has now issued more than 75,000 invitations to apply through its Express Entry system this year — each one representative of a potential new beginning for a candidate and their family here in Canada," said David Cohen, senior partner with the Campbell, Cohen Canadian immigration law firm in Montreal.

"It's also important to note that some of Canada's more popular Express Entry-linked provincial nominee streams have had a busy few weeks and that is more good news for Express Entry candidates — especially those with CRS scores under the cut-off in today's draw."

Find out if you are eligible to enter the Express Entry pool