110,000 immigrants got PR via Express Entry in 2019

Express Entry is becoming more popular each year.

New Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) data shows that 332,331 Express Entry profiles were submitted to Canadian immigration authorities in 2019.

The total number of profiles submitted represents an increase of more than 20 per cent over the year before and shows that potential newcomers are making extensive use of the system to express their interest in Canadian immigration.

On Friday, June 26, Canada's immigration department released its 2019 Express Entry Year-End Report, which provides a comprehensive overview of how one of the world's most innovative and highly regarded economic immigration systems is faring.

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Express Entry manages the pool of candidates for the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class and Canadian Experience Class.

Applicants interested in immigrating to Canada can submit a profile to the Express Entry Pool, where they are electronically screened for eligibility to one of the three programs. Eligible candidates for each program are then entered into the Express Entry pool and are ranked based on a score awarded under what is known as the Comprehensive Ranking System, or CRS.

The CRS awards points for factors that include age, education, skilled work experience and proficiency in English or French, which are both the official languages of Canada, as well as other factors.

Candidates in the Express Entry pool can increase the likelihood of receiving an Invitation to Apply (ITA) by having a provincial or territorial designation (600 points), arranged employment (50 or 200 points), a Canadian post-secondary degree (15 or 30 points), French language proficiency (15 or 30 points) or a sibling in Canada (15 points).

The highest-ranked candidates are issued an ITA for Canadian permanent residence through regular draws from the pool, which generally take place every two weeks.

Canada admitted nearly 110,000 new permanent residents through Express Entry in 2019

A total of 109,595 principal applicants and their family members were awarded permanent residence through Express Entry in 2019, compared to 92,229 in 2018. This represents a year over year increase of 19%.

Federal Skilled Worker Program candidates represented the largest proportion of all individuals admitted in 2019 with 58,173 admissions, followed by candidates in Canadian Experience Class (30,230) Provincial Nominee Program (20,014) and Federal Skilled Trades (1,178).

More than 85,000 Express Entry invitations issued in 2019

According to the report, out of the nearly 332,000 Express Entry profiles that were submitted in 2019, 72 per cent were eligible for at least one of the three Federal High Skilled programs, which is about the same percentage as last year.

A total of 26 rounds of invitation were held by IRCC last year, with 85, 300 invitations issued in 2019.

Federal Skilled Worker Class candidates received 45 per cent of ITAs issued in 2019, or 38,809 of 85,300 ITAs.

Canadian Experience Class nominees received the second-highest number of ITAs in 2019 at 30,563, while ITAs issued under the Provincial Nominee Program amounted to 14,928 - an increase of 6 percent over last year.

More Highlights from 2019

Occupations

Software engineers and designers were once again the most common primary occupation with 6,529 invited to apply for permanent residence. The most common arranged employment occupations went to computer programmers and interactive media developers.

Locations

Most people who received an invitation were already in Canada. Of all foreign countries India was the most common place to be issued ITAs, then the United States., Nigeria, United Arab Emirates, and Pakistan.

India was also the most common country of citizenship for ITA recipients. Then it was Nigeria, China, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, and Brazil.

Ontario less popular than 2018, but still most popular

About 62 per cent of principal applicants named Ontario as the province of destination, slightly less than 2018 when 65 per cent indicated the same.

Interest increased considerably in Alberta, Manitoba, Nunavut and Prince Edward Island.

Rise in median cut off scores

The CRS cutoff ranged from 438 to 475 in 2019, making an average score of 461. In 2018 the average score was 442.

This rise in the average CRS cut-off score suggests that the Express Entry pool became more competitive in 2019. This was partially due to a larger pool size, as well as the increased number of candidates selected through a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).

PNP recipients automatically receive an additional 600 CRS points toward their overall score.

Women in the Express Entry pool

The Express Entry pool in 2019 was made up of about 41 per cent women, up from 38 per cent in 2018. However, profiles submitted by women were more often eligible for at least one program than those submitted by men. Of all the submissions by women 76% were eligible for at least one program compared to 69 per cent of those submitted by men.

Most women who received ITAs had administrative assistant listed as their primary occupation. Food service supervisors were the most common arranged employment occupation for women.

Women made up 48 per cent of those who were invited by French language proficiency and 47 per cent of those invited to apply by siblings.

Overall, the most common primary occupations among women who were invited to apply for permanent residence included more low-skilled occupations, in comparison to the most common primary occupations among men.

Of all the applications for permanent residence through Express Entry in 2019, 43 per cent came from women.

Slower processing times

The average processing time in 2019 was eight months. IRCC did not meet its processing standard of finalizing 80 per cent of all Express Entry applications in six months. They managed to complete 60 per cent of applications within a six-month timeframe.

Find out if you are eligible for any Canadian immigration programs