How foreign work experience can boost your CRS score in a competitive Express Entry pool
If you already have Canadian work experience and want to apply for permanent residence (PR) through Express Entry, foreign work experience can significantly boost your chances of receiving an Invitation to Apply (ITA).
In some cases, the number of points you receive from foreign work experience can be higher than what you would get by accumulating additional years of Canadian work experience.
Check how foreign work experience impacts your CRS score
This article will explore
- How foreign work experience can boost your Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score; and
- Scenarios where foreign work experience may be more beneficial than Canadian work experience.
How foreign work experience can boost your CRS score
Foreign work experience is assessed under the skill transferability factors of the CRS.
This section awards points based on how your education, work experience (both foreign and Canadian), and language proficiency combine. The maximum number of points available for skill transferability is 100.
Here’s how those points are distributed:
- Education combined with language proficiency and/or Canadian work experience – up to 50 points.
- Foreign work experience combined with language proficiency and/or Canadian experience – up to 50 points.
- A certificate of qualification in a trade occupation – up to 50 points.
Points for foreign work experience
| Foreign Work Experience | + CLB 7 or more | + CLB 9 or more | + 1 year of Canadian work | + 2+ years of Canadian work |
| No foreign work experience | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 or 2 years | 13 | 25 | 13 | 25 |
| 3 years or more | 25 | 50 | 25 | 50 |
You can score a maximum of 50 points for the foreign work experience skill transferability factor.
How Canadian work experience contributes to your CRS score
Canadian work experience is rewarded under the core human capital factors. Candidates without a spouse or common-law partner can receive up to 80 points in this section.
| Canadian Work Experience | Points (No Spouse) |
| None or less than a year | 0 |
| 1 year | 40 |
| 2 years | 53 |
| 3 years | 64 |
| 4 years | 72 |
| 5 years or more | 80 |
Candidates earn the most points for their first year of Canadian experience. Each additional year adds fewer points:
- 1st year: +40 points.
- 2nd year: +13 points.
- 3rd year: +11 points.
- 4th year: +8 points.
- 5th year: +8 points.
Canadian experience also contributes to the skill transferability section, though this section maxes out after two years, so gaining a third year of Canadian work experience will not earn any additional skill transferability points.
When foreign work experience gives you an edge
If you already have Canadian work experience and haven’t yet maximized the 100 points available under skill transferability, gaining foreign work experience can give you a valuable CRS boost — sometimes more than staying in Canada to accumulate additional Canadian work experience.
Example: Aliyah
Aliyah is a 26-year-old who completed her bachelor’s degree in Canada and now works as an HR professional. She has CLB 9 in English and no French language ability.
After graduating, she gains two years of Canadian work experience. Then she switches employers and adds a third year.
Here’s her CRS breakdown after three years of Canadian experience:
| Factor | Points |
| Age (26) | 110 |
| Education (Bachelor’s) | 120 |
| Language (CLB 9 English) | 136 |
| Canadian work experience (3 years) | 64 |
| Skills transferability – education | 50 |
| Additional factors – studied in Canada | 30 |
| Total CRS score | 510 |
Depending on her years of Canadian experience, her CRS could vary as follows:
- With two years of Canadian work experience: 499.
- With three years: 510 (as seen above).
- With four years: 518.
- With five years: 526.
But if instead of staying in Canada for a third year, Aliyah returns to the Bahamas and works for one year in a similar HR role, her CRS breakdown with two years of Canadian and one year of foreign work experience would look like this:
| Factor | Points |
| Age (26) | 110 |
| Education (Bachelor’s) | 120 |
| Language (CLB 9 English) | 136 |
| Canadian work experience (2 years) | 53 |
| Skills transferability – education | 50 |
| Skills transferability – foreign work | 50 |
| Additional factors – studied in Canada | 30 |
| Total CRS | 549 |
Gaining a single year of foreign work experience instead of a third year of Canadian work experience has boosted Aliyah’s score significantly.
Aliyah can also still qualify for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), as she has at least one year of Canadian work experience within the past three years.
Why foreign experience matters now more than ever
During the first half of 2025, CRS cut-off scores for CEC draws have ranged from 518 to 547.
As Aliyah’s case shows, she would not have qualified with three years of Canadian work experience. But with just one year of international work experience added to her two years in Canada, her score reaches 549, enough to have received an ITA in any CEC draw in 2025, as of the time of writing.
This also holds true if Aliyah had accrued one year of foreign work experience before pursuing her bachelor’s in Canada (as long as it had been gained in the last 10 years before the application date).
With CRS cut-off scores relatively high, foreign work experience can be a make-or-break factor for candidates trying to receive an ITA.
Check how foreign work experience impacts your CRS score
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