The Express Entry (EE) organizes and processes applications for people who wish to immigrate to Canada and acquire Canadian permanent residence. Express Entry is not an immigration by itself, rather it’s an online system that manages applications sent to the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) department. The system manages three Canadian immigration programs:
- Federal Skilled Workers (FSW)
- Federal Skilled Trades (FST)
- Canadian Experience Class (CEC)
Candidate profiles under the Canadian Express Entry system are ranked against each other according to a point-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). The candidates with the highest ranking scores in the Express Entry draw will be considered for an Invitation to Apply for Permanent Residence.
These invitations are issued by the federal government on a regular basis.
First-Ever Skilled Trades Category bases Express Entry Draw
THE LATEST EXPRESS ENTRY DRAW 261 - AUGUST 3, 2023
The IRCC issued 1500 invitations to applicants in the Express Entry draw 261. Applicants having a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System Score (CRS) of 388 received an Invitation to Apply (ITA).
This is the first-ever Skilled trades category-based Express Entry Draw. It is designed for candidates with trade experience, such as welding, contractors, plumbing, and carpentry. It has one of the lowest CRS cut-off scores in the year. When compared to yesterday’s draw which was a French Language category based draw that invited 800 candidates, today’s CRS score is lower by 47 points.
This Latest Express Entry draw is the third draw in a row in the month of August and the 25th in 2023. It’s the second category-specific draw in the month. The first draw of the month was an all program draw that invited 2000 candidates and had a minimum CRS score of 517.
The last draw which had the lowest CRS Score in 2023 was on July 12, it was a category-specific draw in French language proficiency, that invited 3800 and the score was 375. Today’s draw is the second lowest and higher by 13 points. It was also the last draw in the month of July.
IRCC EE draws have now expanded to not only candidates in Canadian Experience Class (CEC), Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP) and Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), to category-specific draws which target people in healthcare, STEM professions, Trades, Transport, Agriculture and French-language proficiency.
Eligibility for Trade Occupations Category-Based Draws
To be eligible for the Trade Occupation Category-Specific Express Entry Draw, an individual must:
- have accumulated, continuous work experience in Canada or abroad, in the past 3 years, at least 6 months of full-time or an equal amount of part-time work experience in the following occupations.
- meet all of the requirements in the instructions for that round
What are Express Entry Category-Specific Draws
Express Entry category-based draws / occupation-specific draws are express entry draws that enable the IRCC to issue Letter Invitation to Apply (ITA) to candidates with talents, skills and jobs that are most in demand in Canada.
There are six new categories for which candidates may be eligible:
- Healthcare
- Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professions
- Trades such as carpenters, plumbers and contractors
- Transport
- Agriculture and agri-food
- Strong French-language proficiency
Additionally, category-specific draws can be helpful to candidates because the cut-off score in the selected categories can probably be lower than in all-program daws.
Applicants must have completed at least six months of continuous employment in one of the listed occupations within the previous three years in order to qualify under the category-specific categories. You can obtain this experience in Canada or abroad.
