Express Entry

1. What is Express Entry?

Express Entry is a competitive immigration system, ranking all eligible candidates against one another and then inviting the best ranking candidates to apply for Canadian permanent resident status. Candidates are ranked against one another based on their age, education, language proficiency, work experience, and other factors.

2. How to breakdown the Comprehensive Ranking System Points grid?

There is a total of 1,200 points available under the Comprehensive Ranking System.

For candidates who are single (without an accompanying spouse or common-law partner), there are:

a maximum of 500 points	a maximum of 100 points	600 points	1200 points overall
core human capital factors	skill transferability factors	additional factors (including a provincial nomination, an offer of arranged employment, Canadian study experience, a sibling in Canada, and/or French language ability)	Your points

For candidates with an accompanying spouse or common-law partner, there are:

a maximum of 460 points	a maximum of 40 points	a maximum of 100 points	600 points	1200 points overall
core human capital factors of the principal applicant	core human capital factors of the spouse or common-law partner	skill transferability factors	additional factors (including a provincial nomination, an offer of arranged employment, Canadian study experience, a sibling in Canada, and/or French language ability)	Your points

French ability

15 additional points for French-speaking candidates who prove adequate intermediate (equivalent to Canadian Language Benchmark 7) or better French ability, and English language test results of CLB 4 or lower, or no English test results at all.
30 additional points for French-speaking candidates who prove adequate intermediate or better French ability, and who also prove English language test result of CLB 5 or better.

Sibling in Canada

15 additional points for candidates with a sibling in Canada who is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of at least 18 years of age. These points may also be awarded if the candidate’s spouse or common-law partner has a sibling in Canada. The candidate or his or her spouse/common-law partner must share a mother and/or father with the sibling in Canada. This relationship can be through blood, adoption, marriage, or common-law partnership.

2.1 Comprehensive Ranking System: Core Human Capital Factors

For the purposes of this table, “PA” refers to the principal applicant and “spouse” refers to the spouse or common-law partner.

Age

Age (in years)	With an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 100)	Without an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 110)
under 18	0 points	0 points
18	90	99
19	95	105
20-29	100	110
30	95	105
31	90	99
32	85	94
33	80	88
34	75	83
35	70	77
36	65	72
37	60	66
38	55	61
39	50	55
40	45	50
41	35	39
42	25	28
43	15	17
44	5	6
45 or older	0	0

Level of education

Level of education	With an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 140 for PA, 10 for spouse)	Without an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 150)
Less than secondary (high) school credential	0 points	0 points
Secondary school credential	28 for PA; 2 for spouse	30
One-year post-secondary program	84 for PA; 6 for spouse	90
Two-year post-secondary program	91 for PA; 7 for spouse	98
Post-secondary program of 3 or more years	112 for PA; 8 for spouse	120
Two or more post-secondary programs, of which at least one was completed after a post-secondary program of three or more years	119 for PA; 9 for spouse	128
Master’s or entry-to-practice professional degree	126 for PA; 10 for spouse	135
Doctoral Degree (PhD)	140 for PA; 10 for spouse	150

First Language Ability (English or French)

Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB)	With an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 128 for PA; 20 for spouse)	Without an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 136)
For each language ability	32 points for PA; 5 points for spouse	34 points
CLB 3 or lower	0	0
CLB 4	6 for PA; 0 for spouse	6
CLB 5	6 for PA; 1 for spouse	6
CLB 6	8 for PA; 1 for spouse	9
CLB 7	16 for PA; 3 for spouse	17
CLB 8	22 for PA; 3 for spouse	23
CLB 9	29 for PA; 5 for spouse	31
CLB 10 or higher	32 for PA; 5 for spouse	34

*Points in the chart above are for each language ability: speaking, writing, reading and listening, respectively.

Second Language Ability (English or French)

Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB)	With an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 22)	Without an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 24)
For each language ability	6	6
CLB 4 or lower	0	0
CLB 5 or 6	1	1
CLB 7 or 8	3	3
CLB 9 or higher	6	6

*Points in the chart above are for each language ability: speaking, writing, reading and listening, respectively.

Canadian Work Experience

Number of years	With an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 70 for PA; 10 for spouse)	Without an accompanying spouse (maximum points available: 80)
Less than 1	0 points	0 points
1 year	35 for PA; 5 for spouse	40
2 years	46 for PA; 7 for spouse	53
3 years	56 for PA; 8 for spouse	64
4 years	63 for PA; 9 for spouse	72
5 years or more	70 for PA; 10 for spouse	80

2.2 Comprehensive Ranking System: Skill Transferability Factors

A maximum of 100 points are awarded for a candidate’s skill transferability factors. There are five combinations of such skill transferability, with a maximum of 50 points awarded for each combination. Even if a candidate scores more than 100 points in total, only 100 points will be awarded under the Comprehensive Ranking System. Candidates with or without an accompanying spouse or common-law partner are awarded points for skill transferability in exactly the same way. There are no points available for the skill transferability of a candidate’s spouse or common-law partner.

For the purposes of this table, “CLB” refers to Canadian Language Benchmark.

Education and Canadian Work Experience

Education	1 year of Canadian work experience	2 or more years of Canadian work experience
No post-secondary education	0	0
Post-secondary education of 1 year or longer	13	25
Two or more post-secondary credentials, the first of which was 3 or more years in duration	25	50
A university-level credential at the master’s level or at the level of an entry-to-practice professional degree for an occupation listed in the National Occupational Classification matrix at Skill Level A for which licensing by a provincial regulatory body is required	25	50
A university-level credential at the doctoral level	25	50

Education and Language Ability

Education	CLB 7 or higher on all language abilities, with at least one of these CLB 8	CLB 9 or higher for all language abilities
No post-secondary education	0	0
Post-secondary education of 1 year or longer	13	25
Two or more post-secondary credentials, the first of which was 3 or more years in duration	25	50
A university-level credential at the master’s level or at the level of an entry-to-practice professional degree for an occupation listed in the National Occupational Classification matrix at Skill Level A for which licensing by a provincial regulatory body is required	25	50
A university-level credential at the doctoral level	25	50

Language Ability and Non-Canadian Work Experience

Non-Canadian Work Experience	CLB 7 or higher on all language abilities, with at least one of these CLB 8	CLB 9 or higher for all language abilities
No non-Canadian work experience	0	0
1 or 2 years of non-Canadian work experience	13	25
3 or more years of non-Canadian work experience	25	50

Canadian and non-Canadian Work Experience

Experience	1 year of Canadian work experience	2 or more years of Canadian work experience
No non-Canadian work experience	0	0
1 or 2 years of non-Canadian work experience	13	25
3 or more years of non-Canadian work experience	25	50

Certificate of Qualification in a Trade and Language Ability

Certificate of Qualification	CLB 5 or higher on all language abilities, with at least one CLB 5 or 6	CLB 7 or higher on all language abilities
Certificate of qualification in a trade occupation issued by a province	25	50

2.3 Comprehensive Ranking System: Additional Points

Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) nomination certificate	Points
For an enhanced nomination certificate from a Canadian province (except Quebec)	600 points
Qualifying offer of arranged employment	Points
For a qualifying job offer of arranged employment from a Canadian employer if the offer is in an occupation contained in Major Group 00 Senior Management Occupations	200 points
For a qualifying job offer of arranged employment from a Canadian employer if the offer is any other qualifying offer of arranged employment	50 points
Canadian study experience	Points
If the candidate has an eligible credential from a one-year or two-year post-secondary program in Canada	15 points
If the candidate has either: an eligible credential from a post-secondary program of three years or more, or an eligible credential from a university-level program at the master’s level or at the level of an entry-to-practice professional degree for an occupation listed in the National Occupational Classification matrix at Skill Level A for which licensing by a provincial regulatory body is required, or an eligible credential from a university-level program at the doctoral level	30 points
French language ability	Points
If the candidate proves adequate intermediate (equivalent to CLB 7) or better French ability, and English ability of CLB 4 or lower (or no English language test result)	15 points
If the candidate proves adequate intermediate (equivalent to CLB 7) or better French ability, and English ability of CLB 5 or better	30 points
Sibling in Canada	Points
If the candidate, or the accompanying spouse/common-law partner, has a sibling in Canada who is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of at least 18 years of age The candidate or his or her spouse/common-law partner must share a mother and/or father with the sibling in Canada. This relationship can be through blood, adoption, marriage, or common-law partnership	15 points

Points are only assigned for Canadian study experience if, for the purpose of obtaining the credential, the candidate:

studied in Canada at a Canadian educational institution;
was enrolled in full-time study or training for at least eight months; and
was physically present in Canada for at least eight months.

A maximum of 15 points may be awarded for a sibling in Canada, regardless of how many siblings the candidate (and his or her spouse/common-law partner, if applicable) has in Canada. The maximum available number of points for these additional factors for any one candidate is 600 points. Therefore, if a candidate has completed a Canadian post-secondary study program and obtains an enhanced nomination certificate from a Canadian province, he or she will be awarded 600 points for these additional factors (rather than 615 or 630 points).

3. I have my score in EE system, what’s next?

The government of Canada issues Invitations to Apply to certain candidates in the Express Entry pool according to their ranking by publishing a minimum CRS cut-off score at the time of the draw and notifying those candidates who have been invited to apply for permanent residence.

Express Entry is not an immigration program in itself, but rather a system used by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC, formerly CIC) to select candidates for immigration to Canada using the following economic immigration programs:

Federal Skilled Worker
Federal Skilled Trades
Canadian Experience Class
a portion of the Provincial Nominee Programs

Express Entry draws will either be:

general, in which case candidates eligible for any federal economic immigration program may be selected based solely on their CRS score; or
program-specific, in which case the government of Canada will select candidates for just one of the federal economic immigration programs.

Express Entry Draws: 2020

Draw #	Minimum CRS Score Required	Date of Draw	# of ITAs Issued
152	437 (*Canadian Experience Class only)	June 11, 2020	3,559
151	743 (*Provincial nominees only)	June 10, 2020	341
150	440 (*Canadian Experience Class only)	May 28, 2020	3,515
149	757 (*Provincial nominees only)	May 27, 2020	385
148	447 (*Canadian Experience Class only)	May 15, 2020	3,371
147	718 (*Provincial nominees only)	May 14, 2020	529
146	452 (*Canadian Experience Class only)	May 1, 2020	3,311
145	692 (*Provincial nominees only)	April 29, 2020	589
144	455 (*Canadian Experience Class only)	April 16,2020	3,782
143	808 (*Provincial nominees only)	April 15, 2020	118
142	464 (*Canadian Experience Class only)	April 9, 2020	3,294
141	698 (*Provincial nominees only)	April 9, 2020	606
140	467 (*Canadian Experience Class only)	March 23, 2020	3,232
139	720 (*Provincial nominees only)	March 18, 2020	668
138	471	March 4, 2020	3,900
137	470	February 19, 2020	4,500
136	472	February 5, 2020	3,500
135	471	January 22, 2020	3,400
134	473	January 8, 2020	3,400

Express Entry Draws: 2019

Draw #	Minimum CRS Score Required	Date of Draw	# of ITAs Issued
133	469	December 19, 2019	3,200
132	472	December 11, 2019	3,200
131	471	November 27, 2019	3,600
130	472	November 13, 2019	3,600
128	357 (*Federal Skilled Trades candidates only)	October 16, 2019	500
127	464	October 2, 2019	3,900
126	462	September 18, 2019	3,600
125	463	September 4, 2019	3,600
124	457	August 20, 2019	3,600
123	466	August 12, 2019	3,600
122	459	July 24, 2019	3,600
121	460	July 10, 2019	3,600
120	462	June 26, 2019	3,350
119	465	June 12, 2019	3,350
118	470	May 29, 2019	3,350
117	332 (*Federal Skilled Trades candidates only)	May 15, 2019	500
116	450	May 1, 2019	3,350
115	451	April 17, 2019	3,350
114	451	April 3, 2019	3,350
113	452	March 20, 2019	3,350
112	454	March 6, 2019	3,350
111	457	February 20, 2019	3,350
110	438	January 30, 2019	3,350
109	443	January 23, 2019	3,900
108	449	January 10, 2019	3,900

Express Entry Draws: 2018

Draw #	Minimum CRS Score Required	Date of Draw	# of ITAs Issued
107	439	December 19, 2018	3,900
106	445	December 12, 2018	3,900
105	445	November 28, 2018	3,900
104	449	November 15, 2018	3,900
103	442	October 29, 2018	3,900
102	440	October 15, 2018	3,900
101	445	October 3, 2018	3,900
100	284 (*Federal Skilled Trades candidates only)	September 24, 2018	400
99	441	September 19, 2018	3,500
98	440	September 5, 2018	3,900
97	440	August 22, 2018	3,750
96	440	August 8, 2018	3,750
95	441	July 25, 2018	3,750
94	442	July 11, 2018	3,750
93	442	June 25, 2018	3,750
92	451	June 13, 2018	3,750
91	902 (Provincial nominee programs only) 288 (Federal Skilled Trades candidates only)	May 30, 2018	700
90	440	May 23, 2018	3,500
89	441	May 9, 2018	3,500
88	441	April 25, 2018	3,500
87	444	April 11, 2018	3,500
86	446	March 26, 2018	3,000
85	456	March 14, 2018	3,000
84	442	February 21, 2018	3,000
83	442	February 7, 2018	3,000
82	444	January 24, 2018	2,750
81	446	January 10, 2018	2,750

4. My score is about 400, how can I improve my score?

Language	For a Federal Skilled Worker candidate to enter the Express Entry pool, a minimum Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) of 7 is required in each language ability — reading, writing, speaking and listening. However, the highest language level for which points are awarded within the CRS is CLB 10.
Education	Education can count for up to 230 CRS points and may be improved by obtaining additional credentials, for example completing another degree, or by obtaining additional Educational Credential Assessments (ECAs) for existing degrees. An ECA is required in order to obtain CRS points for education obtained outside of Canada.
Work Experience	Obtaining additional work experience or better documenting current work experience may both help increase a candidate’s CRS score.
Job Offer	Candidates with a valid job offer may obtain either 50 or 200 additional points towards their CRS score depending on the position. Candidates with a valid job offer in an occupation at the NOC 0, A or B level may earn 50 additional points towards their CRS score. Candidates with a valid job offer in an occupation under the Major Group 00 Senior Management Occupations classification may be awarded an additional 200 points under the CRS.
Others streams	Some other PNP programs may offer additional points up to 600 to enhance the score of applicants.
Switch principal applicant	If you have a spouse or common-law partner, it may be beneficial to compare your CRS scores as principal applicants. Sometimes a main applicant’s CRS score may, in fact, be lower than that of their accompanying partner. In such cases, it may be advisable for a spouse or common-law partner to be the principal applicant.

FAQ

Does a candidate with more points have a better chance of being invited to apply for permanent residence than a candidate with fewer points, even though both candidates are eligible to enter the Express Entry pool?

Yes. Under Express Entry, candidates with higher points totals in the Express Entry pool may have a better chance of being invited to apply for Canadian permanent residence by either the federal government, a Canadian province or territory, or a Canadian employer. Highly educated candidates with skilled work experience and strong language skills in English and/or French, for example, are likely obtain a greater number of points than those who do not possess these qualities.

Can candidates wishing to live and work in Quebec enter the Express Entry system?

Quebec applications will not be triaged through Express Entry, except where the applicant will be working outside Quebec for a Quebec-based company.