On September 14, IRCC released the sixth all-program Express Entry draw results, issuing 3250 invitations with a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System score of 510 points. No program was specified in this draw, which means applicants from the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), and the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP) were invited.

Express Entry is one of the most touted pathways for immigrating to Canada. In the last draw held on August 31, the total number of applicants who received ITAs increased by 250. Last week also experienced an increase of 500 invitations and the latest draw seems to follow the same trend. On the other hand, there has been a steady fall in the minimum CRS score, which has decreased between eight or nine points with each draw. Though, this Express Entry draw is different as there was only a six-point fall. The minimum CRS score in the July 6 draw was 557.

Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) paused all-program Express Entry draws for more than 1.5 years, starting in December 2020. Applicants who are eligible for permanent residence under the CEC or PNP were invited to apply. However, CEC draws were also paused in September 2021.

Canada is all prepared to welcome 432,000 immigrants

Canadian Immigration Minister Sean Fraser has recently mentioned that “Canada will break its current record of 405,330 new immigrants by the end of 2022”. By end of June, IRCC had already issued over 300,000 new permanent residents. So far in 2022, Canada has welcomed 40,785 immigrants through Express Entry. It is only possible if immigration continues at its current pace, that Canada could surpass the 2022 Immigration Levels Plan target of approximately 432,000 immigrants.

To enable these statistics, IRCC has been taking all the measures to make the application process 100% digital and planning to employ 1250 new staff to ensure a seamless application process. Canada continues to target for higher immigration numbers to cope with the low unemployment rate and the one million job vacancies.

Changes Expected in the Express Entry System by 2023

To fulfill the target gaps in the Canadian labour market, IRCC plans to make essential changes to the Express Entry in 2023. These amendments will offer the department the authority to issue ‘Invitations to Apply’ to candidates with specific work experience, education, or language ability. It could be any applicant from groups they think will be fit to strengthen Canada’s economy and the labour force. This will definitely impact the relevance of the CRS score and it is expected that they may become less important in the near future.

In the month of June, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser stated the idea for this draw at a technology conference and mentioned “if Canada can project skills that are required over the next 20 to 30 years, we can bring talent supporting the need to make a major economic impact in the country”.