IRCC gets new year off to a big start with 7,800 invitations to apply in first two draws
The Government of Canada held its second Express Entry draw of 2019 on Wednesday, January 23, issuing 3,900 invitations to apply for Canadian permanent residence to candidates with ranking scores as low as 443.
Canada has now issued 7,800 invitations to candidates in the federal Express Entry system since the start of 2019. This is the most Invitations to Apply (ITAs) issued as of January 23 since Express Entry was introduced in 2015 to manage the pool of candidates for Canada’s three Federal High Skilled economic immigration categories — the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class and Canadian Experience Class.
Candidates for these three categories are ranked based on scores awarded for factors such as age, education, work experience and proficiency in English or French and a set number of the highest-scoring candidates are invited to apply for Canadian permanent residence through regular invitation rounds.
The minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score in this latest draw was six points lower than the minimum score in the first draw of 2019, which took place on January 10.
This decrease can be explained by the fact only two weeks elapsed between these two invitation rounds. Less time between draws means fewer candidates have time to enter the Express Entry pool, which can have the effect of lowering the minimum CRS score.
A provincial nomination through Canada’s Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) is one increasingly popular option for Express Entry candidates looking to better their scores.
A provincial nomination through an Express Entry-linked PNP stream results in an additional 600 CRS points, which effectively assures an invitation to apply for Canadian permanent residence.
Express Entry PNP streams in Ontario, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island have been active this month.
