Today’s blog is aimed at those candidates who are about to apply for an ITA (Invitation to Apply) and those who have received the ITA but still have some documents pending.

THE BASICS:

To create an Express Entry profile, a candidate needs to provide corresponding proof of his/her language ability, relevant work experience proof of education level etc. Once the candidate meets the requisite CRS points for the respective draw, he/she may be issued an ITA. You can check your CRS points here at https://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/skilled/crs-tool.asp . The documentation checklist for every candidate varies based on the candidate’s circumstances, nationality, civil status among other factors. However, all applicants need to submit copies of the following after getting ITA:

• Valid Passport
• WES (proof of education from the country of origin)
• Birth Certificate
• Language Test Results
• Work Experience Documentation
• Police Clearance Certificate(s)
• Upfront medical receipt
• Photographs of principal applicant (and family members)
• Canadian Education documents
• Status Documents

Even from the short above-mentioned document checklist, some paperwork, particularly those pertaining to work experience and background checks from the respective country of origin can prove to be a daunting task especially now during the pandemic.

The work experience letter from your country needs to be in the Canadian format for it to be accepted by the CIC. It should include: your full name, job title, joining and end dates of employment, wage (either hourly, bi-weekly or monthly), number of hours worked in a week along with the roles and responsibilities handled during your tenure. Unless these details are mentioned in the letter, it would be hard to classify the job title under the NOC codes and getting the necessary CRS points. To find your job’s NOC code, click on https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/immigrate-canada/express-entry/eligibility/find-national-occupation-code.html.

If you were an international student, who has completed his/her course in Canada and is currently on your work permit (nearing one year of experience), your recommended course of action is to obtain your WES, IELTS/CELPIP, PCC and get your medicals done as quickly as possible. The current updates and links for the same are provided towards the end.

Depending on the situation, any of the following documents (not all) may also need to be submitted and candidates are encouraged to gather as much of these as possible at the earliest:

• Translations to English or French(if documents are in a language other than these)
• Copies of work contracts and/or pay stubs
• Documents relating to income taxation
• Canadian Education Credential OR Educational Credential Assessment (ECA)
• Official transcripts of post-secondary education study program courses taken
• Secondary education documents
• Original letter from a Canadian employer indicating an offer of arranged employment
• Proof of family relationship(s) in Canada
• Proof of settlement funds
• Legal documents showing changes in name or date of birth
• Marriage certificate(s)
• Signed Statutory Declaration of Common-law Union and documents attesting to cohabitation for a period of at least 12 months
• Divorce or annulment certificate(s)
• Death certificate(s) for former spouse(s) or common-law partner(s)
• Children’s birth certificates
• Adoption papers
• Proof of full custody for children
• Travel documents (non-passport)
• Certified copy of a certificate of qualification in a skilled trade occupation issued by a Canadian province or territory
• Letter(s) of explanation
• Affidavit

All the required documents have to be uploaded and submitted electronically. As of now, candidates who have received the ITA are provided with 90 days to complete their applications. Do check your ITA carefully to know your deadline.

RECENT UPDATES:

1. 
   

   WES:

For the IRCC to acknowledge your proof of education back in your country of origin, it must undergo an evaluation from WES. It can take anywhere from 1-3 months to receive your completed WES evaluation. So, it is advised that you start applying for it at the earliest to increase your chances of entering the Express Entry pool early. Find out more about WES on https://www.wes.org/ca/about-wes-credential-evaluation/. If the person has done a University education in Canada, then WES is not required.

2. 
   

   PCC:

The PCC is a certificate that serves as a background check for candidates. You need to provide a PCC from your country of origin as well as all other countries you have resided for more than 6 months in the last 10 years including one from here in Canada. Do check with your country of origin’s consulate website to obtain PCC at the earliest. If you are from India, you can apply for your PCC through https://www.cgitoronto.gov.in/page/police-clearance/.There was a halt on appointments for obtaining PCC (Police Clearance Certificate) in Canada as well recently. The good news now is that the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) has made it possible to get PCC through some of its locations. You can act upon this opportunity and schedule an appointment through https://www.f1fingerprint.ca/.

3. 
   

   Medical Evaluations:

With the provincial lockdowns easing, now more and more locations are reopening to accommodate the demand for medical evaluations.  Only a panel physician approved by the CIC can do this for you. Find out your nearest CIC approved panel physician through https://secure.cic.gc.ca/pp-md/pp-list.aspx. If you are going for the medical evaluation prior to getting an ITA, you may go ahead with an upfront medical exam. You can’t go for an upfront medical exam if you are being sponsored as a spouse, parent or child.  If you already have an ITA, you would be asked for your IME (Immigration Medical Exam) number when scheduling an appointment.

If you live in the GTA, you can book an appointment for getting the Upfront Medical exam from https://www.completeimmigration.ca/site/contact-immigration-medical-exam-brampton-gta as it is currently operating.

4. 
   

   Language Test Results:

The most ubiquitous language proficiency test that most candidates opt for is the IELTS. Due to the ongoing Coronavirus outbreak, most test takers have found that their exam dates got either cancelled or shifted to a later date. While there are no dates set in stone, some candidates still do manage to attempt the exam during these trying times. You can get more than 135 CRS points just by cracking the language exams. What most candidates don’t realize is that the IELTS can also be taken as a Computer-based test which can give them the results back in just 3-5 days. Also, it offers more dates currently than its paper-based counterpart. You can book a date for IELTS on https://ieltscanadatest.com/take-ielts/test-dates-2019/.

Alternatively, the IRCC also accepts language test results for CELPIP as well. Compared to the IELTS, a majority of candidates have found CELPIP to be easier and shorter, along with more flexibility with the bands. To learn more about CELPIP, visit https://www.celpip.ca/.

If you feel that you may need help in preparing for either CELPIP or IELTS, contact our agency at (519) 954-1526 Monday to Friday from 11 am to 4 pm.

For the fourth time this year, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) have set another record low point necessity for Express Entry possibility to get an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for Canadian permanent residence. In the most recent draw, which occurred on April 5, competitors with at least 431 Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points got an ITA.

A sum of 3,753 candidates got an ITA in this most recent round of invitations.

The record low had been set in the March 1 draw, when applicants with at least 434 CRS points were welcomed. In the meantime time frame from that point forward, another draw occurred with a CRS cut-off of 441 points, and IRCC then reported that it would execute a few changes to the CRS as of this coming June.

The most recent reduction in the CRS necessity implies that a more extensive scope of competitors may present an application. Going with relatives may likewise be incorporated into the application. While an abatement of only a couple points may appear to be minor, it implies that a much more noteworthy scope of candidates is in a position to present an application

The most recent Express Entry attract for immigration to Canada, which occurred on March 24, has seen another 3,749 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) issued to applicants in the pool with at least 441 Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points. This is the second draw to have occurred during that time of March, and however the gap between the two latest draws was marginally longer than normal, applicants in the pool — and also those invited to apply — may well consider it to be a positive that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) keeps on declaring no less than two draws for every month.

Actually, over late months, an ever increasing number of applicants have been welcome to apply than any time in recent memory. Now a year ago, an aggregate of 9,465 ITAs had been issued. So far this year, a sum of 24,652 ITAs have been issued, an expansion of more than 160 percent. Due to this — and as a result of changes made to the framework towards the finish of a year ago — there has additionally been a huge decrease in the CRS prerequisite year-on-year. In spite of the fact that the CRS cut-off edge for the March 24 draw was seven points higher than in the March 1 draw, a CRS limit of 441 is still lower than any edge for any draw that occurred in the whole year of 2016.

The slight increment in the CRS cut-off edge since March 1 might be credited, in any event to some degree, to the marginally longer crevice between draws this time around. This may have permitted more contenders to enter the pool between draws than normal, and more applicants in the pool may have possessed the capacity to expand their CRS score in interim, for instance by getting a selection Testament through a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).
Applicants who get an ITA are presently in a position to present an application for Canadian permanent residence to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Going with relatives, including spouses or common-law partners, and also dependent children may likewise come to Canada alongside the principal candidate.
A CRS threshold of 441 implies that it is conceivable that an aspirant who is taught at Bachelor’s Degree level, and who has no work experience in Canada and no extra points for a provincial designation, or for an employment offer, or for past review in Canada, could acquire an ITA, expecting that he or she has exhibited propelled capability in one of Canada’s official dialects (English or French).
A couple of scenarios
For instance, Jyoti is a 29-year-old single applicant with cutting edge English capacity. She has finished three years of talented work abroad and has never worked or considered in Canada. She likewise holds a Bachelor’s Degree, however no higher level of education. Without a qualifying work offer or a provincial nomination, she is still granted 441 CRS points, enough to acquire an ITA in the March 24 draw.
Aleem is 29 years of age, with advanced English capacity, three years of work experience outside of Canada, and a Bachelor’s Degree. His life partner also has a Bachelor’s Degree and propelled English, and neither one of the partners has ever worked or studied in Canada. Altogether, his profile is granted 443 CRS points.
Mira, 31, has sufficient moderate dialect capacity in English. She has a Master’s Degree, and three years of work understanding, both acquired outside Canada, yet she has additionally finished a time of work in Canada. This gives her 442 CRS points.
Abhimanyu is 37 years of age, with a Bachelor’s Degree and five years of work experience acquired outside Canada. He has satisfactory halfway English capacity. He entered the pool with 292 CRS points, however having seen that his job was sought after in Saskatchewan’s International Skilled Worker – Express Entry PNP classification (which allows qualified candidates to be selected without am employment offer), he arranged and surveyed his archives for that program in the reckoning of a future admission period. At the point when such an admission happened, he responded rapidly and effectively presented an application. Afterward, when he acquired his assignment, he refreshed his Express Entry profile, and his points add up to expanded to 892. This was all that anyone could need for him to be granted an ITA for permanent residence.

e latest Express Entry draw has continued two trends that have marked the recent history of the Canadian federal immigration selection system: the draws keep growing, and the number of Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points required for a candidate to receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) continues to decrease. The latest draw, which took place the morning of January 25, issued ITAs to 3,508 candidates with 453 or more CRS points.

The last time the CRS score requirement was lower than this was in October 2015. Moreover, the January 25 draw was the largest of all time.

Candidates who receive an ITA are now in a position to submit an application for Canadian permanent residence to the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Accompanying family members, including spouses or common-law partners, as well as dependent children, may also come to Canada along with the principal applicant.

Comprehensively, there are two primary contributing elements to the late abatement in the CRS prerequisite. To start with, the quantity of ITAs issued has gone up extensively. In fact, more ITAs have been released in January 2017, than in some other month since Express Entry was initially presented over two years prior.

Second, CICNews.com as of late revealed that ‘Movement, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) anticipated that the upgrades made to the framework last November would permit more possibility to be welcome to apply given their human capital, aptitudes, and experience. For example, there are currently far less focuses accessible for a qualifying work offer; as a rule, competitors with an occupation offer get 50 focuses (however 200 focuses are available for individual senior administrative positions) — down from 600 centers before the progressions were presented.’

People, who want to apply for Canadian permanent residence through the Federal Skilled Worker Class (FSWC), Canadian Experience Class or Category (CEC), or the Federal Skilled Trades Class (FTSC), are initially required to enter the Express Entry pool. After entering the pool, they are doled out a CRS score in light of variables including current status data, training, work understanding, dialect capacity, and other criteria. Competitors are positioned in the pool as per their CRS score, and IRCC intermittently leads attracts to welcome the highest positioning possibility to present an application. Candidates in the pool may create their positioning in various ways.

Take in more and learn about expanding CRS score and positioning.

For more data on draws from the Express Entry pool that have occurred up until now, counsel this table.

Express Entry fast certainties, from January 1, 2015, to January 25, 2017

• Dispatch Date: January 1, 2015
• To begin to withdraw from the pool: January 31, 2015
• Latest draw from the pool: January 25, 2017
• Least CRS focuses required for choice in any one draw: 450 (September 18, 2015, and October 2, 2015)
• Biggest number/amount of solicitations to apply issued in any one draw: 3,508 (January 25, 2017)
• Least solicitations to apply published in any one draw: 559 (November 30, 2016. Take note of: This draw welcomed hopefuls with a commonplace selection as it were.)
• Biggest diminishing in CRS focuses required between two back to back draws: 273 (from May 22, 2015, to June 12, 2015, draws)
• Littlest decline in CRS focuses required between two back to back draws: 0 (on three events)
• The biggest increment/addition in CRS focuses required between two consecutive draws: 316 (from November 16, 2016, to November 30. Take note of: The last draw welcomed hopefuls with a commonplace selection as it were.)
• Littlest increment in CRS focuses required between two sequential draws: 0 (on three events)
• Longest hole between two back to back draws: 35 days (from April 17, 2015, to May 22, 2015, draws)
• Most limited crevice between two back to back draws: 6 days (from December 16 to December 22, 2016)
• Add the total number of ITAs issued in 2015: 31,063
• Add up to number of ITAs issued in 2016: 33,782
• Add the total number of ITAs published in 2017: 9,744
• Add up to number of ITAs issued since framework was propelled: 74,589

Draws from the Express Entry Pool (Updated)

Express Entry Draws: 2017

2015 Express Entry Draws