All the skilled immigration applicants that are eligible for the Express Entry System will be placed into a pool of candidates. Candidates in the Express Entry pool are then ranked using the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). The CRS is used to determine which applicants in the pool will be invited to apply for permanent residence.
The CRS is a points-based system that gives a score to a candidate based on the information in the candidate’s profile. These scores allow candidates in the pool to be ranked against each other. Applicants are given points based on the following factors:
- Age
- Education
- Language proficiency
- Canadian work experience
- Language proficiency, education and Canadian work experience of the applicant’s spouse or common-law partner
- Arranged employment (validated job offer)
- Provincial government nomination for permanent residence
- Sibling in Canada
- Certain combinations of language skills, education and work experience that result in a higher chance of the applicant becoming employed (skill transferability).
Using these factors, applicants will be given a score out of a maximum of 1,200 points. The highest-ranked applicants will receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence (ITA) during period draws.
The CRS prioritizes applicants who are likely to successfully settle and have a positive economic impact within Canada. For this reason, having an approved job offer or a provincial nomination for permanent residence will have a very positive impact on an applicant’s score.
Having an approved job offer in a managerial field (National Occupation Classification 00) is worth 200 points, while all other job offers (NOC O, A, B) are worth 50 points. Both points allocations will serve to significantly strengthen a candidate’s profile.
A provincial nomination will automatically result in 600 points being given to an applicant. This allocation of points will almost always guarantee that a candidate will receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence.
