Canada has invited 5,000 immigration candidates to apply for permanent residence in a new Express Entry draw held on December 9.
Invited candidates needed a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of at least 469 in order to be invited.
This draw brings the number of Invitations to Apply (ITAs) issued this year to 102,350, a record high number of invitations.
Express Entry is Canada’s immigration application management system for three federal economic-class programs: Federal Skilled Worker Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program, and Canadian Experience Class.
Candidates in these programs, as well as some Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs), are given a score based on the CRS. Points are awarded depending on a candidates’ human capital factors such as age, education, work experience, and language ability in English or French.
The highest scoring candidates receive an ITA, which they can then use to apply for Canadian permanent residence.
The number of ITAs issued to date is the highest it has ever been. Canada surpassed its ITA target on November 18, when a record-breaking 5,000 ITAs were issued. There has also never been a single year where the number of ITAs issued surpassed 100,000.
The large number of ITAs is in line with Canada’s commitment to welcome over 400,000 new immigrants in 2021, most of them coming through the Express Entry system.
In case of a tie between candidates, IRCC applies the tie-breaking rule. So, for this draw, candidates who had a CRS score of 469 or more, needed to have submitted their Express Entry profile before June 4, 2020, at 22:26:05 UTC in order to receive an invitation.
This is the second time in a row that the CRS requirement has dipped to 469.
The CRS requirement has typically hovered above 470 for all program draws. The Federal Skilled Trades Program-only draw on August 6 invited trades workers with a CRS of 415, and previous Canadian Experience Class-only draws dipped into the 440s. PNP-only draws have higher requirements because Express Entry candidates who receive a provincial nomination are automatically awarded an additional 600 CRS points. PNPs offer alternative pathways to permanent residence for Express Entry candidates who have a lower CRS score.