EXPRESS ENTRY

  Who is a Federal Skilled Worker?

Federal skilled workers are people who possess certain degree of education, work experience, and knowledge of at least one of the official languages of Canada (English, French). Applicants are assessed against a point system awarded for the above factors. People who apply for Canada skilled workers program must have sufficient financing to sustain themselves and their family members for at least six months since their arrival in the country.

Federal Skilled Worker applications are assessed based on an applicant's ability to become economically established upon immigration to Canada.

Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) applications are processed through the Express Entry immigration selection system for immigration to Canada.

Candidates eligible under the Federal Skilled Worker Class must first make an expression of interest in immigrating to Canada by creating an online Express Entry profile.

How Can we help you apply for the Federal Skilled Program?

To be invited under Federal Skilled Worker Class, you need to meet the minimum requirements for the streams. I.C.O. Immigration will provide you with professional advice and help you determine your eligibility to live and work in Canada permanently. 

  Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC) applications are assessed based on an applicant's ability to become economically established upon immigration to Canada.

Eligible candidates for the Federal Skilled Trades Program must make an expression of interest in immigrating to Canada through the Express Entry selection system for immigration to Canada. 

 The FSTC allows individuals with job offers or appropriate certification to work in certain occupations to obtain Canadian permanent residence in any Canadian province or territory other than Quebec. 

 Eligibility Criteria for the FSTC

In order to qualify for a Canada Immigration (Permanent Resident) Visa, Federal Skilled Trades applicants must:

• have offers of employment from up to two employers in Canada of at least one year duration OR a Certificate of Qualification* from a provincial or territorial body;
• provide proof of basic language proficiency from a designated language testing organization, demonstrating that the applicant meets the minimum threshold set by the Minister — Canadian Level Benchmark (CLB) 5 for speaking and listening, CLB 4 for reading and writing;

 The Canadian Experience Class (CEC) is an immigration category for Canada's foreign workers who wish to become permanent residents.

Temporary foreign workers are ideal candidates for Canadian immigration (permanent residence). Having obtained Canadian work experience, these individuals have already settled into Canadian society and established important networks in their communities and their careers.

Canadian Experience Class applications are processed through the Express Entry selection system for immigration to Canada. Eligible candidates must make an expression of interest in immigrating to Canada, create an online Express Entry profile, and receive an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence before they may make an application. 

CEC requirements

Applicants must meet the following minimum requirements. They must:

• Have obtained at least one year of skilled, professional or technical work experience in Canada within 36 months of the application date; and
• Meet or surpass a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) of 5 ("initial intermediate") or 7 ("adequate intermediate proficiency"), depending on the level of the job; and
• Plan to live and work outside of the province of Quebec (individuals with work experience in Quebec and who plan to reside in Quebec may apply to the Quebec Experience Class).

 A provincial nomination is an important fast-track immigration option for anyone seeking Canadian permanent residence.

Most Canadian provinces and territories have a Provincial Nominee Program, or PNP, which allow them to select immigration candidates with the skills, work experience and/or other human capital to meet labour market or community needs.

Every PNP now has at least one immigration stream that is aligned with the federal Express Entry immigration selection system. These streams are known as 'enhanced' nomination streams and award selected Express Entry candidates an additional 600 Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points. To learn more about how PNPs function with respect to the Express Entry system, click the button below.

 If you have studied or worked in the province of Quebec, you may be eligible to immigrate under this fast-track Canadian immigration program.

The Quebec Experience Class (Programme de l’expérience Québécoise, or PEQ) is a popular immigration pathway for foreign students and individuals with work experience in Quebec.

Immigration to Quebec can be considered a two-step process in which an individual interested in immigrating to Quebec must first apply for a Certificat de sélection du Québec (also known as a Quebec Selection Certificate or "CSQ"), a document that allows the holder to immigrate to Quebec. To apply for a CSQ, it is important to satisfy the eligibility requirements of one of the many Quebec immigration program offered by Quebec's Ministry of Immigration, Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Diversité et de l’Inclusion (MIDI). 

 The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program is a new feature in the Canadian immigration landscape.

Through this program, the federal government — together with the governments of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island — aim to welcome nearly 7,000 newcomers and their families to the Atlantic region of Eastern Canada in the next three years. Much of this region is sometimes referred to as 'the Maritimes'.

How the pilot program works

This is an employer-driven program, with significant involvement from employers in the provinces.

Once a designated employer finds a candidate who meets their employment needs and the program criteria, that employer will need to first offer them a job. Employers do not need to go through the process of obtaining a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) under this program.