October 2 Express Entry draw sends 3,900 Invitations

Canada’s latest Express Entry draw saw it’s largest distribution of invitations to apply for Canadian permanent residence since January this year. The most recent draw, held October 2, issued 3,900 invitations to Express Entry candidates. This draw required candidates to have a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 464 or higher.

The previous draw, held on September 18, had 3,600 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) sent to eligible candidates. In comparison, this draw had an increase of 300 invitations. The last draw of this size was on January 23, 2019, which also drew 3,900 invitations. As of this draw, Express Entry has issued a total of 67,300 ITAs this year. 

About Express Entry

Canada’s federal Express Entry system is run by the Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). It is one of the country’s most popular methods for recruiting skilled foreign workers. Although candidates do not require a job offer in Canada to be eligible, they do need to register a career profile in the Express Entry system.

The federal Express Entry holds about two draws a month, wherein it selects from the top-ranking profiles in the system. The system ranks candidates based on their CRS scores. Subsequently, it assesses the applicant on work history, educational background, English or French language skills, and more. If selected, candidates are sent an ITA, inviting them to apply for Canadian permanent residence.

The Express Entry pulls from three economic class categories of immigration: the Canadian Experience Class, the Federal Skilled Trades Class, and the Federal Skilled Worker Class.

As it stands now, the federal Express Entry stream could potentially break last year’s record of 89,800. In addition, the frequency of the draws has had an effect on the minimum score requirements. If there is a shorter wait between draws, the minimum score stays the same or decreases. When there is a long wait the scores tend to increase.