Federal Skill Worker Program

Federal Skilled Worker Program (Express Entry)

This program is for skilled workers with foreign work experience who want to immigrate to Canada permanently. This is 1 of the 3 federal programs managed through Express Entry.

How this program works

This program has minimum requirements for:

• skilled work experience
• language ability
• education

You must meet all the minimum requirements to be eligible.

Minimum Eligibility Requirements:

1. Minimum 1year of skilled work experience in National Occupation Classification job groups “0” , “A”, or “B”.
2. Language ability of minimum Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 in all 4 abilities.
3. Education Credential Assessment :

An Educational credential assessment (ECA) is used to verify that your foreign degree, diploma, or certificate (or other proof of your credential) is valid and equal to a Canadian one. There are different types of ECAs. You need to get an ECA for immigration purposes. If you got another type of ECA, you may be able to get it re-issued, depending on the type of ECA and/or issuing organization.

• You must include your ECA report and the reference number in your Express Entry profile.
• It must be done through for immigration purposesfrom a designated organization.

4. Proof of funds – You must show that you have enough money for you and your family to settle in Canada, unless you:

• are currently able to legally work in Canada
• have a valid job offer from an employer in Canada

How much money you’ll need

The amount of money you need to support your family depends on the size of your family. To calculate the size of your family you must include

• yourself
• your spouse or partner
• your dependent children and
• your spouse’s dependent children

Include your spouse or dependent children even if they’re

• permanent residents or Canadian citizens
• not coming to Canada with you

This table shows the minimum amount you need to immigrate to Canada. If you have more money, you should list the full amount in your profile or application. Please contact us to confirm latest fund requirements.

5. Admissibility: You must be admissible to Canada.

For more information on admissibility please contact us.

6. Acquire 67 points in 6 selection factors

Selection factors

If you meet all the minimum requirements, we’ll then assess your application based on:

• age
• education
• work experience
• whether you have a valid job offer
• English and/or French language skills
• adaptability (how well you’re likely to settle here)

These factors are part of a 100-point grid used to assess eligibility for the Federal Skilled Worker Program. You earn points for how well you do in each of the 6 factors.

The current pass mark is 67 points.

The Federal Skilled Worker selection factors are listed below. Click on each factor to learn more: 

Next step:

Get your documents ready:

You need certain documents at different stages of the Express Entry application process.

Documents for your profile

You don’t need to upload documents to submit a profile, but you may need information from some or all of these documents:

• passport or travel document
• language test results
• education credential assessment report if
  • you’re applying through the Federal Skilled Workers program, or
  • you want to get points for the education you got outside Canada
• provincial nomination (if you have one)
• written job offer from an employer in Canada (if you have one)

Documents for your application for permanent residence

After you receive invitation to apply, you’ll need to upload copies of the documents you used for your profile (see list above). Most applicants will also need to upload the following:

• police certificates
• medical exams
• proof of funds

Next Step:

Submit your profile:

If you want to come to Canada as a skilled immigrant, your first step is to submit your profile to the Express Entry pool.

If you’re eligible, IRCC will:

• place you in a pool with others who are also eligible
• give you a score and rank you using several factors
• invite you to apply to be a permanent resident of Canada (if you’re one of the top candidates)

You can only apply online if IRCC send you an invitation to apply.

Completing an online Express Entry profile or entering the pool doesn’t guarantee that IRCC will invite you to apply for permanent residence.

To complete your profile, you’ll need:

• information from certain documents (for example, language test results)
• your National Occupational Classification (NOC) job title and code

You have 60 days to complete and submit your Express Entry profile. Otherwise, you’ll have to start again.

What to do while you’re in the pool

While you wait in the pool, get ready to accept an invitation to apply. If we invite you to apply, you’ll have 60 days to submit a complete application.

Get your documents ready

Having your documents ready will make it easier to apply within the 60 days.

Try to improve your score

While you’re in the pool, you can improve your score and increase your chances of being invited to apply by:

• getting a valid job offer by:
  • using Job Bank
  • promoting yourself to employers in Canada using private-sector job boards
• contacting provinces and territories to consider you for a Provincial Nominee Program
• improving your language score
• improving your education
• gaining more relevant work experience

Keep your profile up-to-date

You must make sure that the information in your profile stays true and accurate at all times. You must update your profile if your situation changes, for example if you:

• start a new career
• gain or lose a job offer
• get a new language test
• get married or divorced
• have or adopt a new child

Next Step:

Keep Track on Round of Invitation

IRCC rank candidates in the pool using a points-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). We select the highest-ranking candidates from the pool and invite them to apply for permanent residence.

Each invitation round has a set of instructions that are:

• posted online at the time of the invitation round
• used by the Express Entry system to invite candidates from the pool

Check your score and then use this information to see how likely you are to get an invitation in the next round.