5,000 CEC candidate invited in latest express entry draw

On March 18, Canada invited 5,000 Express Entry applicants to apply for permanent residence.

Invited applicants had to be eligible for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and have a score of at least 449 to receive an invitation to apply. Some of the basic eligibility requirements for the CEC include one year of full-time qualified work experience in Canada and intermediate official languages skills, among other criteria.

Only those express entry candidates with a minimum CRS score of 449 points were invited who had submitted their profile in the pool by February 19, 2021, UTC, as per the tiebreaker rule.

With this latest round of invitations for CEC candidates, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has shown their continued priority to Immigration despite the travel restrictions.  About 77% of Express Entry applicants to Canada are eligible for the CEC, according to IRCC data as of March 8.

The previous Express Entry draws on March 17 targeted applicants from the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), another group likely to have close ties to Canada. PNP applicants only have demonstrated to the province that nominated them that they have the skills to support the regional labor market. These applicants have higher CRS scores because receiving a PNP automatically grants Express Entry applicants an additional 600 points.

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This is the first draw reserved for the CEC since February 13, when IRCC invited every eligible candidate for the CEC from the Express Entry pool, for a total of 27,332 immigrant applicants.

As a result of this record-breaking draw, the number of ITAs issued in 2021 is already 43,840. 19,368 ITAs were issued last year at the same time.

To make up for the shortage of new permanent residents admitted in 2020, Canada has pledged to welcome 401,000 new immigrants in 2021. Of these, 108,500 are expected to go through programs managed by Express Entry.