Express Entry Draw: Second largest draw invites 6,000 immigrants

Immigration, Refugees & Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held the latest express entry program-specific draw inviting immigrants with the minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 417 points.

The latest round of invitations held on April 16, inviting a total of 6,000 Canadian Experience Class (CEC) to submit their application for a Canada PR Visa. IRCC issued 1,000 more invitations than the previous CEC-only draw and the score required was 15 points lower than in the last draw.

The draw was rare on Friday night, just before the weekend in Canada. Express Entry draws are usually held during the week to give immigrant applicants and their representatives more time to prepare their permanent residence application.

It was also the second-largest draw in Express Entry history. The three largest draw sizes have all taken place in recent months as IRCC has increased the size of the draws to offset the decline in immigration to Canada in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The previous record was 5,000 invitations for permanent residence before it was shattered when 27,332 applicants were invited on February 13.

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Canada Immigration week overview

It has been an eventful week for Canadian immigration. IRCC held an Express Entry draw on Wednesday to invite 266 Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) applicants to apply for permanent residence.

IRCC made the biggest announcement of the week on the same day and the biggest in some time. IRCC has launched six new permanent residency streams that will be launched in May. The goal of the new streams is to provide some 90,000 additional permanent residence spaces to temporary residents already in Canada. These include temporary foreign workers in essential occupations in Canada, recent international graduates, and Francophones. These streams, in combination with the Express Entry, draws, and other initiatives like the PNP aim to help Canada reach its goal of 401,000 immigrants by 2021 despite the coronavirus pandemic.

PNP has also been active this week, with British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and Prince Edward Island each hosting draws.