UPDATE: IRCC's Express Entry Points

Effective November 19, 2016, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC, formerly known as CIC), has released a new comprehensive ranking system for Express Entry. You can read about the changes on the IRCC website.

Under the new system, candidates will receive:

• 15 or 30 points if they have Canadian Education Experience (15 points for a 1 or 2 year degree, and 30 points for a 3 year degree or higher education). Previously candidates received no additional points for Canadian education.

• 50 or 200 points if they have a qualified job offer (200 points if the job offer falls under NOC 00 position, i.e. executives). Previously candidates received 600 points.

• 600 points for a Provincial Nomination (unchanged from the previous comprehensive ranking system).

Candidates that are working in Canada with a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exempt work permit (e.g. NAFTA, Mobility Francophone, intra-company transfer, etc), will get point the 50 or 200 points for a "qualified job offer". Previously, the only way to get the 600 extra points was to through the hassle and expense of getting a LMIA.

The Government also clarified the education part to the transferable skills. Namely:

• if a candidate has a post-secondary degree of 1 year or more (including a full Bachelor's degree) the candidate will receive 13 or 25 points based on their language skills and/or Canadian work experience;

• If you have 2 post secondary credentials (e.g., a 3 years Bachelors plus another degree such as a post-graduate college diploma, a Masters, or PhD), candidates will receive 25 or 50 points based on their language skills and/or Canadian work experience. The Government further clarified that, if the candidate only has an "entry-to-practice" degree in a regulated profession, they will get these extra points. For example, if someone had a LL.B. (Bachelor of Laws) or a B.SW. (Bachelor of Social Work), and these professional are regulated, the candidate will get the 25 or 50 points, without needing a "second" post-secondary credential. Put another way, you need 2 BAs (BA in English Literature and a BA in Economics), or 1 B.SW. to get the 25 or 50 points in this category.

Finally, it is important to note, that IRCC has extended the time for Candidates to complete their application for permanent residence

I have also updated my Express Entry points matrix (below) to reflect these changes.

Express Entry points matrix. Disclaimer: This Express Entry points matrix is not intended to replace legal advice, and no solicitor-client relationship arises from the use of this document. Please contact an immigration legal practitioner in order to receive proper legal advice tailored to your situation.

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