June 5, 2017 – Significant changes to the determination of CRS points under the Canada Express Entry System will take effect from June 6, 2017.

Points will be awarded under the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) in two new areas including strong French language ability, and having a sibling in Canada.

A summary of the changes is as follows:

1. More points for French language

Candidates will score 15 additional points for a level 7 in listening, speaking, reading and writing in the Niveau de Competence Liguistique Canadiens (NLC) combined with an English score of 4 or below in the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB).

Those points will rise to 30 if the French level 7 is combined with an English level 5 or above.

The extra points are in addition to the existing language points. Up to 136 points can be awarded for a candidate’s first official language, and 24 points for the second.

2. New points for having a sibling in Canada

Canada immigration statistics show having a sibling accelerates integration – a key measure of a successful immigration system.Therefore, candidates with a sibling living in Canada will be awarded 15 extra points under Canada Express Entry.

The sibling must be age 18 or older and be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident. They must share a mother or father with the principal candidate or their spouse or common-law partner. The relationship can be blood, marriage, common-law or adoption.

3. No mandatory Canada Job Bank registration

Candidates will no longer be required to register for the Canada Job Bank. They will automatically qualify to receive an invitation once they are in the Canada Express Entry Pool.

Candidates who require job search assistance are strongly encouraged to register with Global Recruiters of Montreal, Immigration.ca’s in-house recruitment agency.

4. New approach to rank candidates with same CRS score

The Express Entry system will continue to rank candidates by their CRS score, but where a tie exists, all tied candidates will then be ranked based on the date and time they submitted their Express Entry profile.

The latest changes follow the recent move to add points for a Canadian education, and reduce points for a qualified job offer, under the Canada immigration Express Entry system.

Express Entry is an immigration system implemented by Canadian immigration authorities (“CIC”) on January 1, 2015 which manages skilled worker applications under Federal Economic programs. This includes the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Skilled Trades Program the Canada Experience Class and certain parts of the Provincial Nominee Program.

Stakeholders expect to see between 12-15 draws and up to 30,000 invitations during the first six months of 2017, with CRS scores well below 500 to enable Canadian immigration authorities to meet targeted annual immigration levels for 2017.

What this means for employers

Employers are encouraged to consider securing an LMIA or nomination under provincial nomination programs (PNP’s) to ensure long term retention of employees.

We provide Canadian employers with unparalleled immigration legal services and recruitment of foreign nationals through our in-house enterprise Global Recruiters of Montreal (www.grnmontreal.com). We bring approved candidates to Canada in the shortest time possible. Employers in a wide range of industries can directly benefit from our unique position as one of Canada’s leading online immigration firms in the industry to meet both their recruitment and immigration requirements.

Interested employers wishing to seek our assistance are invited to contact us here for further information.

What this means for candidates

Minimum CRS scores for Express Entry candidates have been consistently the low 400s throughout 2017, with the lowest all-program draw dropping to 413 points.

This has enabled a significant number of applicants to receive permanent admission to Canada without a job offer or nomination under a provincial immigration program.  However, securing an approved offer of employment is highly recommended.

Interested employers: Kindly contact us here to receive further information.

Interested candidates: Find out whether you qualify to Canada by completing our free on-line evaluation. We will provide you with our evaluation within 1-2 business days.

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