893 PNP Candidates were invited by IRCC in the new Express Entry Draw with a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 733 in the Third Express Entry Draw of 2023 held by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Since July 2022, this was the first program-specific Express Entry draw.
IRCC was holding all-program draws between July until today, in which it was considering all eligible Express Entry candidates for invitations. Express Entry candidates may be invited in an all-program draw, without a provincial nomination from one of the three programs managed by the Express Entry application management system. Provincial nomination is already received by Express Entry candidates in this draw.
Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) permit Canadian provinces to nominate foreign nationals who are capable to support their regional labour market and population objectives. Except for Quebec and Nunavut, most Canadian provinces and territories have PNPs aligned with Express Entry. CRS scores are increased by 600 points after receiving a provincial nomination. Express Entry candidates needed a minimum CRS score of 133 before getting a provincial nomination to be eligible in this specific draw.
Results of Recent Express Entry
After an unexpected pause of six weeks between 23 November 2022 and 11 January 2023, Express Entry resumed 3 weeks ago. Two draws were held consecutively on 11 January and 18 January.
Because of the implementation of the National Occupation Classification (NOC 2021) on November 2016, a system glitch occurred which caused the pause.
These technical issues have since been resolved and a round of invitations for Express Entry was successfully implemented on 11 January 2023. 5,500 candidates were invited in both the 11 January and 18 January draw with 507 and 490 cut-off scores respectively.
Regular draws are to be resumed by IRCC soon. Draws have occurred regularly since Express Entry began in 2015. This stood true even during a long pause of draws for programs managed by Express Entry between December 2020 and July 2022. IRCC continued to invite Express Entry candidates from the PNPs.
To identify and target candidates that the Government considers highly skilled, Express Entry was created. Candidates of such nature are more likely to integrate fast and have a positive effect on Canada’s economy and workforce. This is because Immigration accounts for as much as 75% of population growth and approximately 90% of labour growth in Canada.
Express Entry
It is the application management system for 3 immigration programs of Canada: Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP), and Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidates in the Express Entry pool are already eligible for one of these programs at least.
To rank candidates’ profiles, the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) is used by Express Entry which is a points-based system. Invitation to Apply (ITA) is received by the top-scoring candidates and then can apply for permanent residency.
The application is reviewed by an IRCC officer after the candidate applies and decides if they are approved. The candidate will become a permanent citizen of Canada after approval, and will be one step closer to becoming a Canadian citizen.
