CIMM – 78.2 F-1303658 Construction stats – December 05, 2023

Undertaking: CIMM 78.2 Briefing on Priorities and Objective for IRCC, Exploitation Scheme Targeting Certain International Students

• There is an increasing number of construction workers receiving invitations to apply (ITAs) for permanent residence through the Express Entry System: in 2022, the Department issued 3,396 ITAs to individuals with work experience in construction, and in 2023 from January 1st to October 31st , the Department issued 7,202 ITAs.
• In the third quarter of 2023 there was an increase in the number of ITAs issued to candidates in construction occupations, from 1,412 (Q2) to 3,204 (Q3), reflecting the implementation of Category-Based Selection (CBS) in summer 2023 contributed to this increase. More specifically, the trade occupations invitation round, which took place on August 3rd 2023 (In the attached Excel sheet: Document Overview: Construction NOCs_20231115, see Tab 1 for more detailed round information and Tab 2 for the list of occupations in the construction sector - this list is based on the Canadian Occupation Classification System as well as key occupations from NOC 72 and 73 (e.g. welders)).
• The eligible occupations for the Trade Occupation rounds were chosen based on Employment and Social Development Canada’s Canadian Occupation Projection System data on occupations that are expected to be in shortage between 2022 and 2031.
• Contractors and supervisors, other construction trades, installers, repairers and servicers  72014
• Welders and related machine operators  72106
• Electricians (except industrial and power system)  72200
• Plumbers  72300
• Carpenters 72310
• Construction millwrights and industrial mechanics  72400
• Heating, refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics  72402
• Machine fitters  72405
• Elevator constructors and mechanics  72406
• Residential and commercial installers and servicers  73200
• The 2023 target for the trades category in Express Entry is 3-4% of invitations to apply. Targets for 2024 are currently under consideration and will take into account labour market demand, as well as anticipated supply in the Express Entry pool.