Consultations on Reforms to Express Entry’s Federal High Skilled Programs and Comprehensive Ranking System
IRCC Discussion Paper

We’re considering a series of changes to the core federal economic immigration programs managed by Express Entry, and its Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS).

Our focus is to find ways to simplify and modernize these selection tools. This will ensure Express Entry is properly calibrated to:

• select the best talent in the world
• achieve strong economic outcomes
• enhance client service
• achieve operational efficiencies

Work to date is the result of an internal review supported by recent analyses on:

• Express Entry immigrants
• the best predictors of immigrants’ economic outcomes

It has been informed by discussions with partners and experts in the field of economic immigration and is guided by these principles:

1. focus on the strongest predictors of economic success
2. reduce overlap and duplication between programs
3. reduce complexity
4. promote equity and ensure integrity

We are currently seeking input from partners, stakeholders and the public to inform potential changes. We’ll consider feedback as part of upcoming amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations and the Ministerial Instructions governing the Express Entry system.

Note: We are not currently seeking input related to Express Entry categories. They are reviewed on an ongoing basis, and established by the Minister to meet identified economic goals based on labour market information as well as input from partners, stakeholders and the public. We invite you to watch our public consultations and engagement webpage for future opportunities to help us set category priorities.

Table of Contents

• Background
  • What is Express Entry?
  • How is Express Entry performing overall?
  • Highlights from recent studies
• Federal high skilled programs
  • Potential future direction
  • Program eligibility criteria and minimum requirements under consideration for a single program
• Comprehensive Ranking System
  • Potential future direction
  • Points factors under consideration

Background

What is Express Entry?

Express Entry is an online system used to manage applications for federal skilled immigration programs:

• the Canadian Experience Class
• the Federal Skilled Worker Program
• the Federal Skilled Trades Program

Express Entry also manages a portion of the Provincial Nominee Program

Occupations eligible for these programs require a high level of training, education, experience and responsibilities (TEER categories 0, 1, 2 and 3).

Express Entry is designed to choose people based on factors (such as official language skills, education, and work experience) known to predict positive economic outcomes, including higher employment rates and earnings.

Candidates who meet the requirements of one (or more) of the three programs are entered into a pool and are ranked using the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). Only top-ranking candidates are invited to apply for permanent residence during invitation rounds, which are held regularly and documented online.

Invitations can be sent to top-ranking candidates in one of three types of rounds:

1. General: All candidates in the pool are considered.
2. Program-specific: Only candidates eligible to a specific program (e.g. CEC) are considered.
3. Category-based: Introduced in 2023, category-based rounds allow IRCC to issue invitations to apply to candidates who have skills or experience linked to a specific economic goal.

Candidates eligible for any round type are ranked using the CRS, and those who rank highest are invited to apply during these rounds.

A candidate may be eligible for selection via one or more invitation round types, but they will only be invited to apply through one of them.

The number of candidates invited to apply for permanent residence through Express Entry in a given calendar year is based on planned permanent resident admissions under Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan. Within this plan, admissions via the Express Entry Federal High Skilled programs make up approximately 30% of all admissions, and 45% of economic immigration admissions.

For more information about Express Entry, including a summary of invitations to apply (ITAs) that were issued, applications received, processing times, admissions, and economic outcomes of applicants, read the latest Express Entry year-end report.

How is Express Entry performing overall?

Overall, Express Entry is functioning well and delivering strong results. It lets us be flexible in making selections that respond to emerging labour market needs, while managing large volumes of applications and meeting a 6-month service standard for 80% of cases.^{Footnote 1}

The selection system also supports strong economic outcomes among immigrants. For example, Express Entry principal applicants:

• consistently outperform other economic immigrants in employment incidence and earnings
• earn higher weekly wages than the Canadian-born population shortly after arrival

Early impacts of Express Entry on economic outcomes and system management were presented in a 2020 evaluation report prepared by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). IRCC is currently conducting an updated evaluation of the Federal High Skilled programs and the Express Entry system over a longer time span.

Federal high skilled programs

Canada has a variety of economic immigration programs designed to balance filling current job vacancies with selecting people who have the skills that will make them successful over the long term.

Federal economic programs are complemented by regional immigration programs which aim to spread the benefits of immigration across all regions of Canada.

The Federal High Skilled programs were designed to select skilled workers with the potential for long-term economic success in Canada, based on their work experience in skilled occupations. When these programs were introduced, applications were paper-based and processed on a first-in-first-out basis, allowing anyone to apply for permanent residence.

While the three programs share some of the same eligibility criteria, specific requirements and minimum thresholds for factors such as official language skills and work experience vary across the programs.

Since Express Entry launched in 2015, the eligibility requirements of the Federal High Skilled programs have become the minimum requirements for candidates to enter the Express Entry pool to be considered for an invitation to apply for permanent residence.

With the introduction of Express Entry and category-based selection, which allows for more nuanced selection among skilled worker candidates, it may no longer be necessary to have three distinct programs.

Potential future direction

We can simplify the federal economic immigration programs managed through Express Entry to reduce complexity and duplication. We are exploring the possibility of merging the existing three federal programs into a single Federal High Skilled program with streamlined program eligibility requirements. These changes would ensure that the same criteria apply to all candidates entering the Express Entry pool.

Program eligibility criteria focus on core factors known to help immigrants establish themselves economically in Canada. This could help ensure that immigrants admitted through this program are positioned to leverage their skills and experience in the Canadian labour market. This approach would include a wide range of TEER 0–3 jobs and reduce duplication in criteria used in the existing programs and ranking system.

Program eligibility criteria and minimum requirements under consideration for a single program

Education requirement: Canadian high school or equivalent

Minimum education requirements support the selection of immigrants who are resilient to changing labour market conditions.

High school equivalency is required to enter most vocational and higher education institutions, and is required for the existing Federal Skilled Worker program. The Canadian Experience Class and the Federal Skilled Trades Program do not have a minimum education requirement.

This would mean that candidates in eligible skilled occupations that do not require post-secondary studies do not face barriers to qualify for Express Entry.

Despite the fact that the Federal Skilled Worker program is the only program that includes a minimum education requirement, most eligible candidates in the Express Entry pool would meet this requirement.

Official language proficiency: CLB/NCLC 6 (“developing intermediate proficiency”) in all language abilities (reading, writing, speaking and listening)

Knowledge of English or French is critical to an immigrants’ ability to translate their skills and experience in the Canadian labour market. According to a recent study by IRCC and Statistics Canada, official language proficiency is one of the strongest predictors of immigrants’ economic success in Canada.

The same study found that test-based measures of official language proficiency are a stronger predictor of immigrants’ post-landing earnings than self-reported measures. For example, Express Entry immigrants with first official language proficiency of CLB/NCLC 6 tend to earn 8% more than those with CLB/NCLC 4-5. More significant increases in earnings are associated with official language skills at CLB/NCLC 7 and above.

A level of CLB/NCLC 6 falls within the mid-range of the language requirements of the existing program requirements and is associated with the point where you can observe earnings increases. The vast majority of eligible candidates in the Express Entry pool have at least this level of official language.

Work experience: One year of cumulative skilled work experience (TEER 0-3) acquired in Canada or elsewhere

Selecting immigrants on the basis of work experience gained in an occupation in TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3 is a core feature of the Federal High Skilled programs.

Skilled work experience – particularly when acquired in Canada – is often associated with:

• higher earnings
• job stability
• job skills gained
• competitiveness in the Canadian labour market

Longer periods of Canadian work experience tend to be associated with higher employment earnings in the first few years after entering Canada. However, those without prior Canadian work experience tend to close the gap within 3-4 years.

Recognizing other work experience, including foreign work experience, as part of the program eligibility requirements could help attract global top talent. It could also address structural labour market shortages in important sectors by ensuring that skilled workers with little or no prior Canadian work experience are able to qualify for Express Entry.

Other selection factors: Remove certain program requirements

We are considering removing some existing selection factors in how points are earned. This could include the selection grid that is currently part of the Federal Skilled Worker program, and the requirement for either a certificate of qualification or a job offer that is part of the current Federal Skilled Trades program. This would further reduce duplication that currently exists between the programs and Express Entry’s ranking system.

Note: In addition to the minimum program requirements, the CRS would continue to provide points to eligible candidates with

• post-secondary education
• higher levels of proficiency in English and French
• more of Canadian work experience

Comprehensive Ranking System

The CRS is designed to help select candidates who are most likely to succeed economically. It provides up to 600 points for human capital and skill transferability factors such as the following:

• age
• education
• official language skills
• Canadian work experience

These are empirically shown to contribute to better economic outcomes for immigrants.

It includes points based on specific criteria for spouses or common-law partners who come with them to Canada, and considers the effects of certain factors (e.g. foreign work experience combined with language skills or Canadian work experience), which are referred to as “skills transferability factors.”

It also provides up to 600 points for additional factors, such as provincial/territorial nominations, French skills, Canadian education credentials, and siblings in Canada. Until March 2025, points were also provided for valid job offers.

Recent studies have found that factors in the CRS are effective in predicting candidates’ potential employment and earnings outcomes. For example:

• Core human capital factors (e.g., age, education, official language skills, Canadian work experience) are generally good predictors of economic outcomes.
• Some elements of the CRS (e.g., spousal grid, sibling in Canada, study in Canada) are relatively weaker predictors.
• Other strong predictors (e.g., pre-landing Canadian earnings and job offers) are not currently included.

Potential future direction

While the CRS has contributed to stronger economic outcomes of skilled immigrants since 2015, there are possible ways to improve this. With this in mind, we are considering ways to simplify the CRS by focusing on factors that are closely associated with positive economic outcomes.

This potential approach would help to better calibrate the points-based system to select those with the highest earnings potential.

Points factors under consideration

Rewarding Canadian employment in high-wage jobs

Within the CRS, up to 80 points are provided to candidates with prior Canadian work experience in a skilled occupation. These points are based solely on the number of years of work experience and do not account for different types of skilled work experience.

Recent studies have found that employment earnings as a temporary resident in Canada are one of the strongest predictors of immigrants’ employment and earnings outcomes. Higher temporary resident wages are associated with higher likelihood of employment and higher earnings. On the other hand, lower temporary resident wages are associated with outcomes similar to or even below that of candidates without prior Canadian work experience.

We are looking into providing additional points to skilled workers who have gained experience or found employment in high-wage jobs in Canada. This would enhance selection of skilled workers with the highest earnings potential and support the International Talent Attraction Strategy announced in Budget 2025.

In addition to existing points for years of Canadian work experience, a potential new points factor would include

1. Canadian work experience in high-wage jobs
2. Valid job offers from a Canadian employer in a high-wage job

We could potentially do this by establishing a list of high-wage jobs that meet certain thresholds above the national median wage. This list would be created based on data available through Employment and Development Canada’s Job Bank and Statistics Canada’s Labour Market Survey and Census.

Candidates could be awarded points based on their job rather than their individual earnings as a temporary resident or the salary associated with a specific job offer.

Potential thresholds for high-wage jobs:

• 2 times the national median wage: A typical worker in these occupations makes at least twice the median wage of all Canadians (e.g., physicians, university professors)
• 1.5 times the national median wage: A typical worker in these occupations makes at least 1.5 times the median wage of all Canadians (e.g., engineers, teachers, transportation managers)
• 1.3 times the national median wage: A typical worker in these occupations makes at least 1.3 times the median wage of all Canadians (e.g., financial analysts, bricklayers, heavy-duty equipment operators)

Using an occupational level of earnings (rather than individual earnings) as the basis for awarding these points could help mitigate against key concerns. For example, gender and geographic disparities in certain jobs, or situations where people work excessive hours in low-wage jobs to demonstrate high levels of income.

Limiting points for valid job offers to only high-wage jobs would make this factor more effective and help attract top global talent. It would also help mitigate fraud risks that caused us to temporarily remove job offer points in March 2025. Many high-wage jobs require specialized skills and experience, making it easier to verify that a candidate is qualified.

We are also assessing whether to expand the exemption to the requirement for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) for qualifying job offers where fraud risk is low. This could include job offers made by the same employer for whom the candidate has been working for at least six months on a valid work permit, including open work permits.

Recognizing Canadian licences in regulated occupations

Many sectors of the economy facing long-term labour shortages, such as health care, skilled trades, and education, include jobs that are regulated in Canada. For foreign-trained candidates, seeking recognition of their foreign credentials and getting licensed in a regulated profession in Canada is a large undertaking. Having a Canadian licence in a regulated job shows that the candidate has the necessarily skills and qualifications and is ready to practise in their job in Canada. We are considering ways to strengthen the recognition of Canadian licences in regulated jobs within Express Entry.

Express Entry currently awards points to candidates who have a certificate of trades qualification along with official language skills. These points were introduced in the ranking system to recognize the unique skills and qualifications of tradespersons. To improve integrity and enhance the existing certificate of qualification factor, we are considering accepting only certificates for Red Seal designated trades, and introducing new points to recognize trade apprenticeship work.

We are also exploring ways to recognize Canadian licences in other regulated jobs beyond trades. One approach would be to collect information from candidates who are fully licensed in Canada, including the specific job and the province or territory in which they hold their licence. This could allow IRCC or interested provinces and territories to prioritize the selection of practice-ready candidates in regulated jobs.

Skilled workers in regulated jobs often must undergo language testing for both licensing and immigration. We are considering opportunities to continue streamlining these assessments for certain regulated jobs. For example, candidates who have completed Canadian licensing, including an assessment of their English or French language skills, could be exempt from taking a separate test (i.e., a different test than required by their regulatory body and providing results in their Express Entry profile and application for permanent residence). Alternatively, regulatory bodies could evaluate and accept language tests that IRCC has already approved for immigration as sufficient for their own licensing purposes.

Focusing on the strongest predictors of economic outcomes

Points based on core human capital factors (“core CRS scores”) have been shown to be effective in predicting earnings potential of Express Entry immigrants. For example, compared to those with lower core CRS scores, Express Entry principal applicants with core scores above 400 points generally achieve higher total median employment earnings in both their admission year and over time.

Given how effective they are in predicting positive economic outcomes, IRCC is considering keeping existing points provided for age, education, Canadian work experience, and first and second official language proficiency.

Compared to the core human capital factors, “additional points” and spousal points are relatively weaker predictors of immigrants outcomes. We are therefore assessing the possibility of removing or changing the points for French proficiency, studies in Canada, siblings in Canada, and the spousal grid.

French language skills

Francophone immigration plays a crucial role in supporting Canada’s economic growth by

• promoting the vitality of Francophone minority communities
• helping meet labour needs for French-speaking and bilingual workers across the country

To this end, we introduced additional points for French language skills within the CRS in 2017, with more points for candidates with knowledge of both French and English. The number of points was subsequently increased in 2020.

Whereas these points increase the likelihood of French-speaking and bilingual candidates receiving an invitation to apply, they do not guarantee that a specific number of French-speaking candidates will be invited to apply for permanent residence.

Since 2023, category-based selection has provided a more effective mechanism to select French-speaking skilled workers to support economic growth of Francophone minority communities. As a result, the additional points for French language skills may no longer be necessary to support the selection of French-speaking candidates through Express Entry.

Study in Canada

In recent years, we have made significant changes to reduce the volumes of international students coming to Canada and address program integrity challenges. We have also enhanced alignment between the International Student Program and selection of permanent residents through federal economic immigration pathways.

Within Express Entry, the CRS provides up to 150 points for candidates’ education (Canadian credential or equivalent). These points recognize that education is a contributing factor to stronger economic outcomes.

Since 2016, up to 30 additional points are also provided to candidates who obtained a post-secondary credential in Canada. Evidence shows that this factor has a relatively weaker effect on the economic outcomes of Express Entry immigrants.

After adjusting for comparable characteristics including highest education level, Express Entry immigrants with 1-2 years of Canadian college tend to earn slightly less, while those with a Canadian bachelor’s degree or higher tend to earn slightly more, compared to those with no Canadian study. Among candidates who received these additional points between 2023 and 2025, 76% were based on a 1-2 year college-level credential. Recent reforms to the International Student Program have attracted a growing proportion of university degree students, while the proportion of applications from college-bound students is declining.

Awarding Canadian study points only to candidates with the strongest economic potential – for example, those who have completed graduate level studies in Canada – could contribute to refocusing the CRS on the best predictors of economic outcomes.

Factors related to family members, including spouse or common-law partner factors and sibling in Canada points

Evidence shows that both spousal attributes and sibling in Canada points are relatively weaker predictors of the principal applicants economic outcomes.

Spouses and common-law partners of Express Entry immigrants make significant contributions to Canadian society and the labour market. The spousal points grid in the CRS is intended to take into account the impact that a spouse’s characteristics have on the economic outcomes of principal applicants.

Under the current ranking system, candidates must declare in their profiles whether or not their spouse or common-law partner will be accompanying them and seeking permanent residence at the same time as them. This includes providing information related to their education, language proficiency and Canadian work experience.

The spousal grid has in some cases reduced a candidate’s score and their chances of an invitation to apply. This may have led to an unintended consequence impacting candidates’ decisions to immigrate as a family.

The CRS also provides 15 points to candidates with a sibling in Canada. While the number of points for this factor is modest, they can help determine a candidate’s ranking and chances of receiving an invitation to apply for permanent residence.

Defining Canadian work experience

While a significant number of points are provided to candidates who gained prior work experience in Canada, there can be confusion around the definition of Canadian work experience provided in the Ministerial Instructions governing the Express Entry system or the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.

We are reviewing options to further define qualifying Canadian work experience, which could include the following:

1. Work performed in Canada, as a temporary resident, in the Canadian labour market, and paid by wages or commission.
2. Exclusions: self-employment (except for physicians, because of how these occupations are practiced in the Canadian healthcare system), work while studying full-time, unauthorized work, work obtained pending the outcome of an asylum claim, work paid by foreign sources or while employed by a foreign government, organization or business, work in a multilateral international organization, and work in a high commission, consulate or embassy in Canada.

These changes would ensure that qualifying Canadian work experience is work completed directly within the Canadian labour market. Providing clarity would also reduce confusion for prospective immigrants and make decision-making more consistent for officers.