Canadian Experience Class
The Canadian Experience Class is for skilled workers who have Canadian work experience and want to become permanent residents.
On this page
- Canadian skilled work experience
- Language ability
- Education
- Admissibility
- Where you can live in Canada
Canadian skilled work experience
First, find out the National Occupational Classification (NOC) for each job in your work history. Then check if they meet the requirements for skilled work experience.
Find your NOC
For each job, choose the NOC that most closely matches your relevant work experience. This will
- avoid processing delays
- make sure you’re assessed against the correct program
Check your Canadian work experience
Work experience you can’t count
You can’t count work experience if
- you were studying full-time while you worked (co-op work terms also don’t count)
- you were self-employed (some physicians can count their time spent self-employed)
- you were a volunteer or an unpaid intern
- you were not legally allowed to work in Canada
Some physicians can count self-employed time
We have a temporary public policy that lets some foreign national physicians count self-employed time toward their work experience.
You can count your self-employment as Canadian work experience if you have work experience providing publicly funded medical services in Canada (such as fee-for-service work).
When you create your Express Entry profile, do not check the “Self-employed work” checkbox under Work experience in Canada. This will make sure your work experience counts as Canadian work experience.
Can you count work experience you got in the province of Quebec?
Yes, you can count work experience you got while living in Quebec.
When you apply, you must include proof that you don’t plan to settle there. We’ll review your proof to make sure you plan to live outside the province of Quebec.
How to count your work hours
You can meet the 1,560-hour requirement in a few different ways:
- full-time at 1 job: up to 30 hours a week for 12 months = 1 year full-time (1,560 hours)
- equal amount in part-time work: for example, 15 hours a week for 24 months = 1 year full time (1,560 hours)
- You can work as many part-time jobs as you need to meet this requirement.
- full-time at more than 1 job: up to 30 hours a week combined across more than 1 job, for 12 months = 1 year full-time (1,560 hours)
Language ability
You must:
- take approved language tests in English or French
- meet the minimum
score in all 4 abilities:
- writing
- reading
- listening
- speaking
Education
There is no education requirement for the Canadian Experience Class.
If you want to improve your rank in the pool
If you want to improve your rank in the Express Entry pool, there are 2 ways you can do this.
- If you went to school in Canada, you can get points for a certificate, diploma or degree from a Canadian high school or post-secondary institution.
- If you have foreign education, you can get points if you have both of these:
- a completed educational credential
- an educational credential assessment report for immigration purposes
Admissibility
You must be admissible to Canada.
Some people aren’t allowed to come to Canada. There are different reasons we may not let you into Canada, such as security, criminal or medical reasons.
Where you can live in Canada
When you fill out your profile, we’ll ask you where you plan to live in Canada.
You must plan to live outside the province of Quebec. The province of Quebec selects its own skilled workers. If you plan on living in Quebec, see Quebec-selected skilled workers for more information.
If you’re a Provincial Nominee, you must settle in the province or territory that nominated you.