Express Entry: Canada holds largest PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) draw ever
Canada held a new Express Entry draw on December 10th. A total of 1,032 people was given the opportunity to apply for permanent residency.
Applicants who were invited had already been nominated under the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), which raised their human capital score by 600 points. As a result, the minimum cut-off for the draw was 698.
Since the launch of Express Entry in 2015, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has staged only 38 PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) only drawings. They rarely summon more than a thousand people, with the exception of this draw and the one on June 23, when 1,002 people were called.
PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) drawings have only been held by IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) since September. This is the 7th consecutive draw of this nature. IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) called 613 applicants with points of at least 737 in the previous Express Entry draw.
IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) inviting PNP (Provincial Nominee Program), prioritizing CEC (Canadian Experience Class) processing
IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) has only staged Express Entry drawings that target PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) and Canadian Experience Class applicants throughout the year (CEC).
The policy was designed to allow IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) to concentrate on admitting immigrants who were already in the country.
Applicants for Canadian immigration from outside the country were not allowed to cross the border until June to activate their permanent resident status.
PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) drawings have only been held by IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) since September. This is the 7th consecutive draw of this nature. IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) called 613 applicants with scores of at least 737 in the previous Express Entry draw.
However, according to an IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) briefing note, focusing on inland applicants and constructing the Temporary Residence to Permanent Residence (TR to PR) pathway resulted in a significant backlog of applicants.
As of October 27, there were over 138,000 people waiting for Express Entry-linked programmes. The PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) processing wait was approximately 38,000 people long, while the CEC (Canadian Experience Class) was around 48,000.
According to data from September and October, the IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) processed around 1,700 PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) applications every month on average. Although it is significantly less than the 14,300 average for CEC (Canadian Experience Class) applicants, it makes sense considering there are far more applications to the CEC (Canadian Experience Class). It also shows us that IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) has focused processing on CEC (Canadian Experience Class) applicants, especially since the average for the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) was a bit more than 500 per month over the same time frame. Prior to COVID-19, over half of all successful Express Entry applications were from the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP).
Since the outbreak, Canada has staged 34 PNP (Provincial Nominee Program)-specific Express Entry drawings, with 18,817 people receiving an ITA (Invitation to Apply) for permanent residency. In the same time frame, Canada has held 27 CEC (Canadian Experience Class) draws that rendered 133,868 invitations. There have only been 11 draws inviting Express Entry applicants from all programs, including the FSWP (Federal Skilled Worker Program).
Canada has invited more Express Entry applicants to apply for permanent status so far this year than it did in 2020.Part of this is due to Canada’s February 13 draw, in which all 27,332 CEC (Canadian Experience Class) applicants in the pool were called at the same time.
Since IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) began organising PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) draws, the cut-off scores have been rather stable. PNP applicants in the Express Entry (EE) pool are practically guaranteed at least an call to apply for permanent residency due to their comparatively high scores.
What is Express Entry?
Express Entry is the application management system for the Canadian Experience Class, the Federal Skilled Worker Program, and the Federal Skilled Trades Program, which are Canada’s three most popular immigration programmes. In the Express Entry pool, PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) applicants have already qualified for one of these programmes.
Express Entry ranks applicants’ profiles using a points-based mechanism known as the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). Applicants with the highest scores receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA), which they can use to apply for permanent residency.
The application is then reviewed by an IRCC (Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada) officer, who makes a decision. They will next seek biometrics and perhaps schedule an interview or require other papers.
If the application is approved, IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) issues a Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR). Those who have been recognised as permanent residents can then complete the landing process. If they are travelling from outside of Canada, they can take advantage of pre-arrival services to help them become settled.
Who was invited?
The following is a hypothetical scenario involving someone who received an ITA (Invitation to Apply) in the new Express Entry draw.
Ben and Nnedi are 34 and 31 years old, respectively. They both have bachelor’s degrees and took the IELTS test, scoring an 8 in hearing and a 7 in reading, speaking, and writing. For the past three years, Nnedi has worked as a software developer, while Ben has worked in human resources for four years. With Nnedi as the primary applicant with a CRS score of 421, they applied to the Express Entry pool. Nnedi later received a provincial nomination from the Province of Ontario. Nnedi’s CRS (Comprehensive Ranking System) score increased to 1,021 and she received an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence in the new Express Entry draw.