Skilled Worker Category

What to do if you are immigrating as a skilled worker. How to get your credentials assessed, improve your English and French and get help finding a job.

Skilled Worker Applicants may apply for Permanent Residency
through the following programs:

1) Federal Skilled Worker Program
2) Federal Skilled Trade Program
3) Canadian Experience Program
4) Provincial Skilled Immigrant (Worker)

Citizenship and Immigration Canada mostly uses the
Express Entry Operation policy to select applicants
from the above classes.

5) And Provinces Skilled Worker Class

Under these federal economic immigration programs, Express Entry is used to manage applications for permanent residence:

• the Federal Skilled Worker Program,
• the Federal Skilled Trades Program, and
• the Canadian Experience Class.

Through their Provincial Nominee Programs, provinces and territories can also recruit candidates from the Express Entry system to meet local labour market needs.

It is the Ministerial Instructions that set out the rules for governing the Express Entry application management system.

The online Express Entry profile is a secure form that potential candidates will need complete which will be used to provide information about their:

• skills,
• work experience,
• language ability,
• education, and
• other details that will help us assess them.

Those who meet the criteria of one of the federal immigration programs listed above will be accepted into a pool of candidates.

Anyone who does not already have a nomination from a province or territory, or a job offer supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) (if you need one), must register with Employment and Social Development Canada’s (ESDC) Job Bank. The Job Bank will then help connect Express Entry candidates with eligible employers in Canada.

Using job boards & recruiters, etc. or other ways, candidates are also encouraged to promote themselves to potential employers.

The LMIA process ensures employers have made an effort to hire Canadians and permanent residents for available jobs. For a job offer to be valid in Express Entry and receive points, employers will need an LMIA from ESDC. There will be no LMIA fee for permanent resident applications.

The Comprehensive Ranking System is a point-based system which will be used to rank candidates against others in the pool. Points will be awarded using the information in their profile.

Candidates with the highest scores in the pool will be issued an Invitation to Apply. Candidates will be awarded points for:

• a job offer, and/or
• a nomination from a province or territory, and/or
• skills and experience factors.

A candidate can get additional points for:

• a job offer supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment, or
• a nomination by a province or territory

These additional points will make a candidate rank high enough to be invited to apply at the next eligible round of invitations.

If someone is invited to apply, they will have 90 days to submit an online application for permanent residence.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada intends to process the majority of complete applications (meaning those with all the necessary supporting documents) in about six months. (Some limitations apply.)

Candidates can stay in the pool for up to 12 months. If they do not get an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence within 12 months of submitting an Express Entry profile, they may submit a new profile. If they still meet the criteria, they can re-enter the pool. This will prevent backlogs and ensure quick processing times.