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The ongoing travel restrictions on incoming foreign travellers and mandatory quarantine requirements on the exempted category have been extended for another 30 days. It was announced in the view of slowing down the spread of coronavirus infection and averting a threat to public health. 

Extending it until September 30, this is Canada’s third extension of the travel ban that was originally put in place from March 18 to June 30. The exempted category are allowed to travel to Canada but such individuals are required to observe a mandatory self-isolation period of 14 days.  

According to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the exempted category includes: 

• Canadian citizens;
• Permanent residents;
• Immediate family members of Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents.
• Newly approved Canadian permanent residence, temporary foreign workers, International Students only on case-basis.

View the full list of exempted individuals here. 

Interest in moving to Canada increases amid pandemic

Canada continues to innovate and attract foreign talent in order to support the labour market and aid in economic recovery. In a recently held survey by the World Education Service (WES), many respondents prefer moving to Canada even in the ongoing pandemic. Many believe that Canadian economy is facing lesser impact than in their home countries. They are more likely to get better career opportunities and avail many social benefits in Canada. 

It is also pleasing to note that there is a general positive outlook toward immigration among the successive federal governments as well as the Canadian public. The upcoming Canada Immigration Levels plan 2021-2024 will also try to address the growing aspirations among foriegn skilled workers to move to Canada. 

Express Entry & PNP draws create a new record during travel restrictions

Canada remained active even during the travel restrictions by accepting, processing, inviting immigration candidates to take the next steps towards permanent residence. For instance, Express Entry pathway has issued an increased number of Invitations to Apply (ITAs) for Canada PRs to foreign skilled workers in 2020 alone. 

IRCC held regular nomination draws even during the ongoing restrictions. In the month of August alone, four Express Entry draws were held. Candidates qualifying from every federal program like the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, and the Canadian Experience Class were invited to apply for permanent residence. 

Regular conduct of individual Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) by the provinces of Ontario, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, Manitoba kept the Canadian immigration scene active. In fact, Prince Edward Island held its largest nomination draw ever this month. Ontario & British Columbia also held Tech-specific draws. 

To check your available options for immigration to Canada, fill-in this free online assessment and validate your eligibility. 

CanApprove pioneers in immigration and overseas education consulting services since 1998. You can improve your immigration prospectus by scheduling a call-back from our expert consultants. Click here.  

Canada is one of the few countries that is recording a faster economic recovery since the coronavirus pandemic was first declared in March. 

Good news is that nearly 55% of jobs lost due to worldwide travel restrictions have been recovered as of June. The latest Canada Jobs Labour Force Survey shows a rise in employment by 418500 in the month of July while the unemployment rate dropped to 10. 9%. The province-wise data is even more encouraging as nine Canadian provinces recorded new jobs in the month of July. Ontario emerged as the biggest facilitator with 151000 new jobs followed by higher gains in British Columbia and Alberta. Almost all the provinces now record a healthy 91.7% of pre-pandemic employment levels. 

Immigration to play a vital role in recovery

While the above stats are encouraging to read, there is no denying that the pandemic negatively impacted the Canadian economy. However, a survey conducted by the World Education Services to assess the outlook of current Canadian immigration found an interesting trend. Many respondents including prospective immigrants expected Canada to have a lesser extreme economic impact than in their home countries. The regular conduct of nomination draws from major provinces as well as Express Entry for Canada PR only shows the liberal intent of the Canadian government to sustain a high immigration level for recovery. This also explains why several prospective immigrants are actively applying for immigration even during times like these. 

Even before the pandemic set-in, Canada welcomed increased levels of immigration to play a central role in the nation’s recovery from dual demographic shocks- aging population and low birth rate. All these factors will now be accounted for in the upcoming 2021-2023 Canada Immigration Levels Plan that is scheduled by November 1st, 2020. 

Meanwhile, check out available jobs in Canada here. 

Get Permanent Residency without a job offer or ever having lived in Canada

Canada offers a secure future to economic-class immigrants including skilled workers, business entrepreneurs and their families. Apart from better career opportunities, higher standards of social benefits like universal health, education is coupled with easy immigration options. Even the path to Canadian citizenship is easily achievable to any economic-class immigrant. 

Any foreign skilled worker who did not live in Canada before, can readily apply for permanent residence under the Express Entry pathway. The candidates will be evaluated on their human capital factors such as age, work experience, education and proficiency in English or French. Additionally, there are several dedicated streams under the Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) that allow skilled workers, entrepreneurs, business investors to migrate to Canada on a permanent basis.   

Even in these uncertain times brought upon us by the coronavirus pandemic, one thing stands clear- Canada’s increased need for immigrants, and the overwhelming response by foreigners to settle in Canada. Find out more about the employment opportunities that await you in Canada by taking this free online assessment. 

Contrary to the popular narrative, Canada is not only attracting aspirants from less-affluent countries but also acts as a major pull-factor for candidates from affluent countries such as the United Arab Emirates.  

Every year, thousands of expatriates living in the Emirates lookout actively to apply and register for Canada immigration. An expatriate is the one who lives outside their native country. In fact, on listing the country of residence of successful Express Entry candidates, the Emirates is ranked number five, after India, the U.S., and Nigeria. 

Although the Emirates boasts a high quality of life to its residents, yet many Emirati citizens, as well as foreign ex-pats, choose to permanently settle in Canada for a number of reasons. These may include an easy pathway to citizenship, numerous career opportunities for skilled and tech workers, better social benefits like universal health care and high-quality education, and finally, a pleasant climate.

Canada welcomes the influx of skilled workers and business entrepreneurs/investors to sustain its economy. All skilled workers are evaluated on basic human capital factors like age, education, work experience, proficiency in the official language. Since the majority of immigrants from the Emirates have a stronghold in the English language, they have an inherent advantage of securing a Canada PR.

Express Entry for Skilled Workers

An Express Entry is a popular immigration pathway for foreign skilled workers to apply without a job offer and obtain permanent residence in Canada. It is a system for maintaining a pool of interested candidates who wish to obtain permanent residency. 

Such candidates must qualify under one of the three federal immigration programs- the Federal Skilled Workers Program (FSTP), the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), and the Federal Skills Trades Program (FSTP). In addition, any Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) with a dedicated Express Entry immigration stream can make use of the Express Entry pool to nominate desirable candidates to apply for Canada PR. 

FSWP stands out to be the most preferred choice among the foreign skilled workers who have not lived in Canada before. It gives them a good chance to apply for permanent residency in Canada. 

On successful registration of your Express Entry profile, you are given a Comprehensive Ranking System score. Every fortnightly, the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) conducts a nomination draw in which the highest-scoring candidates are invited to apply for permanent residence. 

Provincial Nominee Programs for economic-class immigration

The unique federal-provincial-territorial arrangement in Canada allows 13 provinces and territories of Canada to nominate economic-class immigrants including skilled workers, international students, business investors/entrepreneurs independently. 

Tech workers are finding newer and better opportunities in Canada in view of visa curbs by the US. Canadian provinces like British  Columbia, Ontario have dedicated immigration streams for Tech workers. Other provinces like Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Islands are actively inviting economic-class immigrants. 

As per the Immigration Levels Plan 2020-2022 announced before the ongoing pandemic, Canada was looking to welcome over one million new immigrants by the end of 2022. 

Thanks to applauding efforts by the Canadian government in increasing the frequency of Express Entry and PNP draws, the target is still achievable. Choose from over 100+ immigration programs to plan your immigration to Canada. Talk to our consultants to get a custom-made plan based on your profile. 

On the predicted lines, the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) conducted the second Express Entry draw in two days with an exuberant draw size of 3,300 invitations for Canada PR. 

The 161st draw held yesterday selected 3,300 candidates with prior work experience in Canada from the Express Entry pool. The Express Entry pool consists of applications qualifying for three immigration programs- the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), and the Federal Skills Trades Program (FSTP). Each application is evaluated based on a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). A CRS score is dependent on mainly human capital factors like age, work experience, education, language proficiency in English or French. The highest-ranking candidates above a minimum qualifying score which is uniquely determined in each draw receive ITAs for permanent residency. 

August 20 CEC-specific draw invited 3,300 candidates having a cut-off CRS score of 454. The increase of nine points over the previously held CEC-specific draw is attributed to more candidates being entered into the pool over the past month after the all-program draw on August 5. 

More often, candidates end-up with same CRS score and this confusion is avoided by using a tie-break rule. The tie-breaking rule for August 20 draw recorded timestamp of July 27, 2020, at 11:10:05 UTC. This meant that candidates having a CRS score of 454 and above were considered for issuing ITAs if their profile was submitted before the said due date and time.

Program-specific Express Entry draws held in 2020

In order to qualify for the PNP-specific draws, candidates must have already held a provincial nomination from any Canadian province running their own Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). Additionally, IRCC conducts specific nomination draws for Federal Skills Trades candidates. Such draws target semi-skilled workers having low CRS score and usually do not qualify for other draws.    

All-program Express Entry draws held in 2020

All-program Express Entry was a regularity before the current pandemic situation. Although IRCC resumed its popular all-program Express Entry draws after a gap of four months, the frequency of program-specific draws has increased sharply. All-program draws meant that skilled workers without a job offer have a fair chance to apply for Canada PR.  

Total number of ITAs issued in 2020 via Express Entry draws amount to 65,750 which is higher than last year around the same time. CanApprove recommends interested aspirants to start planning their immigration to Canada now. We offer excellent immigration and overseas education consultancy. Talk to one of our consultants to know your eligibility and various options for immigration to Canada. 

Upholding the spirits of Canada Immigration, the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held this year’s 160th Express Entry draw. The focus in these nomination draws shifted to candidates who have already held a provincial nomination and registered in the Express Entry pool. 

A provincial nomination certificate is issued by Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) which is run independently by 13 provinces and territories in Canada. The unique federal-provincial-territorial arrangement allows these provinces and territories to nominate economic-class immigrants including skilled workers, entrepreneurs, student graduates. Such class of immigrants are selected based on eligibility criteria determined uniquely by different Provincial Nominee Programs. 

Find out the best PNP that suits your profile with the help of PNP-finder tool. 

August 19 PNP-specific draw selected 600 candidates with a provincial nomination and issued them invitations to apply (ITAs) for permanent residence in Canada. Such nominated candidates had a cut-off score of 771. This minimum qualifying Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 771 is 86-points higher than the previous PNP-specific draw held July 22. While the reason for a spike in CRS score is not revealed in the official press release, it could be partially due to a large number of candidates in the Express Entry pool.   

The Express Entry pool record applications of those candidates who had qualified for one of the three federal immigration programs- the Federal Skilled Workers Program (FSWP), the Federal Skills Trades Program (FSTP) and the Canadian Experience Class (CEC). Each registered profile in the Express Entry pool is assessed and evaluated according to a Comprehensive Ranking System. A CRS score is mainly based on factors such as age, education, work experience, proficiency in English/French. 

Additionally, each PNP has a dedicated immigration stream that allows them to issue provincial nominations to candidates registered in the Express Entry pool. This provincial nomination can fetch an addition of 600 points to the candidates’ overall CRS score, thereby, guaranteeing them a permanent residency in subsequent Express Entry draws. 

Often there occurs a situation where two or more candidates end up with same CRS score. In such cases, IRCC applies its tie-break rule in every draw to rank these candidates accordingly. The tie-break rule for this draw recorded the timestamp as July 24, 2020, at 11:29:33 UTC. Therefore, any candidate with a CRS score above 771 and have registered their profiles before the given due date and time is eligible to receive an ITA in this invitation round.

Program-specific Express Entry draws held in 2020

In order to qualify for the CEC program, candidates are required to have prior one-year work experience in Canada. Whereas those with a provincial nomination be will be considered for PNP-specific Express Entry draws such as the present draw.  

All-program Express Entry draws held in 2020

IRCC resumed its popular all-program Express Entry draws after a gap of four months. It meant that candidates under the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) were also considered for Canada PR. As experienced from the earlier program-specific draws, such candidates did not receive ITAs from such draws. 

Candidates need not have a job offer to apply for Canada PR under the Express Entry. However, candidates having one may be awarded additional points under CRS. 

The federal Express Entry program proved to be a game-changer since its inception in 2015. It has become the most prefered pathway for economic-class immigrants looking to obtain Canada PR. It has issued permanent residency on an average to over 60,000 candidates each year. The present tally of successful ITAs stands at 62,450 which is in-itself a new record. This is also of the indication that IRCC will meet its annual target of 85,800, despite the current disruptions caused by corona pandemic. 

The standard processing time for permanent residence applications through the Express Entry is about six months. Hence, CanApprove recommends interested aspirants to start planning their immigration to Canada now. We offer excellent immigration and overseas education consultancy. Get in touch with our immigration consultants to know your eligibility and various options for immigration to Canada.