Impact Of The 2024 Immigration Plan On Express Entry Applicants
Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan has significant implications for foreign nationals seeking permanent residence through the Express Entry system. Here’s the impact of the 2024 immigration plan on Express Entry applicants.
Well, according to the Plan, more permanent residency spots have been allocated for Express Entry applicants in 2025.
Two types of applicants can expect to benefit from these changes:
- Applicants in Canada
- Applicants who qualify for category-based draws
Applicants who do not fall into the above two categories can expect it to be more challenging for them to obtain an invitation to apply through Express Entry in 2025.
Increase In Express Entry Allocation
There’s a significant impact of the 2024 immigration plan on Express Entry applicants. Although the federal government cut targets for permanent resident admissions by about 20% for 2025, it actually increased the allocation toward Express Entry:
| 2025 Target – Current Plan | 2025 Target – Last Year’s Plan | 2024 Target – Last Year’s Plan |
| 124,680 | 117,500 | 110,770 |
The 2025 target of 124,680 for the combined categories of ‘in-Canada Focus’ and ‘Economic Priorities’ represents an increase from the 2024 target and from the 2025 target of last year’s Immigration Levels Plan.
For 2024, IRCC targeted 110,770 for the ‘federal high skilled’ category, which is a grouping of the three Express Entry managed federal immigration programs, i.e., the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), and the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP).
In last year’s Immigration Levels Plan, IRCC targeted over 117,500 for FHS in 2025.
Applicants seeking to immigrate through Express Entry-managed programs can expect to receive a greater number of invitations in 2025 than in 2024.
Prioritization Of Applicants In Canada
For this year’s Plan, IRCC introduced an ‘In-Canada Focus’ category as part of the allocation toward economic immigration for Express Entry-managed programs.
Applicants who are presently living in Canada can expect that their chances of obtaining an invitation to apply will increase in 2025 because of the introduction of this category.
Also, for 2025, IRCC set a target of 82,980 for this category – about 42% of the federal economic immigration target of 197,650.
Overseas applicants for the FSWP or FSTP can expect reduced chances of obtaining ITAs.
Prioritization Of Category-Based Draws
Another impact of the 2024 immigration plan on Express Entry applicants is seen in the prioritization of category-based draws.
In this year’s Plan, IRCC also set a target of 41,700 permanent residence admissions for a category called ‘Federal Economic Priorities,’ which makes up part of the Express Entry managed programs.
Furthermore, IRCC will implement ‘Economic Priorities’ using the existing system of category-based draws, first declared in May 2023.
Therefore, category-based draws allow IRCC to issue invitations to apply to Express Entry applicants with professions that satisfy Canada’s labor market needs.
The present categories are:
- French-Language Proficiency
- Healthcare Professions
- STEM Professions
- Trade Professions
- Transport Professions
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Professions
The federal government specifically called out the following categories as priorities for 2025 within the Levels Plan:
- Trade Professions
- Healthcare Professions
- French-Language Professions
Express Entry applicants who are eligible for these category-based draws might be more likely to obtain an ITA in 2025.
In order to be eligible for a category-based draw for an in-demand profession, an applicant typically needs six months of work experience over the past three years in an eligible profession.
History Of In-Canada Focus
On March 21, 2024, Immigration Minister Marc Miller declared IRCC’s retention to prioritize ‘domestic draws’ to enable temporary residents within Canada to transition to permanent residence.
From May to October of 2024, IRCC issued 25,700 ITAs over eight CEC draws.
IRCC has not held a general draw since April 23, 2024.
IRCC also declared that it aims to reduce the number of temporary residents as a percentage of the population from current levels of about 7% to 5% by 2026.
History Of Category-Based Draes
In 2024, there were many category-based draws:
| Category | Number Of Draws | Number Of ITAs |
| Agriculture and Agri-Food | 1 | 150 |
| French-Language Proficiency | 9 | 21,400 |
| Healthcare | 2 | 7,250 |
| STEM | 1 | 4,500 |
| Trade | 2 | 3,600 |
| Transport | 1 | 975 |
This year’s Plan affirms IRCC’s commitment to category-based draws for 2025 and suggests that healthcare, trade professions, and French-language proficiency might see an even greater number of draws and ITAs in 2025.
If you seek information on how to begin your Canada immigration application process, you can talk to our NavaImmigration experts at 1800-918-8490. You can also drop us an email at [email protected].
