Canada invites potential candidates from across the world throughout the year to meet its market needs and support its economy. It held a recent Express Entry general draw to invite candidates. A general draw focuses on candidates from all programs managed under the Express Entry System, and no specific profession or attribute is considered. Discover the draw result below. 

Recent Express Entry General Draw

Canada’s immigration department, Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada, often called IRCC, recently conducted the Express Entry draw. This was a general draw, and the department sent 730 invitations to candidates.

To be eligible to receive an ITA under this draw, candidates needed a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 541.

Two more Express Entry draws took place in January 2024. 

The most recent one occurred on January 23, in which IRCC sent a total of 1,040 ITAs. The draw was a general draw with a cut-off score of 543. 

The other draw occurred on January 10, which was the first Express Entry draw of 2024. That, too, was a general draw with a minimum required score of 546. In that draw, 1,510 candidates received an ITA. 

As the year has started, it’s very early to anticipate the course of Express Entry in 2024.   

Last year, there were 42 Express Entry draws in which IRCC invited over 110,000 candidates. This was in order to meet the 2023 and 2024 immigration targets outlined in the country’s immigration Level plan.

Amendments to PGWP: How Does It Concern Express Entry Candidates?

After completing graduation from Canada’s post-secondary institution, numerous Express Entry candidates acquire work experience in Canada that is necessary for their programs. 

In Canada, a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) is one such popular and most common work permit for graduates. 

On January 22, the immigration department declared a few notable changes to PGWP’s eligibility requirements. 

The new changes will be effective beginning September 1. 

International students who are enrolled in a program under the curriculum licensing agreement in a private college will not be eligible for a PGWP. 

In addition, international students on a graduate level who are enrolled in a study program shorter than the required eight months will now qualify for a more extended three-year work permit.

At present, graduates enrolled in a study program with a shorter than 8-month period do not qualify for a PGWP. Also, the length of PGWP validity is per the length of the academic program’s length. 

For instance, a one-year program student gains a work permit of one-year validity.

As per this update, more graduate-level students will be able to get work permits for extended periods. This will enable them to gain enough work experience in Canada, allowing them to apply for a position in the Express Entry application pool.

Express Entry in Canada

In Canada, Express Entry is an application management that IRCC uses to handle applications from the three most famous economic immigration programs, including:

  • the Federal Skilled Workers Program (FSWP); 
  • the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and; 
  • the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP).

Candidates under these programs are assigned a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score. The system evaluates them on the basis of several attributes like education, age, work experience, language ability, and occupation. 

For instance, A candidate aged 20 to 29 is given 100 CRS points, whereas candidates aged 30 or above are given a score.

Last year, in May, Express Entry underwent a notable change when the IRCC department introduced new category-based selection draws.

These draws aim to target Express Entry candidates who either have work experience in in-demand occupations or strong French-language proficiency. 

A total of six new categories were selected for these category-based Express Entry selection draws. Among them, one is attribute-based, and the other is occupation-based.

These include:

  • Transport occupations
  • Healthcare occupations
  • Agriculture and agri-food occupations
  • Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professions
  • Trades occupations, such as carpenters, plumbers, and contractors
  • French language proficiency.

Express Entry Application Process

The Express Entry application process involves multiple steps.  

Step 1: Interested individuals must first self-assess whether they qualify for one of three Express Entry programs. Notably, all three programs under Express Entry have different eligibility requirements.

Step 2: After this, candidates need to make a profile in the Express Entry pool. Then, they’ll obtain a CRS score based on your attributes. After this, candidates need to wait for an invitation to apply (ITA) in the future Express Entry draw.

Step 3: If a candidate obtains an invitation to apply (ITA) in a draw, they must submit their complete application within 60 days to IRCC for Canada’s Permanent Residence (PR).

So, this was about the recent Express Entry general draw, updates to PGWP’s criteria, and an overview of the Express Entry system. If you are willing to immigrate to Canada, you can check your eligibility for Express Entry programs.