On September 2, Canada invited over 4,200 Express Entry candidates to apply for permanent residency in the third all-program draw since travel restrictions were put in place last March 18. 

The draw invited not only candidates from the Canadian Experience Class, but those from the Federal Skilled Worker Program as well. This draw marks the 162nd Express Entry draw in the history of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). 

With only a one-point decrease compared to the last all-program draw on August 5, candidates for this round needed a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of at least 475 to receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA). The slight decrease may be attributed to the larger draw size for this round, as 300 more candidates were invited on September 2, compared to the consistent 3,900 candidates being invited every two weeks for the majority of 2020.

With 4,200 ITAs issued, this is the second-largest Express Entry round of the year, compared to the 4,500 issued on February 19, and the largest since the pandemic began. With this recent draw, the total number of ITAs issued for 2020 has now reached 69,950, a new record for this date. 

A tie-break rule was also applied to this draw. Candidates with CRS scores of at least 475 or more who submitted their profiles to the Express Entry system before September 2, 2020 at 14:17:32 UTC likely received an invitation during this round. 

As Canada returns to the new normal and IRCC returns to all-program draws, the growing number of immigration candidates invited to apply for permanent residency is a good sign.

The Express Entry system manages the pool of applicants for Canada’s three primary economic immigration classes: the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), the Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC) and the Canadian Experience Class (CEC).

Candidates are awarded points through the CRS for a number of factors such as age, education, language skills, and skilled work experience. Job offers, though not required, may also count toward additional points in the overall CRS score. 

Currently, the processing standard for permanent residency applications filed through the Express Entry system is six months. 

Want to know if you are eligible for Express Entry? Just fill in our eligibility form and we’ll get in touch with you within 1-3 business days.