Who wants to win Canada’s new immigration beauty contest!
Starting on January 1, 2015, you will have the chance to win entry into Canada within six months!
It’s called the Express Entry system, but as always there is a catch. Entering into Canada under the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP) and even the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) now means entering into the equivalent of a high stakes immigration beauty contest where the winners get express entry as a permanent resident and the losers get banned from the system for a whole year!
Do you have what it takes to become Canada’s next top Immigrant?
Under the old system of immigration, it was possible to enter into Canada without a job offer. Granted, you either had to be first in line to apply or have been living in Canada for some time, however it appears that the government of Canada might have felt that this was a system that did not attract the “right” type of immigrants. As a result, the Canadian government has built an online ranking and matching system with the goal of allowing them to take more control over the selection process.
For a detailed description of the process you can view the Citizenship and Immigration Canada (“CIC”) website listed at the end of this article. However, the idea is very simple. Canada is looking for the best of the best, the cream of the crop, the top of the pops, so get ready to do your best immigration candidate Angelina Jolie or Brad Pitt impression, because losing might actually be worse than not applying at all!
It’s a winner take all world!
First, every immigration candidate logs on to a government website to create their online Express Entry profile. Think of this like the “casting call” of the immigration system. Everyone gets ranked against each other based upon their skills, education, work experience and any other information Citizenship and Immigration Canada deems to be important.
If you already have been able to find a job than this greatly helps your chances of making it past the “casting call”. As the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website states “Candidates who have a valid job offer from a Canadian employer (subject to the Labour Market Impact Assessment process in place at that time) or have been nominated by a province or territory will be given high scores in the ranking system.”
If you have not been able to find a job than things become a bit dicey. You will be forced to register with the government job bank website where employers will compare you to everyone else in the “I have not been able to find a job yet” pool. There will also be a matching system where employers will log on and receive a list of candidates that meet the employer and government requirements.
After this, the real magic begins. Those that rank at the top of the pool and who receive a valid job offer or nomination under the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) will get the highly prized Invitation to Apply for Permanent Residence or “ITA”. Once you get an ITA you will have 60 days to submit an application under the FSWP, FSTP, CEC or PNP programs. The idea is that this express entry of permanent residents should take six months or less.
The down side is if you do not make the cut and do not receive an ITA you cannot resubmit your profile and re-enter the system again for another 12 months! So, if you have taken another course, or have new work experience, or want to revise something on your application to increase your chances, you have to wait an entire year to re-apply.
Basically, if Citizenship and Immigration Canada rejects you they don’t want to hear from you again in the near future. The rationalization is that “this provision will prevent backlogs and ensure quick processing times”. Regardless, this does seem like a heavy price to pay for not looking “immigration beautiful”, especially for an electronic and automated system.
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain
No one can really predict what algorithm is being used in the black box of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada online ranking system. Perhaps it varies month to month based on labour shortages? Maybe it provides great weight to having an existing job offer, or perhaps already having a job is a small part of the equation. Could the system have a bias against those who have been previously rejected? Does coming from certain countries matter more than others? Who really knows? The point is that you will absolutely need to be considered “immigration beautiful” and have a job offer to immigrate to Canada under the Federal Skilled Worker, Federal Skilled Trades, or Canadian Experience Class programs.
Over the next few weeks, Uniivaa will be commenting in greater detail about the new Express Entry system. In fact, for the foreign worker thinking about immigrating into Canada, it is clear that certain critical issues will need to be considered.
Is it better to apply under the Express Entry system, or should I apply as a Temporary Foreign Worker where I do not have to enter the beauty contest and am not banned from re-applying if I don’t make the cut even if I already have an existing job offer?
Will employers actually move away from existing employment agencies and hire from the new government Job Bank database given the concern that an employee can simply walk away from the employer after attaining Permanent Residency after six months?
How will the beauty contest affect those who were thinking of applying under the Canadian Experience class, especially since it looks like you will need an offer of employment even under this category?
The new Express Entry system will surely create change within the Canadian immigration process. Ultimately, Canada is heading towards a winner take all mentality for immigration processing. However, it does seem that one constant remains. If you want to come to Canada as a worker, find a job before you apply for immigration!
If you are interested in working in Canada, please feel free to use our free Jobs in Canada Eligibility Tool to assess your chances of getting a job in Canada. Visit: www.uniivaa.com
Information mentioned in the article: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/express/express-entry.asp
The foregoing is intended for general information only and is not intended as legal advice. For more information please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .