It has been over two years since the inception of the Express Entry system. We have seen many exciting changes during 2016 and 2017 has set new records for Express Entry in terms of number of invitations issued and lower selection points. The more we progress in 2017, Express Entry will become more favorable to those applying under the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Canadian Experience Class, and Provincial Nominee Program.
As we witnessed in the last six draws of 2016 and the first four draws of 2017, there is a spike in the number of ITA’s being issued. We are looking forward to seeing more ITA’s being issued in 2017 and we are hoping that the average number of ITA’s per draw will remain around 3,500 ITA’s per draw. In addition, the beginning of 2017 has seen a drastic drop in the CRS scores. We are anticipating that CRS scores will continue to drop during 2017 in a hope that they would stabilize in the range of 430-450 points.
As with 2016, the same “Golden Rule” applies to 2017. To have a CRS score over 450 points, a candidate should be under the age of 30, complete a Master’s Degree, have three years of full-time work experience, and achieve CLB level 9 in each bracket of IELTS or TEF language test.
The most recent Express Entry draw was conducted on February 22, 2017 with 3,611 ITA’s issued and a lowest CRS score of 441 points.
We put together a summary of the round of invitations during 2017, along with the number of candidates that will get an Invitation to Apply (ITA), based on the immigration program(s) that are in included in each Express Entry draw.
Draws from IRCC Express Entry Pool (Updated 2/22/17):
During 2017, there has been 5 draws that took place till date and 16,999 total ITA’s issued. The highest number of ITA’s to be issued per draw is 3,644 ITA’s. The lowest CRS score to be selected per draw is 441 points.
Following is a comparison between 2016 and 2017 in terms of numbers of draws, number ITA’s issued, and CRS scores:
Minimum CRS Points Required:
As of January 1, 2017, till date, the lowest selection score is 441 CRS points with an average of 454 CRS points per draw.
Number of Invitations to Apply (ITA) Issued:
As of January 1, 2017, till date, the highest number of invitations issued is 3,644 ITA’s with an average of 3,400 ITA’s per draw.
As of January 1, 2015, foreign nationals must receive an invitation from Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) before they may apply to the above programs. Express Entry eliminates the requirement to process applicants in these programs through a first come first serve basis. IRCC aims to process 80 percent of complete Express Entry applications in six months or less. Under Express Entry, candidates who meet the criteria will be accepted into a pool of possible candidates for immigration to Canada. Candidates will be ranked against others in the pool using a point-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System. IRCC will regularly select the highest-ranking candidates from the pool by inviting them to apply to immigrate to Canada as permanent residents.
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