Canadian Experience Class

Canadian Experience Class (CEC) is the immigration program that was designed by the Canadian government to meet the projected labour shortages by retaining skilled workers who have Canadian work experience. This program is of particular interest to Temporary Foreign Workers and International Students with high-skilled work experience in Canada.

 

Eligible applicants are those who gained one year of full-time or full-time equivalent Canadian experience in managerial, technical, professional or trade fields in the last 3 years with proper work authorization. In addition, applicants have to prove good language proficiency on the basis of the official language test results issued by the designated agency (IELTS, CELPIP or TEF).

 

CEC is administered through the electronic application management system, known as the Express Entry (EE).

 

Key features of the EE:

 

• All interested candidates have to create online profiles, on the basis of which they will be assigned a score according to their education, skills, and experience based on the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS);
• Top-ranked applicants are chosen from the pool of applicants and receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) in one of the regular invitation rounds;
• Permanent Residence Application package is submitted online within 90 days;
• CRS score may be improved by obtaining provincial nomination or LMIA-supported Job Offer.

Requirements to enter the EE pool:

 

– Applicant must qualify under one of the following programs: CEC, FSWC, FSTC or PNP

(if seeking provincial nomination through EE);

– Pass the approved language proficiency test and meet the language threshold under the immigration program;

– Have work experience consistent with language ability under the program;

– Have foreign education assessed through the Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) process in Canada.

 

To complete the profile, an applicant must identify National Occupational Classification (NOC) codes they have work experience in. Other information required to complete the EE profile includes: name and contact information, education in detail, language proficiency, work experience in detail, and information on any accompanying dependents.

 

Completing an online Express Entry profile does not guarantee that a candidate will receive an ITA for permanent residence. Candidates are ranked against others in the pool and only the highest-ranked candidates (those deemed to have the best chances for economic success) receive the invitations. The minimum score at which applicants are invited to apply differs at each draw (the score may be higher or lower than in the previous draw). If chosen, the ITA invites the candidate to apply for a specific program (CEC, FSWC, FSTC or PNP). The candidate can only apply under the specific program they are invited to apply. As such, prior to creating the EE profile, it is important for the applicant to develop a strategy under which economic class program they would like to immigrate to, considering various eligibility requirements of each program. Sometimes, it is beneficial for the applicant to eliminate certain programs at the time of the EE profile creation to ensure that they are invited to apply under the program of their choice.

 

Under EE, to receive an ITA, a prospective CEC applicant may need to take additional steps beyond proving their Canadian work experience to obtain a sufficient score. One of these steps could be to obtain an educational assessment for any foreign education. Another could be to see if their current employer (if they have one) is able to provide them with the permanent job offer supported by the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).

 

Candidates in the Express Entry pool who do not receive an ITA after 12 months may resubmit their profile and re-enter the pool if they still meet the criteria.

 

Note: inconsistencies and errors (intentional or unintentional) in applicant’s qualifications entered in EE profile or PR Application may result in a 5-year ban to apply for immigration due to misrepresentation. Contact our team for an individualized assessment of eligibility, professional advice on the EE criteria and assistance with the EE application process.