Canada has been following a points-based system for quite some years. The eligibility of immigrants is decided on various points such as age, language, education and work experience. Candidates should score 67 points out of 100 in the eligibility factors given below to qualify for any of the immigration programs which will lead to permanent residence status.
| Category | Maximum points |
| Age | Those between 18-35 years get maximum points. Those above 35 get lesser points while the maximum age to qualify is 45 years. |
| Education | Applicant’s educational qualification must be equal to higher secondary education under Canadian standards. |
| Work experience | For minimum points applicants should have at least one-year of full-time work experience. More years of work experience means more points. |
| Language ability | Applicants must have at least 6 bands in IELTS. They get extra points if proficient in French. |
| Adaptability | If the spouse or common law partner of the applicant is willing to migrate to Canada, he is entitled to 10 extra points for adaptability. |
| Arranged employment | A maximum of 10 points if applicants have a valid offer from a Canadian employer. |
A valid job offer from a Canadian employer entitles applicants for ten points.
Apart from this, the applicant’s occupation must be listed as Skill Type 0 or Skill Level A or B in the National Occupational Classification (NOC).
Here are the maximum points an individual can score under the points system under various criteria.
- Language skills (maximum 28 points)
- Work experience (maximum 15 points)
- Education (maximum 25 points)
- Age (maximum 12 points)
- Arranged employment in Canada (maximum 10 points)
- Adaptability (maximum 10 points)
If a candidate fails to score the minimum 67 points required to be eligible for applying to an immigration program, he must make efforts to improve it by either improving his language skills, gaining a higher educational qualification or getting a job offer in Canada.
Express Entry system
Candidates with work experience in any skilled occupation may be eligible to apply for permanent residency in Canada via the Express Entry program.
The CRS is a merit-based points system where points are given to candidates based on certain factors.
This CRS score requirement will be different for every draw and is based on the CRS scores of every applicant who is in the draw pool.
Every applicant in the Express Entry system is assigned a CRS score out of 1200 points and if he scores the required points under the CRS, he will get an ITA for the PR visa. The CRS score keeps changing with every Express Entry draw.
CRS score
The CRS score has four important factors. The applicant’s profile will be given a score based on these factors.
The CRS score factors include:
- Human capital factors
- Spouse or common-law partner factors
- Skill transferability
- Additional points
The CRS cut-off score will be higher if the average of the cut-off scores in the pool is higher. An applicant has to ensure that he gets the highest CRS score that is possible.
The CRS score determined for each draw is based on the number of applicants in the Express Entry pool and the immigration targets of Canada. Since the immigration target for 2021 is 401,000, the CRS score will depend on the number of applicants in the Express Entry pool before each draw.
Since Canada has a limited population and an aging work force, it aims to make access to jobs and PR status as convenient as possible for immigrants. It looks to immigrants for economic growth and offers multiple immigration pathways to help potential immigrants settle in Canada. The points-based system ensures that only eligible candidates immigrate to the country.