On April 30th, 2020, IRCC issued 3311 Invitations to apply via Express Entry for the Canadian Experience Class. The lowest CRS score was 452, which makes this particular draw one of the lowest since May 2019. This is the third consecutive round of invitations were only applicants under the CEC have been invited. The only other category where IRCC continues to issue invitations is the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).
What does this mean for you?
Although this is welcoming news to eligible candidates under the CEC, candidates overseas, who are only eligible for the Federal Skilled Worker category will be left frustrated, as there has not been any invitations issued for the FSW category since March 4, 2020 predominantly due to Covid-19 pandemic. One of the main reasons IRCC have continued issuing invitations for the CEC category is that 99% of all eligible candidates are currently in Canada.
Act Now
Given this news of further decrease in CRS points, any candidates, who are eligible for the CEC but did not submit a profile because they were disheartened by the continuous draws of 470 and above, should immediately submit their profile while the points continue to decrease. It is important to know, that when IRCC resumes issuing invitations to apply under “no program specified”, which also includes eligible candidates under the Federal Skilled Worker program, the CRS points will more, than likely begin to increase.
There has been no update from IRCC as to when they will resume issuing invitations for eligible candidates on the FSW or the FST category.
Let us Help
If you have received an invitation to apply (ITA), Doherty Fultz Immigration continues to offer our Express Entry application review service, where one of our professionals will review your application before you submit, to ensure that you meet the eligibility, minimum CRS points score and that all of the documents you intend to upload meet the mandatory criteria.