How To Check Your Eligibility For Express Entry
You need be to eligible for Express Entry before you can create an Express Entry Profile and enter the Express Entry Pool. 3 immigration programs use Express Entry: Canadian Experience Class, Federal Skilled Worker (FSW), and Federal Skilled Trades (FST). Use our eligibility check tool below to see if you are eligible. It will also send you a full breakdown of which requirements you meet or don’t.
What’s next?
After checking your eligibility for Express Entry, the next step is to understand your chances of receiving an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residency from IRCC. This is done by calculating and understanding your Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score. Use our CRS score calculator and analyzer now to get your score.
What are the minimum eligibility requirements for Express entry Canada?
As mentioned above, Express Entry is used for Canadian Experience Class (CEC), Federal Skilled Worker (FSW), and Federal Skilled Trades (FST). Here are some key differences. We’ll dive into the details of the eligibility requirements below.
| Eligibility Criteria | Canadian Experience Class | Federal Skilled Worker | Federal Skilled Trades |
|---|---|---|---|
| Official Language Proficiency (English or French) | – CLB 7 if your NOC is 0 or A – CLB 5 if your NOC is B | CLB 7 | – CLB 5 for speaking and listening – CLB 4 for reading and writing |
| Type/Level of work experience | Canadian experience in 1 of these NOCs: – 0 – A – B | Canadian or foreign experience in 1 of these NOCs: – 0 – A – B | Canadian or foreign experience in a skilled trade under key groups of NOC B |
| Amount of work experience | One year in Canada in the last 3 years | One year continuous within the last 10 years | Two years within the last 5 years |
| Job offer | Not required | Not required | Required: A valid job offer of full-time employment for a total period of at least 1 year or a certificate of qualification in that skilled trade issued by a Canadian provincial, territorial or federal authority |
| Education | Not required | Secondary education required | Not required |
Canadian Experience Class – CEC Requirements
Canadian Experience Class (CEC) is an Express Entry immigration program for people who have Canadian work experience. It is often considered one of the easiest Express Entry programs because it has comparatively low CRS cutoffs. To be eligible for CEC, you must:
We dive deeper into CEC requirements in our Canadian Experience Class (CEC) Minimum requirements blog post.
Federal Skilled Worker – FSW Requirements
Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) is an Express Entry immigration program for people who have skilled Canadian or foreign work experience. It is extremely popular with individuals who are outside of Canada. To be eligible for FSW, you must:
We dive deeper into each requirement in our Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) Minimum Requirements blog post.
Federal Skilled Trades – FST Requirements
Federal Skilled Trades (FST) is for people who have skilled trades experience (chefs, butchers, electricians, etc). To be eligible for FST, you must:
