Immigration Blog about US & Canadian Immigration matters.

The Canadian Experience Class (CEC) is one of the ways that gives you the opportunity to become a permanent resident of Canada. Applicants are ranked on the government’s comprehensive ranking system (CRS), and every so often a certain number of top applicants are given an invitation to apply. To learn who is eligible and how to apply for permanent residency through the Canadian Experience Class, continue reading below.

Eligibility Requirements for Canadian Experience Class

The purpose of express entry is to invite skilled foreign nationals in the hope of strengthening the Canadian Labour market. The specific eligibility requirements are:

Do You Want to Immigrate to Canada in 2019

As you may know, Canada’s education and living conditions attract many foreign nationals to visit, study, and work. Furthermore, the multiculturalism in Canada is one of the essential reasons that drives one's longing to move. After they have experienced the beauty of Canada, they may consider settling down permanently in Canada. While numerous individuals are contemplating moving to Canada, they may be thinking about looking for assistance from an immigration representative to make the immigration process more smoothly. Indeed, here comes the most significant inquiry: is hiring a representative necessary? In this blog, we will discuss the benefits of hiring an immigration representative and how to avoid immigration fraud.

Who are Immigration Representatives

Immigration may be difficult and complicated, especially if you are not family with Canadian immigration law. If you are struggling with your application, you may be able to seek guidance from a representative. An Immigration and citizenship representative’s job duties include but are not limited to:

Express Entry programs

Express Entry is one the most common options for an individual to immigrate to Canada. Express Entry, however, can be very confusing to many foreign nationals, because there are many categories under it. There are three major programs: the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program, and the Canadian Experience Class. In order to prepare you for your application, it is important for you to recognize and understand the eligibility requirements prior to applying. In this blog, you will learn about the differences between Federal Skilled Worker Program and Canadian Experience Class, so that you may have a better idea of what Express Entry entails.

Minimum requirements

Federal Skilled Worker Program

FAQ’s Express Entry

Express entry is one of the most attractive programs to try and achieve permanent residence through, as, it indicates in the name, this is a much quicker route to permanent residency than most, assuming you are an individual who receives an invitation to apply. That is the downside of the EE program; individuals who are not top prospects could have to submit an EE profile many years in a row, before they ever have the opportunity to immigrate to Canada. Nonetheless, the express entry program is a very unique program, and should not be overlooked. It provides both an incredible opportunity to a foreign national who wishes to immigrate to Canada, while, at the same time, it ensures highly skilled individuals are the ones with priority to enter Canada first, to help boost the Canadian economy. This is a selective process, but in the end, the better the Canadian economy, the more opportunity the government can to all foreign nationals to truly experience Canadian culture.

Q: If English is my first language, do I have to complete a language test for Express Entry?

A: This may seem strange… but yet, it is mandatory to obtain a language test for Express Entry even if you are a native English speaker. The point of this is to ensure the Canadian government treats all applicants completely equally. This is achieved by assessing all applicants for Express Entry using the same standards, regardless of their native language, ethnicity or nationality. 

Applying For Express Entry under the Available Federal Economic Programs

If you have valuable skills and experience working in Canada or abroad, which would be a valuable addition to the Canadian economy, you may have the chance to apply for express entry, under one of the available federal economic programs. There are specific requirements you must meet for each specific program, though, the 3 different programs available aim to provide foreign nationals the opportunity to apply for high skilled professional and managerial positions, as well as skilled trade positions, so, there is something for almost anyone who is a highly qualified worker. The 3 federal economic programs I speak of are the Canadian experience class, the Federal Skilled Workers Program (FSWP), and the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP). As mentioned, they each have specific requirements to be eligible, though, they are each a very unique opportunity for highly qualified workers, regardless of the field their occupation is in. Keep reading this blog for a breakdown of the federal economic programs available through express entry.

How Does Express Entry Work?

Essentially, applicants create a profile if they are eligible for one of the three federal economic programs, and receive points for their language abilities, education level, previous work experience, whether or not they have a job offer, and several other factors. Using a point based system, otherwise known as a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) individuals are assessed to determine the value they bring to the Canadian working economy. Depending on these factors, you will be given a score, which represents your worth to Canadian employers. For example, under all programs, having post-secondary education will give you additional points, though; it is not always a requirement.

Human Capital Priorities (HCP) Stream Introduced in Ontario

In Canada, Ontario is the most populated province and it continues to be a very popular destination for new immigrants looking to settle in Canada. Luckily, Ontario has an immigrant nomination program that helps skilled foreign nationals who have work experience obtain permanent residency in Canada, specifically Ontario, and thus contribute to the Canadian economy. It is important to note that the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) is quite helpful to any Express Entry candidate as it provides them with the most points out of all Express Entry factors. For instance, a successful candidate may be able to obtain up to 600 additional points from the PNP program. As a result, they may be able to receive an invitation to apply at the next available draw for the Express Entry pool. Additionally, candidates under the Express Entry pool, who have work experience in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) occupations, are now prioritized by the Ontario province under this new initiative that was introduced on June 26, 2017. In this article, I will address the new Stream and how it affects the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) and Express Entry altogether.

Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Workers

In order to qualify under this Stream of Human Capital Priorities (HCP), a part of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), candidates must be eligible as ICT workers under Express Entry. As of June 26, Ontario has specifically targeted these types of workers for their province. The province of Ontario is searching for candidates under Express Entry with experience in specific ICT occupations and as a result the candidates are eligible to receive a Notification of Interest (NOI), which was previously called an invitation to apply for provincial nomination. Thankfully, this is even the case if they had scored less than 400 points under the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS).

Qualifying for the Canadian Experience Class

If you are a foreign worker and you are looking for if you qualify for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) then you need to make sure that you have some Canadian work experience, something that you are able to use to show that you are accustomed to Canada and to how working in Canada is. As per January 1^st 2015 all of those people who want to apply for the Canadian Experience Class have to apply through the Express Entry system which is the first step to applying for permanent residence under one of the economic programs like the CEC.

Canadian Experience Class Selection Criteria

Qualifying for the Canadian Experience Class means you must meet the required language levels of comprehension as set out through the Canadian Language Benchmark. You must have at least 12 months of full time skilled experience in the field you have, and you must have had this experience at least three years before you apply to become a permanent resident. The final requirement is that you must not have any plans to be moving or living in Quebec. If you have all of the required parts of the above, then you are one step close to meeting the qualification criteria.

What is CEC?

The CEC is short for Canadian Experience Class which is one of the Canada’s key economic immigration programs and allows foreign nationals who have skilled work experience and are currently residing in Canada to apply for permanent residence. Under this category, temporary foreign nationals and international student graduates who have acquired qualifying working experience can apply for permanent residents.

Often, the reason why Canadian employers would hire a foreign work is because they couldn’t find the suitable candidates in domestic market. In other words, those foreign workers that come to Canada for the job position might have diverse skills which can satisfy the employers’ needs and contribute to our society. After having established extensive network through work and life experience in Canada, those foreign nationals become familiar and comfortable with their community and do not wish to leave. Also, the employers have invested on those workers and they don’t want their investment just go away. That has driven the foreign workers wish to stay permanently.

Experienced Foreign Worker?

Are you a foreign national and have obtained Canadian work experience and wondering if you are eligible to apply for permanent residency? Under the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) foreign workers and foreign graduates with skilled work experience in Canada can apply for Permanent Residency through this route.

Canadian Experience Class Minimum Requirements

Canadian Experience Class just like any other immigration category of Canada has its own requirements. If anybody who has experience working in Canada, might want to know the requirements that might help them get permanent residence in Canada. Below are the requirements that would help a candidate apply for this category. In order to apply for this category, you must have:

What is the Canadian Experience Class?

The Canadian Experience Class (CEC) is a Category under Canada’s Temporary Foreign Workers Program. The Temporary Foreign Worker’s Program (TFWP) is a program the Canadian government offers to allow Canadian employers to hire foreign nationals. The goal of the TFWP is to help fill genuine and acute labour needs. The program is always reviewed in order to guarantee that the goal is fulfilled and that Canadians never feel and are never displaced.

Requirements of CEC:

• the applicant must plan to live outside of Quebec
• the applicant must have at least 12 months of full-time experience or the equivalent in part-time experience in Canada with the proper authorization in the three years prior to submitting an application
• the applicant must also meet a specific language requirement which either a Canadian Language Benchmark threshold of 5 or more depending on the job

Occupations that are not eligible:

• Administrative officers
• Administrative assistants
• Accounting technicians and bookkeepers
• Retail sales supervisors
• Food service supervisors
• Cooks

If the individual is eligible, he or she may then enter the Express Entry Pool.