What is ECA – Education Credential Assessment?
An Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) is an assessment of your degree, diploma, or certificate compared to check whether it is meeting the Canadian standards of education or not for the Canada Visas. As ECA compares your education to Canadian standards, you don’t have to do ECA for any education you did in Canada. If you have more than one post-secondary degree, you usually only need to have your highest degree assessed. However, you might want to get all of your credentials assessed to claim as many CRS points as possible once you’re in the pool. If your spouse, or common-law or conjugal partner, is accompanying you and has a post-secondary degree, they can also get an ECA. While it isn’t required to submit to Express Entry, you may be able to claim additional CRS points for your spouse or partner’s education if they have an ECA.
If you are eligible for Express Entry under the Federal Skilled Worker Program, you will need an ECA before you can submit it to the pool. If you are eligible under the Federal Skilled Trades Program or the Canadian Experience Class, you do not need an ECA to submit to the pool, but if you wish to claim any Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points for your education So you’ll need one.
Who are the designated organizations for ECA
IRCC will accept ECA report only from the below designated organizations:
- World Education Services
- Comparative Education Service – University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies
- International Credential Assessment Service of Canada
- International Qualifications Assessment Service
- International Credential Evaluation Service
- Medical Council of Canada (professional body for doctors)
- Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (professional body for Pharmacists)
World Education Services: World Education Services (WES) is designated by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to provide Educational Credential Assessments (ECAs). Processing time for ECA is 7 business days from the day they receive payment from the applicant . WES fee range starts from CAD$322 to CAD$500.
Comparative Education Service – University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies: The Comparative Education Service (CES) was established by the University of Toronto in 1967 and is Canada’s only university-based academic credential assessment agency. Having an ECA Report means you do not have to repeat your education in Canada. It tells employers how your credentials match up to Canadian education standards.it takes 60 to 90 days to get the ECA report and Fee is CAD$250 per document.
International Credential Assessment Service of Canada (ICAS): ICAS is a Canadian company with over 20 years of experience in the assessment of international credentials. ICAS provides assessments of senior secondary, postsecondary and technical qualifications for over 10 000 applicants. Fee is 200 CAD for any number of credentials + Courier charges and processing time is 30 weeks from the day all the documents are received.
International Qualifications Assessment Service (IQAS): International Qualifications Assessment Service (IQAS) helps people get recognition for education and training they received outside of Canada. IQAS issues certificates that compare educational credentials from other countries to educational standards in Canada. ECA fee is 200 CAD for any number of credentials and 100 CAD for upgrade + Courier charges and 23 weeks processing time from the day all the documents are accepted.
International Credential Evaluation Service (ICES): The International Credential Evaluation Service (ICES) has been designated by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to provide Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) reports for Canadian immigration purposes (Express Entry, Permanent Residency and Agri-Food Pilot). ICES will only provide ECA reports for fully completed academic credentials. A certificate, diploma, or degree must have been completed and awarded in order for ICES to be able to provide an evaluation. ICES do not evaluate:
- Trade qualifications
- Incomplete or provisional academic credentials
- Apprenticeships
- Continuing education courses taken at non-recognized institutions
- Professional licenses or titles such as a Chartered Accountant
- Military training
- Second language training
- Exam based qualifications
- Work or life experience
- Non-credit professional development courses
Medical Council of Canada (professional body for doctors): they assess over 14,000 medical professionals and graduates every year for ECA process. ECA fee is 111 CAD for any number of credentials + Courier charges and processing time is 14 business days for the soft copy and 8 weeks for the hard copy from the day all the documents are received.
Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (professional body for Pharmacists): PEBC is a non-profit organization with more than 50 years of experience in assessing the qualifications and competence of candidates for licensing by pharmacy provincial regulatory authorities. PEBC ensures that pharmacists and pharmacy technicians entering the profession have the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities to safely and effectively practice pharmacy. There is an exam that is conducted under this category and fee of the exam is 460 $ CAD for part 1 and 1125 $ CAD for the part 2 of the exam and processing time 8 weeks from the day all the documents are received
Why ECA (Educational Credential Assessment is important)?
Getting a positive ECA is additional benefit and very good impact on your profile. You will become a trusted candidate for potential employers. Having an positive ECA can help employers tap down your application quickly and make the process faster.
Our office is in South Delhi. You can come in the office directly for any immigration process query. But it will be beneficial for you complete your free assessment visa form before the meeting. You Can also call or whatsapp on 8448490104. So that the consultant has all the knowledge about your profile and he can guide you properly.