There have been changes to Canada’s Express Entry system over the past two years.
In 2023, Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) introduces category-based selection draws under Express Entry – a policy that allows the immigration department to target candidates who meet the country’s economic and demographic goals.
So, have these changes changed the way the Express Entry system invites candidates? Below is a breakdown of the Express Entry draws so far in 2024, compared to the same time in 2023. Although IRCC has issued more Invitations to Apply (ITAs) this year than at the same time in 2023, a deeper look at the data is needed for better analysis.
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What is range-based selection?
Category-based selection draws are a tool IRCC uses to select immigration candidates through Canada’s Express Entry system. They allow IRCC to invite candidates who give more consideration to specific human capital attributes (i.e. their professional experience and language skills) than to their Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score.
The current Express Entry categories are as follows:
- Health Care Business;
- science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) occupations;
- business Business;
- Transportation business;
- Agriculture and agri-food business; and/or
- French language proficiency.
How many ITAs has Canada issued so far this year compared to last year?
As of the latest draw (September 19 at the time of writing), IRCC has issued 84,874 ITAs through the Express Entry system in 2024.
As of September 20 in 2023, IRCC had issued 81,948 ITAs.
It is worth noting that the federal allocation of landed immigrants for the Express Entry system has changed from 2023 to 2024. Immigrants arriving from ITAs issued under the Express Entry system are counted in the “federal high skilled” allocation in the annual Immigration Levels Plan. In 2023, IRCC expects to welcome 82,800 immigrants through the system. In 2024, the Immigration Department expects to welcome 110,770 immigrants through Express Entry.
How many draws has IRCC conducted through Express Entry this year compared to last year?
So far, IRCC has conducted 37 draws across nine different categories and streams through the Express Entry system. The average size of these draws (so far) is 2,294 ITAs, although this varies greatly depending on the category or stream in question.
By this time last year, IRCC had conducted 28 draws across eight categories and streams. The average draw size across these draws was 2,927 ITAs, although as in 2024, draw sizes varied greatly depending on the category and stream selected.
The disparity in the number of draws is partly due to a historic July for the Express Entry system in 2024, in which IRCC conducted nine draws – the most draws in a single month since Express Entry was introduced in 2015.
Which streams/categories have the highest number of draws so far in 2024 as compared to 2023?
The following table presents the number of draws held by category/stream, and the number of ITAs issued so far for each category/stream in 2024, and the number of ITAs issued for the same period in 2023:
| Category/Stream | Number of draws held so far in 2024 | Number of ITAs issued so far in 2024 | Number of draws till 20 September 2023 | Number of ITAs issued till 20 September 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture and Agri-Food Business Category | 0 | 0 | 1 | 150 |
| Canadian Experience Class (CEC) | 6 | 24,800 | 0 | 0 |
| Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3,300 |
| French language proficiency category | 8 | 20,400 | 3 | 6,900 |
| Healthcare Business Category | 2 | 7,250 | 2 | 2,000 |
| General (includes the Canadian Express Class (CEC), Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) and Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP)) | 9 | 14,445 | 0 | 0 |
| No program specified (includes Canadian Express Class (CEC), Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), and Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP)) | 0 | 0 | 15 | 63,900 |
| Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) | 8 | 10,554 | 4 | 2,848 |
| STEM Occupation Category | 1 | 4,500 | 1 | 500 |
| Business Occupation Category | 1 | 1,800 | 1 | 1,500 |
| Transport Business Category | 1 | 975 | 1 | 1,000 |
Note that both CEC and PNP draws through the Express Entry system have seen a sharp increase since May and June of this year, respectively, following comments made by Immigration Minister Marc Miller about conducting more “domestic draws” for Express Entry candidates. The total in 2023 was 4 PNP draws and no CEC draws under Express Entry. Compare, till 2024 till now has seen Eight PNP pulls And SIX CEC has already conducted the draw.
It is also notable that its importance is increasing French language proficiency category. While only three are seen in 2023 draws for this category, there have already been eight French category draws in 2024. IRCC has also indicated that the allocation of French Speaking Immigrants from outside Quebec ( level plan) ready to grow up by 6% this year Will reach 8% by 2026.
Finally, to make a better comparison cut off Score For each stream or category, the following table breaks down the highest and lowest CRS cut-off scores in 2023 and 2024For Categories and Streams selected multiple times in both years,
| Category/Stream | Highest Ever CRS Cut-Off Score in 2024 | Lowest ever CRS cut-off score in 2024 | Highest CRS cut-off score as of Sep 20 in 2023 | Lowest CRS cut-off score in 2023 as of September 20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| French language proficiency category | 446 | 336 | 439 | 375 |
| Healthcare Business Category | 445 | 422 | 476 | 463 |
| Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) | 739 | 663 | 791 | 691 |
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