Blue Bird Blog

How IRCC will prioritize transport occupations in Express Entry category-based draws

On May 31st, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser announced that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) was launching category-based selection draws for Express Entry candidates.
RCC will give preference to Express Entry candidates who have a strong French language proficiency or work experience in the following fields:

Healthcare
Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professions
Trades, such as carpenters, plumbers, and contractors
Transport
Agriculture and agri-food

The occupations were chosen after IRCC received information about the shortages in the Canadian labour market. IRCC also consulted and got input from their partners, the provinces and territories and stakeholders across the country.

On June 28th, IRCC held its first ever category-based Express Entry draw, inviting 500 healthcare workers to apply for permanent residency. A second round, inviting 1,500 healthcare workers, is expected to take place on July 5th .

Another category-based draw is anticipated to also be held on July 5th, inviting eligible candidates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) professions.

Why was transport occupations chosen as a category?

According to Employment and Social Development Canada, the number of occupations facing shortages doubled between 2019 and 2021.

Statistics Canada released data about job vacancies from 2022 Q4. The Trades category include wholesale trades and retail trades for the purposes of the Statistics Canada data. The total wholesale trades job vacancies were 30,930, while the total retail trades job vacancies were 108,795.

IRCC held a public consultation on enhancing Express Entry through category-based selection. The engagement process involved gathering feedback and suggestions from a broad range of stakeholders and the public.

When asked about using category–based selection to meet the needs of labour market shortages in particular occupations or sectors, participating stakeholders were generally supportive, and the majority provided specific suggestions.

Of the categories mentioned, trades, transport and equipment operations and related occupations were viewed as the sector experiencing the greatest needs by around 16% of respondents, which reflected the high proportion of respondents representing this sector.

What are the eligibility requirements for the transport occupations category?

In order to be eligible, you must

Meet the eligibility criteria of one of the Express Entry programs (the Federal Skilled Worker Program, or Canadian Experience Class, or Federal Skilled Trades Program)
Have accumulated, within the past 3 years, at least 6 months of continuous work experience in one of the listed occupations
Meet all of the other requirements in the instructions for the round

What are the transportation occupations?

There are 10 occupations in the transport occupation category. These include:

Aircraft assemblers and aircraft assembly inspectors
Transport truck drivers
Railway traffic controllers and marine traffic regulators
Engineer officers, water transport
Deck officers, water transport
Air traffic controllers and related occupations
Air pilots, flight engineers and flying instructors
Aircraft mechanics and aircraft inspectors
Railway carmen/women
Managers in transportation

How will Express Entry category-based rounds of invitation be chosen?

IRCC will send invitations to candidates in category-based draws to apply for permanent residence if they are eligible for a specific category. This criterion includes:

Work experience in a specific TEER category of the National Occupational Classification (NOC)
Language ability in either English or French
Education

How will Comprehensive Ranking System scores be considered?

Category-based draws will occur in addition to the general and program-specific draws. Express Entry draws invite top ranking candidates who can help meet Canadian labour market and economic goals.

Candidates in the Express Entry pool are ranked using a points-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). This system ranks candidates based on age, education, language skills, work experience and more.

A candidates CRS score will still be very central for category-based draws. IRCC will send invitations to candidates with top ranking scores and who are also eligible for the category-based draw.

Source: cicnews.com

Express Entry

February 2025: State of the Express Entry pool

After a January that saw Express Entry draws return to some semblance of normalcy, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has already held two draws in the month of February.
January saw the issuance of 5,821 Invitations to Apply (ITAs): candidates includes those in the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and those in enhanced Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs). Last month was also the first month since June of 2024 that the immigration department did not hold an Express Entry draw for candidates with French-language proficiency.

A ten-year review: How Express Entry shaped immigration in Canada

Jan 31, 2025 marks the ten-year anniversary of Canada’s first Express Entry draw.

Since then, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has issued over 800,000 invitations to apply (ITAs) for permanent residency (PR) through the Express Entry system.

Canada launches new immigration pathway for French speakers

Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has launched the Francophone Community Immigration Pilot (FCIP) immigration pathway.
This new immigration pathway was first announced in March of 2024, with further details revealed in December of last year.
Under this program, newcomers with an intermediate level of French ability—and who have an offer of employment in priority occupations sought by a community outside of Quebec—can be nominated and receive Canadian permanent residence (PR).

New Brunswick begins reopening immigration programs

New Brunswick will finally begin opening its immigration streams, after a period of adjustment following notice from the federal government that the province would only be given 2,750 immigrant nomination spaces this year.
The 2,750 spaces will be split up between the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program NBPNP (1,500) and the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP) (1,250).
In a press release on February 5, Jean-Claude D’Amours, acting Minister of Post-Secondary Education for the province, stated that the significant reduction in allocations for 2025 has forced the province “to make difficult decisions."

ANALYSIS: How many Express Entry ITAs can we expect to see in December?

Previous years of Express Entry draws can help us make reasonable estimates of how many Invitations to Apply (ITAs) we might expect to see issued for the remainder of 2024.

Should the number of ITAs issued in the remainder of 2024, relative to the landing target for 2025, be the same as it was on average for years 2021 to 2023, we might expect IRCC to issue about 3,522 ITAs through Express Entry in December.

Is it worth applying for Express Entry after you turn 35?

Prospective Canadian immigrants are sometimes discouraged from applying for Express Entry after they turn 35 years of age.
This is largely due to points lost on their Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score.
The Express Entry application management system uses the CRS to rank and order eligible Express Entry candidates based on their human capital factors before they can receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for Canadian permanent residence from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).