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Express Entry helps foreign nationals moving to Canada
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The new “Express Entry” Canadian immigration system has already issued its first invitations to apply for a Permanent Resident (PR) Visa to Canada.

According to the Canadian government, 779 skilled foreign workers in various high-demand occupations received an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for a PR Visa to Canada on January 31, 2015. This was only four weeks after the Express Entry system for immigration to Canada was launched.

Vancouver Canada
Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister, Chris Alexander, seemed pleased with how this new Canadian immigration system was functioning thus far. On February 2, 2015, he declared, “Express Entry is already getting impressive results in its first month.

The fact that everyone who was invited to apply for permanent residence in this round of invitations already has a valid job offer or provincial nomination shows that Express Entry is working to fill Canada’s existing labor market gaps.”

Under Express Entry, skilled foreign workers who want to immigrate to Canada must first complete an online Express Entry profile containing details about their education, work experience, language skills and other information.

Based upon a review of the Express Entry profile, those who meet the eligibility requirements for certain Canadian immigration programs designed for skilled foreign workers are moved into a pool of candidates for up to 12 months. During this time, candidates are urged to apply for jobs in Canada and to register with the Canadian Job Bank so companies and provinces in Canada can review their profiles.

Invitation to Apply
If someone in the pool receives a qualifying offer of a job in Canada or is nominated for the Provincial Nominees Program by a Canadian province or territory, they can get an Invitation to Apply for a PR Visa to Canada. They will then have 60 days to submit a complete Canadian visa application with all of the necessary documents (including medical reports and police certificates), plus pay the Canadian visa application fee.


One of the nice aspects of the new Express Entry Canadian immigration system is that a decision is made within six months regarding the application for a PR Visa to Canada in most cases, according to the Canadian government.

The Canadian immigration system was improved to make it faster and more efficient so that thousands of skilled foreign workers could quickly obtain suitable jobs in Canada in their high-demand occupations.

Workers Canada

Before the start of Express Entry on January 1, 2015, a skilled foreign worker could apply for a PR Visa to Canada through one of the various “economic immigrant” programs, meet the criteria, receive a Canadian visa, but possibly end up with a job in Canada that was not appropriate for their education and work experience.

This was not good for the Canadian economy which needs skilled foreign workers to help it meet a growing labor shortage across the country. Underemployment of highly-skilled foreign workers (e.g., “an immigrant with a PhD driving a taxi”), was also not desirable for Canadian newcomers who dreamed of better opportunities in their new country of permanent residence.

Thus, the Express Entry Canadian immigration system was designed to increase the likelihood that skilled foreign workers who are granted a PR Visa to Canada will have appropriate employment waiting for them after they move to Canada.

Smoother Transition
Express Entry takes a lot of the “guess work” out of immigration to Canada since new permanent residents will know where they will live and work in Canada and how much they will earn from Canadian employment. This can help foreign nationals who move to Canada to have a smoother transition and, hopefully, more quickly realize their Canadian dream.

My opinion is that following the latest changes in the Canadian visa regulations, many companies and agencies (like canadianvisaexpert) which offer “visa application services” might need to reconsider their business model.
 

Nitin Rakeshh Raut Suri is a Senior Associate Lawyer specilized in Civil and Criminal Laws, imigration, and legal documentation and coordination.