Canada will change its Express Entry ranking system on November 3 to give additional weight to Canadian work experience and qualifying job offers in occupations with higher typical wages.
Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab announced the changes on October 16. The reform also removes the labour market impact assessment requirement for specified job offers used for Express Entry points and eligibility under the federal skilled worker and skilled trades programmes.
The wage test applies to an occupation, not to an applicant’s personal pay. An occupation qualifies at a median wage of at least 1.3 times the median for the overall Canadian workforce, using the government’s published list.
For candidates with at least a year of eligible Canadian experience, the additional points rise through three bands: 20, 40 or 70, depending on the occupation’s wage level. Those sit alongside points for the duration of Canadian experience.
A qualifying offer in a high-wage occupation instead attracts 50, 70 or 100 points. An offer must generally involve full-time, continuous Canadian work for at least a year after permanent residence, with specific provisions for some occupations.
Candidates who qualify through both experience and an offer receive whichever route gives more points; the two are not added together. Extra points also do not guarantee an invitation to apply.
The list uses occupation-level data from the preceding three years. Lawyers and Quebec notaries are among the occupations in its highest wage band, alongside several medical and management roles.
Removing the LMIA requirement does not remove the assessment of whether an offer is genuine. Officers will still examine the employer’s business, employment needs, capacity to honour the offer, compliance record and the candidate’s ability to do the work.
Existing profiles will be recalculated automatically for the new system. Candidates seeking job-offer points must update the required information before November 3. IRCC says recalculation may take up to two weeks, during which invitation rounds will pause.
