5 tips to consider before submitting your Express Entry application
Express Entry is Canada’s federal skilled worker selection program which has been active since January of 2015. Candidates who apply under the Express Entry program submit an application and wait for an invitation to apply (ITA) for permanent residency.
We believe that this is still the fastest and most streamlined way for eligible applicants to reach Canadian Permanent Residency. The first step is to find out if you are eligible for Express Entry by calculating your comprehensive ranking system (CRS) score. There is an Express Entry draw approximately twice a month where Immigration Canada will announce the lowest CRS of the last candidate selected. The second step is to prepare your documents in order to prove the information you declared in your Express Entry application.
In 2018, Immigration Canada accepted a record number of Express Entry candidates and we expect them to accept even more applications in 2019. If you have considered this program and you believe to be eligible, we strongly urge you to submit your application into the Express Entry pool!
1. Work experience letters
When applying for Express Entry, you are required to declare your work experience and provide proof of employment. If you left your previous employment on bad terms or if you are currently employed and do not wish for your employer to know your immigration plans, you most likely cannot get a work experience letter. This does not mean that you should not declare this work experience in your application. You can be strategic and provide explanations as to why you are not able to provide the proof of employment or provide alternative documents that would satisfy the immigration officer that you have occupied the declared employment.
2. Proof of financial self-sufficiency
You will be required to provide proof of your financial self-sufficiency for the last 6 months before you submit your ITA. In most cases, this means that your funds need to be ready before even submitting your Express Entry profile. If you do not have the required settlement funds, you may want to delay the submission of your application, have your employer sponsor you through an LMIA or look into the Canadian Experience Class.
3. 60 days to submit the ITA
Once you have submitted your Express Entry application, you will have 60 days to submit all of your support documents and permanent residency information. Although 60 days feels like a long time, it isn't actually the case when you go into the precise requirements of the ITA. Some documents actually cannot be prepared in advance so you will have to prepare letters of explanation to account for any missing documents.
4. Police certificates
If you stayed in a country for 6 months consecutively since the age of 18, you will need to obtain a police clearance certificate from that country. For some countries, the process can take more than 60 days (more than the time allowed by the ITA) to complete, hence why you should carefully determine which police clearance certificates will be required for your application. You can easily determine this with your entry and exit stamps on your passport.
5. Submission date
You can time the submission date of your Express Entry profile based on your CRS score, your expected landing date and how much of the ITA requirements you have prepared. This kind of evaluation should be left to someone who has extensive knowledge of the Express Entry system as you could accidentally miss out on a chance to obtain an ITA. Furthermore, another aspect to consider is the date you submit your application is also a tiebreaker for other candidates with the same CRS score.
Free Express Entry Guide
If you have more questions regarding your Express Entry application, you may find your answers through our Express Entry guide. Download your free copy below:
