Canada invites 3,300 CEC candidates in latest Express entry draw for PR Visa

Canada hosted another round of Express Entry invitations on August 20. The latest Express Entry draw was the second in two days and the 161st overall organized by IRCC.

Invitations were sent to a total of 3,300 Canadian Experience Class (CEC) applicants. A Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 454 was sufficient to secure an invitation to apply (ITA).

Today’s CRS cut-off score was nine points higher than the previous CEC-specific draw on July 23, which had a CRS cut-off score of 445. The point increase is due to a higher number of applicants registered in the pool over the past month. after Canada held a draw for all programs on August 5.

IRCC has held these program-specific draws since the coronavirus pandemic shut down the Canadian border in March. They all took place following specific Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) draws, and the number of ITCs from the two draws combined adds up to a round number.

Yesterday, IRCC hosted a program-specific draw with 600 PNP applicants receiving ITAs.

Express Entry is a system the federal government uses to manage applications for Canada’s three major economy class programs: Federal Skilled Worker Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program, and Canadian Experience Class.  Some provinces also have PNPs aligned with the Express Entry system.

In the Express Entry system, applicants are ranked based on their CRS score, which takes into account several factors, including their age, work experience, education, and proficiency in English or French. In some cases, the date and time the Express Entry profile was created is also a ranking factor.

IRCC implemented a tie-breaker rule in today’s draw. The tiebreaker is used to rank candidates who have the same CRS cutoff score based on the date and time of their profile creation.

The tie-breaker rule for today’s draw was implemented on July 27, 2020, at 11:10:05 UTC. This means that applicants with a CRS score of 454 were only invited if their profile had been submitted before that date and time.

This draw brings the total number of invitations issued in 2020 to 65,750. Despite the coronavirus, that number still exceeds the number of invitations issued at the same time last year and the year before.

Applicants who wish to submit their Express Entry profile can still do so despite the coronavirus restrictions in place. IRCC continues to accept Express Entry submissions and process permanent residence applications.

Reference is taken from CIC News