The extremely controversial, and to an extent, complex application intake system, has just demonstrated that it has an ever-changing face. To many, the Express Entry Online Application Intake system, has been a wild roller coaster ride. Hundreds of Thousands of candidates who are somewhat eligible and who have an interest in making Canada their home have submitted profiles through the Express Entry system on the hope to reach Permanent Residency.
Due to the immensity of the number of profiles submitted, the Federal Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has opted to select the highest (strongest) ranking profiles to invite them to submit a formal application for Permanent Residency. This immense crowd has created competition, whereby the definition of a strong profile has rendered an invitation to a 40 year old engineer, with very good language skills and vast experience, almost impossible, because younger, less experienced applicants are jumping the line.
What Ontario did on March 26, 2018 corroborates a theory that I have been tabling to candidates since early 2016. The Express Entry system cannot continue selecting only those profiles whose CRS points are in the mid 400s! Canada will end up failing to meet its intake target of skilled workers if slightly older applicants are denied the opportunity to apply.
"A 40 year old civil engineer with over 15 years of experience and very strong language skills can still work in Canada, generate income and pay taxes and contribute in every conceivable way to the economic, social and cultural weave of Canada." Denying such candidates the chance to apply is not in the interest of a labour market that seeks senior management positions filled for example.
I continue to believe that the future of the statistics of Canada's labour force will eventually show that not enough immigrants are being invited to Canada. An eventuality that will entice the Federal Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to make recommendations to its Minister that more immigrants are needed.
We have always encouraged applicants with CRS score of 400 and above to submit applications; In spirit of the above view, we will now lower the benchmark of the CRS points to 350. Candidates with 350 CRS points or more, will be encouraged to submit applications in anticipation of an invite by one of the provinces for nomination.
Occupation, Language and Age factors will be closely considered when making this recommendation to each individual candidate.
Author: Muhannad Samara, RCIC - April 9, 2018
