TWA REPORT – On August 5, 2021, Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) conducted its 200th Express Entry (EE) draw for Canadian Experience Class (CEC) only. This is also the 15th CEC draw in 2021. A total of 3,000 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) were issued, and the lowest Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score is 404, 47 points lower than the previous round.

The pandemic has delayed some skilled workers’ plan of entering Canada. However, inland CEC applicants has thrived in the past few months. To meet the immigration target of 401,000, there is a higher-than-ever demand for CEC applicants. Consequently, the CRS cut-off has continued to lower for CEC in the past few months. Since February’s historical low CRS score of 75 points, the program has been rather lenient on both the intake and the standards. Nevertheless, recent intermittent increases in CRS scores led many to believe that the benefits brought by the pandemic is diminishing.

As of August 3, 2021, the EE pool contains 169,505 candidates. 52,826 individuals fall under the 351-400 score range, followed by 40,628 in the 401-450 range, and 35,700 in the 451-500 range. According to IRCC’s immigration levels plan, about a quarter of Canada’s projected 401,000 intake is allocated to EE. Given the size of the draw pool, most of the candidates may not be able to receive an ITA in 2021. Nevertheless, candidates can always shift their focus towards other immigration programs, especially during this period where standards have loosened.