Requirements to be Industry-Specific?

The government of Canada is planning to change the Express Entry system, which would enable the Immigration Minister to invite candidates based on an economic goal.

The proposed bill should help Canada select applicants that would match its economic needs the most and fulfill real-time labour requirements.

The change was first proposed by Philip Somogyvari, IRCC’s Director-General, and is now being discussed in Parliament. Mr. Somogyvari explained how the new Express Entry system would work.

First, the Minister would be required to identify the economic goal and report annually to Parliament on the use of these draws. That economic goal would determine the type of individual who would be invited to apply. Work experience, educational background and language skills would all be assessed.

“For example, if there was a desire to leverage immigration to support the growth of Canada’s tech sector, a category of Express Entry candidates would be created based on criteria such as their possession of work experience in their sector occupation and/or their possession of a related educational credential. Invitations could then be issued to the top-ranked candidates in that category.” Somogyvari said.

The government has no specific occupation listed that could be part of these draws, and the process of determining which groups would be selected is still in the development stage.

IRCC plans to partner and consult with employer groups and stakeholders, Employment and Social Development Canada, and provincial and territorial governments, and consider the objectives within the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

The Current System

The Express Entry system currently uses factors such as age, education, work experience, job offers, and language skills to rank candidates. Individuals who meet the cut-off for the Comprehensive Ranking Score (CRS) are invited to apply for permanent residence in Canada.

As of now, there are three streams of this immigration system:

  • The Federal Skilled Worker Program -for skilled workers with the right qualification and experience;
  • The Canadian Experience Class – for those who have at least a year’s experience in Canada; and
  • and the Federal Skilled Trades Program – for people with work experience

If the proposed bill passes, the applicants will only be invited based on criteria like academic credentials and industry-related occupations.

The Discussion

Jenny Kwan, the NDP immigration critic, called for the government to list the groups that would be affected by the proposed bill:

“I am troubled by the fact that there is no Parliamentary oversight as to what these groups will be. There’s no process as to whether these groups will be fair, or how effective [the government] will be in selecting people who would provide economic contributions to Canada.”

She also expressed concern regarding the lack of a transparent selection process where industries could provide formal submissions and let the public know which occupations are in need, saying that “(..) the process could become fodder for lobbying industries”.