Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has announced updates to their Express Entry system, revealing plans to remove Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points for labour market impact assessment (LMIA) job offers starting in the spring of 2025.

Marc Miller, Canada’s immigration minister, announced this recently, noting that this change will affect candidates across all sectors of the economy.

CRS points are the scores given to candidates when they create profiles in the Express Entry system, out of 1200 based on factors such as age, education, language proficiency, and work experience. A Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) on the other hand, is a document issued by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) assessing the impact of hiring a foreign national in Canada.

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Speaking on the changes, Miller said,

“We’re implementing further measures that will reinforce program integrity and reduce potential LMIA fraud such as removing additional points that candidates receive under Express Entry for having a job offer”.

“This measure is intended to remove the inventive for candidates to purchase an LMIA resulting in increased fairness and integrity in the Express Entry system”.

Currently, Express Entry candidates with valid job offers can receive an additional 50 or 200 CRS points. These points often make the difference between receiving an invitation to apply (ITA) for permanent residence or not.

The immigration department clarified that this removal of additional points is a “temporary measure,” without specifying when it will conclude.

The removal of CRS points for job offers will apply to all new and existing candidates in the Express Entry pool, including those already working temporarily in Canada.

This change will not impact newcomers who have already been invited to apply for permanent residence with a CRS score that included points for a job offer (under the “arranged employment” criteria); or have already submitted an application for permanent residence that is currently being processed.

Canada’s Express Entry system awards additional points for employment under the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), and the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP).

Once the change takes effect in spring 2025, candidates in the pool with valid job offers will no longer receive points for employment.