Posted on February 01 2022

Canada Express Entry – IRCC Draws Held in January 2022

By
Anshul Singhal
, Editor

Updated April 03 2023

Canada continues with the trend of inviting those with a provincial nomination. 10 PNP-only draws have been held in a row.

411,000 newcomers will be granted Canadian permanent residence in 2022, as per Canada’s 2021-2023 Immigration Levels Plan.

Of these, 241,500 will be through economic immigration, that includes pathways such as – Express Entry, Start-Up Visa Program, the Rural and Northern Immigration Piot (RNIP), Quebec Skilled Worker Program, the Provincial Nominee Program etc.

The Express Entry admissions target for 2022 stands at 110,500.

Why immigration matters to Canada?

Immigrants contribute to the economy of Canada, thereby creating jobs for the Canadians. It is through immigration that the labour force in Canada has been growing a small amount each year. Immigrants fill up the need for skilled and qualified workers to take up jobs available in the Canadian labour market. Canadians are living longer and having fewer children. More people are retiring as against the number of people available to take their place, factors that have combined to make the pool of Canadian-born workers – existing and potential – somewhat limited. Immigrants contribute to the Canadian economy by – · Filling gaps in the labour force · Paying taxes · Spending on housing, goods, and transportation · Supporting an aging population · Meeting the labour market requirements · Filling temporary labour needs · Sustaining Canada’s education system through study abroad in Canada · Delivering and improving health and social services (more than 335,000 immigrants work in health-related occupations) · Helping in the development of small and midsize communities As per a study, 92% of newcomers to Canada found their community to be welcoming. Canada has among the highest rates of citizenship by naturalization. Around 85% of newcomers to the country become the citizens of Canada.

With a standard processing time of within six months, Canada’s Express Entry is the most popular and much sought-after immigration pathway in the world.

Three of the main economic immigration programs of Canada – the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP), and the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) – are handled through Express Entry.

There is no upper age limit for applying for Canada immigration through Express Entry. You can create an Express Entry profile if you are able to secure a minimum 67 points on Canada Skilled Immigration Points Calculator. Submitting a complete application for permanent residence, however, is another matter.

While you can create an Express Entry profile (if you secure 67 and above on the points calculation), you cannot apply unless you receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA). The federal Express Entry system comes under the department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

A nomination – from any of the provinces or territories part of the Canadian PNP – guarantees an ITA for an Express Entry candidate. A PNP nomination is worth 600 CRS points. Here, by CRS is implied the Comprehensive Ranking System used for ranking profiles in the Express Entry pool.

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Since 2020, Canada has been focusing more on candidates with previous and recent Canadian work experience, or those with a provincial nomination.

Continuing with the trend in the past, the federal draws in January 2022 were also PNP-specific.

There were two Express Entry draws held in January 2022, with altogether 1,428 invited to apply.

Canada Express Entry – January 2022
Number of draws held: 2 Total ITAs issued: 1,428
Draw No.	Date of Draw	Immigration Program	ITAs issued	CRS points cut-off
#214	January 19, 2022	PNP	1,036	745
#213	January 5, 2022	PNP	392	808