Posted on February 25 2020

How to read ECA Report for Canada immigration

By
Anshul Singhal
, Editor

Updated March 26 2024

In the field of Canada immigration, ECA stands for Educational Credential Assessment.

If you are interested in how to immigrate to Canada, it will indeed be worth your while to take the time to understand ECA.

Here, we will attempt a handy guide for ECA.

What is ECA?	An assessment that is done to verify that the proof of your educational credential – foreign degree/diploma/certificate –is valid and equivalent to a Canadian one.
Is there a specific kind of ECA that I need for Canada immigration?	Yes. For Canada PR immigration, you will have a secure and ECA “for immigration purposes”. There are different kinds of ECAs.
I have another type of ECA. Can I use it for immigration too?	Depends on the issuing organization and the kind of ECA. You might have to get it re-issued in certain cases.
Why do I have to get ECA?	ECA Report and reference number is required in your Express Entry profile.
How does ECA help me?	Those with education completed outside Canada require an ECA to: Be eligible for FSWP [Federal Skilled Workers Program] under Express Entry Get points for education outside Canada Note. - If your spouse/partner is coming to Canada with you, you will get points for their education as well.
What if I have a Canadian degree/diploma/certificate?	No assessment required.
I have an MA. Do I have to get a BA degree assessed as well?	Usually, an assessment is only required for the highest level of education that you hold. In this case, you need an assessment of Master’s degree only.
What if I need points for having 2 or more credentials?	You will need a separate assessment for each one. IMPORTANT To get full points for multiple credentials, at least 1 of them should be for 3 or more years of study.
How do I get my ECA?	Get assessment done and a report issued from an organization designated by IRCC [Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada]: World Education Services [WES] International Credential Evaluation Service [ICES] Comparative Education Service [CES] International Credential Assessment Service [ICAS] International Qualifications Assessment Service [IQAS] Note. IQAS will not be offering services for ECA between November 19, 2019, and May 19, 2020.
Why do some occupations need other assessments?	In some cases, you might have to get an assessment done by a specific designated organization based on the province that you intend living in. For example, NOC Code 3111: Physicians requires ECA of “primary medical diploma” by the Medical Council of Canada.

Okay, so now you have your ECA with you.

Let us see as to how the ECA is to be interpreted.

Your ECA Report must show that the foreign educational credential that you possess is indeed valid and equivalent to Canadian High School [secondary school] or post-secondary. The ECA Report, along with the reference number, will have to be included in your Express Entry profile.

An adverse ECA can be said to be the one that shows that:

Your credential is not equal to a completed credential in Canada, or
The foreign educational institution that you have the credential of is not recognized by the assessing body.

In such a situation, you will not get points for the education requirement of FSWP as you are unable to meet the requirement.

Your ECA gets you points at 2 different stages:

Checking eligibility for FSWP
Calculation of CRS [Comprehensive Ranking System] points

At the time of checking eligibility for FSWP under EE System, your ECA will get you the following points:

*Assessment result* *[Canadian equivalency]*	*Level of education for Express Entry profile*	*Federal Skilled Workers Program* [FSWP] factor points
Grade 12 [high school completion]	Secondary school [high school diploma]	5
1-year Post-secondary certificate with a focus in [area of concentration]	1-year degree/diploma/certificate from a program at a university/college/trade or technical school, or other institutes	15
University Diploma	1-year degree/diploma/certificate from a program at a university/college/trade or technical school, or other institutes	15
Associate Degree	2-year degree/diploma/certificate from a program at a university/college/trade or technical school, or other institutes	19
Diploma [2 years]	2-year degree/diploma/certificate from a program at a university/college/trade or technical school, or other institutes	19
Diploma [3 years]	Bachelor’s degree or other programs [3 or more years] at a university/college/trade or technical school, or other institutes	21
Applied Bachelor's Degree	Bachelor’s degree or other programs [three or more years] at a university/ college/trade or technical school, or other institutes	21
Bachelor's degree [3 years]	Bachelor’s degree or other programs [3 or more years] at a university/college/trade or technical school, or other institutes	21
Bachelor's degree [4 years]	Bachelor’s degree or other programs [3 or more years] at a university/college/trade or technical school, or other institutes	21
3-year or more certificate/diploma/ degree plus a College Certificate/Diploma	2 or more degrees/certificates/diplomas	22
3-year or more certificate/diploma/ degree plus a College Diploma [2 years]	2 or more degrees/certificates/diplomas	22
3-year or more certificate/diploma/ degree plus a Diploma [3 years]	2 or more degrees/certificates/diplomas	22
3-year or more certificate/diploma/ degree plus a Dual Bachelor’s degree [4 years]	2 or more degrees/certificates/diplomas	22
3-year or more certificate/diploma/ degree plus a Bachelor's Degree	2 or more degrees/certificates/diplomas	22
Bachelor of Laws	Professional degree needed to practice in a licensed profession	23
Doctor of Medicine degree	Professional degree needed to practice in a licensed profession	23
Master's Degree	University degree at the Master’s level	23
Doctorate [PhD]	University degree at the Doctoral [PhD] level	25

Similarly, at the time of CRS calculation, your ECA Report can earn you the following points:

Note. If your spouse/partner is not coming with you to Canada or your spouse/partner is a citizen/PR of Canada, you will get points as if you were “Without a spouse or common-law partner”.

*Level of Education*	*With a spouse or common-law partner* *[Maximum 140 points]*	*Without a spouse or common-law partner* *[Maximum 150 points]*
Less than High School [Canadian secondary school]	0	0
High School pass [Canadian secondary diploma]	28	30
1-year degree/ diploma/certificate from university/college/trade or technical school etc.	84	90
2-year program at university/college/trade or technical school etc.	91	98
Bachelor's degree OR 3 or more years’ program at a university/college/ trade or technical school etc.	112	120
2 or more certificates/ diplomas/degrees. IMPORTANT 1 must be for a program of 3 or more years	119	128
Master's degree OR A professional degree that is needed for practising in any of the licensed professions. For “professional degree,” the degree program that the applicant completed should have been in – pharmacy, law, medicine, optometry, dentistry, chiropractic medicine, or veterinary medicine.	126	135
PhD [Doctoral level university degree]	140	150

Do keep in mind that the eligibility points and CRS are completely different and must not be confused with each other. While the FSWP calculation is to check if you are eligible for being considered for Canada’s Express Entry System, CRS calculation comes into play after you have been selected.

Once your profile is in the EE Pool with the profiles of other candidates, your profile will be given CRS points [total 1200] based on set criteria. It is the CRS score that determines when you will be invited to apply for Canada PR. The higher CRS score that you have, the sooner you can expect to be invited.

Also, do keep in mind that while the Express Entry manages the pool of candidates for 3 programs – FSTP, FSWP, and CEC – eligibility is mainly assessed for FSWP as this is the most commonly applied for the program and a wide majority of the overseas “skilled workers” come under this category.

In 2020, Canada plans on welcoming 85,800 through Express Entry.

If you are looking to Study, Work, Visit, Invest or Migrate to Canada, talk to Y-Axis, the World’s No.1 Immigration & Visa Company.

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