Express Entry Draw #220 | Canada Invites 787 PNP Candidates

Canada held its 220^th Express Entry draw on April 13, 2022. The latest draw issued 787 invitations to candidates with CRS scores of at least 782.

Draw Number: 220
Date of Draw: April 13, 2022
Number of Invitations Issued: 787
Minimum CRS: 782
Program Specified: Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)
Tie-breaking rule: April 07, 2022

Canada’s latest Express Entry draw only invited candidates nominated under a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). The Canadian government has been holding PNP-only Express Entry draws since September 2021 as Immigration, Refugees, Citizenship Canada (IRCC) slowly eliminates the application backlog leftover largely from COVID-19.

Candidates in the Express Entry pool who accept a nomination on their profile receive an additional 600 points toward their CRS score; that means that the lowest-ranking candidate in today’s draw had a CRS score of just 182 before accepting a provincial nomination.

Will occupation in-demand Express Entry draws begin this spring?

In a March 10 interview with ApplyBoard, Canada’s immigration minister indicated that Federal Skilled Worker draws may resume as early as this spring.

If all-program Express Entry draws were to resume now, the CRS cut-off would likely be over 500 due to the sheer volume of candidates in the pool. This would result in a very homogenous group of newcomers, unlikely to fulfill Canada’s labour market needs. For this reason, Canada is likely to move to occupation in-demand draws.

This was confirmed in a January 20 meeting with the Canadian Bar Association. During the meeting, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser suggested that Canada is looking at moving to occupation in-demand Express Entry draws in 2022. In Canada’s recently released 2022 budget, this message was reiterated. Per the budget, the Canadian government will be making changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to improve Canada’s ability to effectively select skilled workers from the pool.

As we’ve seen in the 2022 budget, Canada continues to invest in resources that allow IRCC to process applications more efficiently. This will help the government eliminate the backlog faster, and eventually resume all-program Express Entry draws.

How can I be nominated by a province?

While Federal Skilled Worker and Canadian Experience Class draws remain paused, candidates in the Express Entry pool still have the chance to be invited by a province.

Each Canadian province and territory (except Quebec and Nunavut) operate its own nominee programs. Each nominee program has its own unique eligibility requirements; while many require a connection to the province to apply (work experience, a job offer, a family member, or education in the province), there are also programs available to overseas workers without any connections to Canada.

Many PNPs also scan the Express Entry pool and invite profiles with in-demand skills or work experience. These requirements typically change from draw to draw in response to labour market or demographic needs. Therefore, just by having an active Express Entry profile, there is always a possibility of receiving an invitation to apply for a nomination.

Interested in learning more about your options to immigrate to Canada through the Express Entry system? Complete our free online assessment today!