IRCC recently announced that the Arranged Employment points in the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) for Express Entry have now been removed. Here’s what you need to know:

1. Applicants in the Pool

Effective immediately, individuals in the Express Entry pool will no longer receive the 50 or 200 points for having a qualifying job offer that provides them with “Arranged Employment” in Canada. Profiles already in the pool will see this deduction in points shortly. Future applicants will not receive these points when creating their profiles. 

This change will apply to both LMIA job offers along with LMIA-exempt closed work permit holders. 

2. Applications in Progress

Individuals who have already received an Invitation to Apply (ITA) or who have already submitted their permanent residence application and are awaiting a decision will not be affected by this change. ITA holders can continue to proceed with preparing the PR application using the arranged employment points. 

Going forward, we expect that there will likely be a decrease in the minimum scores selected for Express Entry draws. However, foreign workers who were relying on the Arranged Employment points to be competitive in the pool may need to revisit their immigration strategy.

Watch this video discussing what these changes could mean for you: