Canada's Record-Breaking ITA's: Unveiling the New Category-Based Draws

The newly released Express Entry Year-End report for 2023 from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) highlights a significant increase in Invitations to Apply (ITAs) issued through Express Entry draws. In 2023, IRCC issued 110,266 ITAs across 42 draws held between January 11 and December 21. This marks a staggering 136% increase compared to the 46,539 ITAs issued in 2022.

A total of 488,571 profiles were submitted, with 67% (343,875) meeting the eligibility criteria, while 33% (144,696) were deemed ineligible.

Express Entry Overview

Express Entry is an application management system designed to streamline the processing of economic immigration applications under the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), Canadian Experience Class (CEC), and Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP). It uses the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) to score and rank candidates, with those achieving higher scores more likely to receive an ITA.

In 2023, IRCC introduced category-based selection draws. These targeted candidates across all Express Entry programs based on occupation or language proficiency.

Distribution of ITAs by Program

According to the report, the majority of ITAs (40,052) were issued to candidates under the CEC program, followed by the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) with 26,445 ITAs, and the FSWP with 17,898 ITAs. Only eight ITAs were issued to FSTP candidates, which can be attributed to IRCC's processing hierarchy that prioritizes candidates eligible for multiple programs.

Following the introduction of Category-Based Selection (CBS) Rounds in June, IRCC issued 25,870 ITAs—accounting for 23% of the total. By program, 12,073 ITAs went to CEC candidates, 13,790 to FSWP candidates, and 7 to FSTP candidates.

CRS Scores

The majority of CRS scores in the pool ranged between 300-550, representing 93% of all candidates. The average CRS score rose above 500 for all-program draws after the introduction of category-based selection.

CRS Score Ranges for ITAs

Gender Distribution

The data reveals that 57% of ITAs were issued to men, while 43% went to women. Men dominated the CEC (52%) and PNP (26%) categories, while women were more likely to receive ITAs through the FSWP (33% vs. 22%).

Occupations Receiving ITAs

In 2023, a significant number of ITAs were issued to candidates in computer, tech, and finance occupations. Notably, 48% of all ITAs were awarded to candidates in occupations not listed in the report. For the second consecutive year, software engineers and designers were the most likely to receive ITAs (7,259), followed by software developers and programmers (5,183).

Top Occupations by ITAs

Countries of Residence and Citizenship

As in 2022, the majority of ITAs were issued to candidates residing in Canada (76,791). India remained the second-largest group by residence (7,394 ITAs). Notably, Cameroon rose to third place with 3,828 ITAs, surpassing Nigeria by just six ITAs.

Country of Residence for ITAs

In terms of citizenship, India continued to lead with 52,106 ITAs, followed by Nigeria (7,263) and China (5,854).

Country of Citizenship for ITAs

Educational Background

Most ITAs went to candidates with post-secondary education. Specifically, 46% had a post-secondary credential of three years or longer, and 43% had a master's degree or entry-to-practice professional degree.

Educational Background of ITA Recipients

Language Proficiency

Language proficiency is a key factor in CRS scoring. In 2023, 78% of candidates had a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) score between 7 and 9, while 18% achieved the maximum score of CLB 10, a slight decrease from 21% in 2022.

Language Proficiency of ITA Recipients