Canada’s Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) with 6 selection factors. Express Entry points calculator for FSWP

The selection factors, that change the immigration game of Canada.

Canadian permanent residency is based mainly on 6 factors. As a candidate, if your score enough against this factor, you will be invited to apply for permanent residency.

Canadian “Express Entry Program” is the backbone of its immigration system. Federal skilled workers are individuals with education, work experience, age, and language skills who are selected under the Express Entry Immigration System to apply for permanent residence.  Selection factor points are used to assess your eligibility for the Federal Skilled Worker Program.

Also, how you are better or inferior to other candidates is assessed by giving you a score. The total available score is 100. If you score 67 points or more, you may be eligible for the Federal Skilled Worker Program.   

If you meet other requirements, you can send a profile to the Express Entry Pool. Once you enter the Express Entry Pool, the immigration system uses another factor to calculate your points mainly known as CRS “Comprehensive Ranking System”. But here we will only discuss the “Federal Skilled Workers” selection factors against their allowed scores. The maximum available score list is as follows:

Skill	Maximum points
Language	28
Education	25
Work experience	15
Age	12
Arranged employment in Canda	10
Adaptability	10

1- Language skills 

To be able to apply for the Express Entry program, it is essential to be in a position to communicate in one or both of Canada’s official languages. You can earn 28 points for your language talent in English and French. You are awarded points based on your potential. You will be observed from the following skills:

• Reading
• Writing
• Speaking
• Listening

(a) Language options available

You must pass an approved language test to prove your language level. You must read all of the following information to measure your English or French level:

• For French language Niveaux de competence linguistic canadiens (NCLC)
• For English language Canadian language Benchmark (CLB)

(b) Level required for the first official language

You must have a minimum level of CLB 7 or NCLC 7 for the first official language in all 4 language skills. You can get a maximum of 24 points for your first official language. Here are the details of the points table:

First official language	Reading	Writing	Speaking	Listening
CBL level 9 or higher	6	6	6	6
CBL level 8	5	5	5	5
CBL level 7	4	4	4	4
less than CBL level 7	cant apply	cant apply	cant apply	cant apply

(c) Level required for second official language

To earn second official language points, you must meet at least CLB 5 or NCLC 5 levels in all four language skills. For the second official language, the maximum score is 4 points.

(d) What are the approved tests?

There are certain tests for showing English language proficiency. For the English language it is (both in General format):

• CELPIP: Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program
• IELTS: Internationa English Language Testing System

For French approved tests are:

• TEF Canada: Test d’évaluation de français
• TCF Canada: Test de connaissance du français

(e) How the test results are compared with CLB levels?

English language proficiency

(i) IELTS: Internationa English Language Testing System IELTS as a first language (maximum 24 points)

CLB Level	Ability: Speaking	Ability: Listening	Ability: Reading	Ability: Writing	Points per ability
7	6.0	6.0 – 7.0	6.0	6.0	4 (total 16)
8	6.5	7.5	6.5	6.5	5 (total 20)
9	7.0	8.0	7.0	7.0	6 (total 24)
10 and above	7.5 – 9.0	8.5 – 9.0	8.0 – 9.0	7.5 – 9.0	6 (total 24)

IELTS as a second language (maximum 4 points)

CLB Level	Ability: Speaking	Ability: Listening	Ability: Reading	Ability: Writing	Points (total)
5 and above	5.0 – 9.0	5.0 – 9.0	4.0 – 9.0	5.0 – 9.0	4

(ii) CELPIP: Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program CELPIP as a first language (maximum 24 points)

CLB Level	Ability: Speaking	Ability: Listening	Ability: Reading	Ability: Writing	Points per ability
7 CELPIP-G	7	7	7	7	4 5 (total 16)
8 CELPIP-G	8	8	8	8	5 5 (total 20)
9 CELPIP-G	9	9	9	9	6 (total 24)
10 and above CELPIP-G	10+	10+	10+	10+	6 (total 24)

CELPIP as a second language (maximum 4 points)

CLB Level	Ability: Speaking	Ability: Listening	Ability: Reading	Ability: Writing	Points (total)
5 and above	5 – 12	5 – 12	5 – 12	5 – 12	4

French Language Proficiency

(i) TEF (Test d’évaluation de français) TEF as a first language (maximum 24 points)

NCLC Level	Ability: Speaking (expression orale)	Ability: Listening (compréhension de l’oral)	Ability: Reading (compréhension de l’écrit)	Ability: Writing (expression écrite)	Points (per ability)
7	310 – 348	249 – 279	207 – 232	310 – 348	4
8	349 – 370	280 – 297	233 – 247	349 – 370	5
9 and above	371+	298+	248+	371+	6

TEF as a second language (maximum 4 points)

NCLC Level	Ability: Speaking (expression orale)	Ability: Listening (compréhension de l’oral)	Ability: Reading (compréhension de l’écrit)	Ability: Writing (expression écrite)	Points (total)
5 and above	226 – 371+	181 – 298+	151 – 248+	226 – 371+	4

(ii) TCF Canada: Test de connaissance du français TCF as a first language (maximum 24 points)

NCLC Level	Ability: Speaking (expression orale)	Ability: Listening (compréhension de l’oral)	Ability: Reading (compréhension de l’écrit)	Ability: Writing (expression écrite)	Points (per ability)
7	10 – 11	458 – 502	453 – 498	10 – 11	4
8	12 – 13	503 – 522	499 – 523	12 – 13	5
9 and above	14+	523+	524+	14+	6

TCF as a second language (maximum 4 points)

NCLC Level	Ability: Speaking (expression orale)	Ability: Listening (compréhension de l’oral)	Ability: Reading (compréhension de l’écrit)	Ability: Writing (expression écrite)	Points (total)
5 and above	6+	369 – 397+	375 – 405+	6+	4

2- Points for Educational Qualification

Candidates can score a maximum of 25 points for educational qualification. You must include your Canadian Certificate or Foreign Certificate and “Educational Certificate Verification” (ECA) report when applying. The education acquired in Canada can give you extra benefits but international degrees are also accepted towards points scoring.

If you have an overseas education, you must submit Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) record for immigration functions from a specific organization that shows that your education is equal to a complete certificate, diploma, or degree from Canadian “Secondary School” (high school) or “Post Secondary” Institution. Following is an example of how you can score for your qualification:

• Grade 12 (high school completion) 5
• High School Diploma 5
• One-year certificate (One-year degree, diploma, or certificate from a program at a university, college, trade or technical school, or another institute) 15
• Post-secondary Diploma with a focus in (Two-year degree, diploma or certificate from a program at a university, college, trade or technical school, or other institutes) 19
• Bachelor’s degree (Bachelor’s degree or other programs (three or more years) at a university, college, trade or technical school, or another institute) 21
• Three-year or more certificate, diploma, or degree plus an Associate Degree (Two or more certificates, diplomas, or degrees) 22
• Master’s Degree 23
• Professional Doctorate Degree (Ph.D.) 25

The complete and detailed score for educational qualification can be assessed and read here.

3- Work Experience

Candidates can score a maximum of 15 points for work experience. Professional work experience is a must for getting considered into the entry pool of FSWP.  You can obtain scores for the number of years you spend doing full time paid work (minimum 30 hours per week, or an equal amount of part-time such as 15 hours per week for 2 years) at skill kind 0, or skill levels A or B of the 2016 National Occupation Classification. To earn selector aspect points, your work experience would count if it was:

• In Canada or abroad
• While you had been studying
• Self-employed

The NOC lists all occupations in the Canadian labor market and is used to classify jobs in the Canadian economy. It explains the duties, skills, and job settings of different occupations. In your Express Entry profile, you will need to specify the “NOC code” for each job that you want to work for. Find your NOC to discover satisfactory information from each of your previous jobs. If the description and listing of vital duties match your job, you can count this experience as a source of gaining points. The point score is given as under:

Work Experience Duration	Points
One year	9
Two-Three years	11
Four-Five years	13
Six or more years	15

4- Age

Candidates can score a maximum of 12 points for the age group. One important thing in terms of age is that you will get points based on your age on the day you apply. The following table is showing points according to your age

Age	Points
Less than 18	0
47 or more	0
46	1
45	2
44	3
43	4
42	5
41	6
40	7
39	8
38	9
37	10
36	11
18-35	12

5- Arranged Job (employment) in Canada

Arranged employment can give you a maximum of 10 points. You can earn these points if you are offered at least 12 months ( it should be a full-time job with a minimum of 30 hours/ week) of employment through a Canadian employer. In addition, the fundamental requirement is that you need to acquire a job offer before applying to come to Canada as a federal skilled worker. It should not be seasonal. The valid job offer must be from occupations listed in skill type 0, or skill level A or B, of the NOC. It will be confirmed by Employment and Social Development Canada. Your employer should provide you LMIA In total, there are 4 conditions that help you claim such points:

Condition number 1

You are in your country of citizenship and a Canadian employer has made you a legitimate job offer based on LMIA and has accepted you as a skilled worker.

Condition number 2

A job that has an exemption from the LMIA, and currently you are working in Canada. This exemption is the result of one of the following factors. Your work permit is valid when you apply and a permanent resident visa is issued (or when your permanent resident visa is issued you are allowed to work in Canada without permission). Your current employer has offered you a suitable job offer based on your acceptance as a skilled worker. You are presently working for an employer designated in your work permit. You have been working for this employer for at least 1 year, non-stop full time or part-time equivalent.

• A federal province settlement
• The benefit of Canadian interest
• International consensus for example the North Trade settlement

Condition number 3

In this circumstance, you are working in Canada nowadays on a work permit and you meet the following points:

• You are working for a designated employer on your work permit. And this enterprise has offered you an appropriate job based on your acceptance as a skilled worker.
• Your work permit is legitimate when you apply and an eternal resident visa is issued (or when your visa is issued you are allowed to work in Canada without a permit).
• You have been issued a work permit based on Labor Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Employment and Social Development Canada.

Conditions number 4

You are presently working in Canada in a job that is exempt from LMIA, but it is not under an international, federal-provincial settlement or because of significant advantage to Canada’s interests. The employer you are presently working for has an LMIA and offers you an authoritative job based on your LMIA and acceptance of you as a skilled worker. You have a legitimate work permit or you are allowed to work in Canada without a permit.

6- Adaptability 

One can also get additional points for the adaptability option. The maximum score can be 10.

(a) Your previous work in Canada

A Canadian work experience can provide you the best adaptability option by offering 10 extra points. This could be in case you did a full-time valid job listed in skill type 0, or skill level A or B of the National Occupation Classification which is called NOC for a minimum of 12 months. The main thing is that you were authorized to work in Canada or you had a valid work permit.

(b) Your spouse or law partner previous work in Canada

This option can give you 5 extra points. Towards adaptability, the professional work experience of your spouse can also count. This could be in case your spouse has worked for at least 1 year in Canada on a valid work permit.

(c) Your previous studies in Canada

As far as your previous studies are concerned, this can be helpful as well (by providing you a maximum of 5). To prove, you must have completed 24 academic months of full-time studies and you obtained your education from a secondary or post-secondary school in Canada.

(d) Your spouse or common-law partner’s previous study in Canada

Your spouse or common-law partner’s studies in Canada can also help you to gain points for adaptability options (a maximum of 5). This is possible if your spouse or common-law partner has completed at least 2 academic years (entirely in one program) of full-time study at a Canadian high school or post-secondary school.

(e) Your relatives in Canada

Adaptability in Canada can also be proven if you have your relatives living in Canada permanently (this can give you a maximum of 5). The relatives must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents and a minimum of 18 years or older. These relatives in Canada should be none other than your:

• Parents
• Children
• Grandparent
• Grandchild
• Your and your spouse law partner’s
• Uncle or aunt (by blood or marriage)
• Sibling (child of your or your spouse’s parents)
• Nephew or niece (grandchild of your or your spouse’s parent)

(f) Spouse of Partner’s language proficiency

The level of the language for your spouse or common-law partner is CBL4 or higher in all four language skills (reading and writing, speaking, and listening). The languages are English or French. The maximum point score can be 5.

(g) Arranged employment in Canada

You can also gain extra 5 points if you have had arranged employment in Canada. Arranged employment is when you have a job offer from a Canadian employer in a NOC 0, A, or B job for a continuous period of one year or more. In some cases, this job offer must be approved by Employment and Social Development Canada/Service Canada.

---

Important DefinitionsNOC

National Occupation Classification. Further divided into four occupational categories; A, B, C, and D. A and B are for highly qualified occupations. On the other hand, C and D are for skilled and lower-level jobs.

CBL

CLB stands for Canadian Language Benchmark Standards. This is the national standard for describing, measuring, and acknowledging the English language skills of potential immigrants in Canada. CLB benchmarks are organized in three stages and 12 levels.

NCLC

The NCLC is the official standard used in Canada to describe, measure, and identify the extent to which adult immigrants can communicate in their second language.

ECA

Educational Credential Assessment. There are some international organizations that provide reports for comparability for qualifications.

LMIA (Labor market impact assessment) 

The Labor Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) is a document that an employer in Canada may need to obtain before hiring a foreign worker. A positive LMIA will show that a foreign worker is needed to fill the job. Once an employer receives an LMIA, the worker can apply for a work permit.

Define full-time studies

You should understand all the requirements required for your studies such as mentioned above and the main thing is that your study should be full-time, full-time study is confirmed if you have studied a minimum of 15 hours of classes per week. You must have stayed in good academic standing (on school merit) during your studies.

---