Express Entry
Express Entry is an online entry system that can be used to manage immigration applications from skilled workers.
Free Online Immigration AssessmentGenerally, there are three immigration programs administered through Express Entry:
Express EntryCanadian Experience Class
- any skilled professionals with previous work experience in Canada
- work experience must have been gained in the three years before you apply.
Federal Skilled Worker Program
- any skilled workers with foreign work experience
- must meet criteria for education and other factors
Federal Skilled Trades Program
- for any skilled workers who are qualified in a skilled trade
- there must be a valid job offer or a certificate of qualification
Any Express Entry Application, when refused, contains a letter of refusal that states:
Your application for permanent residency has been evaluated by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Unfortunately, your application does not meet the standards for a complete application as outlined in sections 10 and 12.01 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. As a result, your application was refused because it was incomplete and not processed.
Such a letter is for the cancellation of the Express Entry application rather than the refusal. Such an application has not gone into processing yet. The application has been returned as all the required components for processing the application were not included, so it has been returned unprocessed. In such a situation, IRCC has determined that some of the required mandatory documents or information was not submitted.
When the application is put in the queue for processing, the immigration officer must determine:
- If the applicant meets the eligibility criteria of the program that they have applied for
- That the applicant had the necessary CRS points (Comprehensive Ranking System). To rank immigration candidates, the Canadian government developed a merit-based scoring system that assigns a score to each applicant in the Express Entry pool.
- The cancellation of a PR application is not the same as a rejection. When an applicant receives the information that their application has been canceled, they will lose their Invitation to Apply (ITA) and must create a new Express Entry profile and wait to receive a new ITA before submitting another application. The cancellation letter will state the reason why their application has been canceled as incomplete. The government fees will be reimbursed to the applicant within six weeks of receiving their cancellation letter.
Refusal of Express Entry Application
When an applicant receives a refusal letter, the letter will state why their application has been refused. On all future immigration applications, the applicant must declare that they have been denied the PR on previous occasions. Their fees will not be reimbursed as the fee is the amount charged for processing the application, even though it has been refused. However, they will be refunded the Right of Permanent Residence Fee within six weeks.
An application for Express Entry can be refused for many reasons:
1. The applicant fails to meet the essential requirement of the program they have applied for Canadian Experience Class (CEC), Federal Skilled Worker (FSW), Federal Skilled Trades (FST), Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)
2. The applicant did not have the required CRS score (Comprehensive Ranking Score) at the time they received their application
3. The applicant is inadmissible in Canada. People are not allowed to enter or stay in Canada because they have committed or been convicted of a crime. That crime could have taken place in or outside of Canada.
4. The applicant’s relative or any family member is not permitted to Canada.
Other Common Reasons for Refusal of Express Entry Application
Police Clearance Certificate
All applicants are supposed to submit a police certificate from the country where they currently reside. The police certificate must have been issued within six months from the date they submit their application. Applicants who reside in Canada and are submitting their application from Canada are not required to provide an RCMP Police certificate from Canada.
All applicants are required to provide a police certificate from every country where they have resided for six months in a row within the last ten years or since they turned 18. This certificate is applied only after leaving that country.
Applicants who apply for work permits, including the International Experience Canada Program (IEC), must provide a police certificate as part of their work permit application. However, when they apply for a PR after a year or two, they sometimes use the same credential they used for their work permit application, leading to the PR application’s cancellation. The reason is that the police certificate they used was issued while residing in that country rather than after they lived in their country of residence. Therefore, the police certificate will be valid if it was issued after the last time they lived in that country.
- If the Police Certificate is Scanned but submitted in Black and White: It is necessary to submit a scanned, coloured image of the original police certificate. The immigration officer may cancel the visa application if this requirement is not fulfilled.
- If the Police Clearance Certificate is Missing: All Express Entry applicants will need to upload the police certificate in case they have never left their home country for more than six months since the age of 18 years. In addition, the applicant must provide a police certificate for all the family members, spouse, and children 18 years or older.
- Failure to upload the correct police clearance certificate: IRCC has its specifications regarding the PCC required with the application. Some countries provide the certificate if a different format which is not accepted by the immigration officer leading to the refusal of the visa application.
Important Documents like Educational Credential (Degree, Certificate, Diploma) missing or not included in the application
The applicant must apply for an Education Credential Assessment (ECA) from one of the IRCC-approved ECA organizations. Once the assessment is done, the applicant can create or update their Express Entry profile. The applicant must provide the information stated on their ECA report and ECA report/ certificate number. It is a mandatory requirement to upload a scanned image of their degree, diploma, or certificate after submitting your application. If the application is submitted with the degree, diploma, or certification, it will cancel their PR application.
Non-inclusion of Primary Duties and Responsibilities in the Letter of Employment
The applicant must provide a letter of employment which must include the information regarding their employment period, job title, occupation, hours worked per week, salary obtained or hourly pay, and any benefits gained. This letter must be on the company letterhead and signed by the employer.
The IRCC officer will review each letter to help them determine whether the applicant has the necessary experience to meet the eligibility requirements of the program they are applying under and determine their CRS points.
The most crucial information in the letter is the primary duties and responsibilities of the position. These duties will help the officer determine whether the NOC the applicant has selected in their application is the correct code for the job and whether the occupation will fall under a skill type applied for by the applicant. If no duties and responsibilities are listed on the letter, the officer will refuse the application for the PR.
Statutory Declaration of Common-Law Union and proof of common-Law relationship
One of the common reasons for refusal of the Express Entry applications is that the applicant does not provide a signed IMM5409 Statutory Declaration of Common-law Union, or they do not include proof that they have resided with their common-law partner for one year or more. The applicant must also include evidence of their common-law relationship. In support of this, the applicant can submit documents such as-
- Both parties are included in the leasing agreement, which has been signed.
- Joint utility bills dated over one year ago from when you submitted your application. The document should contain both partner names and addresses.
- Joint bank account statements dated over one year ago from when you submitted your application. The document should contain both partner names and addresses.
If you fail to provide these documents, your application will be rejected. In addition, the applicants must complete the form and sign the form along with their common-law partner in the presence of a lawyer, notary public or commissioner of oaths.
Note: In addition to having lived together for at least a year, common-law couples also have to meet other requirements. Immigration agents examine the following factors to establish whether a common-law connection is genuine:
- is in a monogamous relationship with their partner
- is physically and emotionally reliant on each other
- participates in a shared social life
- is financially interdependent on one another, either through sharing expenses or providing financial assistance.
Expired Language Proficiency Test Results
When submitting your PR application, your approved language test results (IELTS or CELPIP) must be less than two years old. Since the test results are valid for 12 months, you should be sure that your results will be valid for the length of the profile’s potential time in the pool. Language test results used previously for your immigration or citizenship application do not expire for Canadian citizenship applications. English and French are the two national languages of Canada. When assessing CRS scores or applying for one of the federal immigration streams for Express Entry, there is no preference for English or French as the Official First Language. Regardless of language, all tests evaluate the same four skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Also, you can only use the results from one test; you cannot combine the best results from different categories from different attempts at the test.
Refusal or cancellation of your application is highly demotivating and stressful. However, this can be avoidable by carefully following the instructions and making sure you submit a complete application. An experienced Immigration Lawyer can review your application today before submitting it to IRCC to ensure that it is done and that no problems lurking could lead to a refusal. This is necessary to ensure that you have met the program eligibility. This will also ensure that you have demonstrated that you have the necessary CRS score and that your documents meet the minimum requirement before they are uploaded or submitted for the PR.
Contact ImmiLaw Immigration today. We have a team of the best immigration lawyers in Canada to help and guide you throughout the immigration process.
