Migration Pathways

Explore common temporary-to-permanent pathways for migrating to Canada. Find the PR route that best matches your situation.

Express Entry pool → ITA → PR

Federal Skilled Worker or CEC profile → invitation → permanent residence

Pool wait depends on CRS and IRCC rounds; PR after ITA often ~6 months if the application is complete

Step-by-Step Process

1

Confirm you meet a federal program: Federal Skilled Worker (foreign or mixed experience) or Canadian Experience Class (Canadian skilled work)

2

Gather language results (and an ECA if you need FSW education points). FSW also needs at least 67/100 on the selection grid

3

Create an Express Entry profile and enter the pool. IRCC ranks you on the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS, out of 1,200)

4

Wait for a round of invitations — general, program-specific (for example CEC), or category-based (for example French or certain occupations)

5

If you receive an Invitation to Apply, submit a complete PR application by the deadline on the ITA

6

Complete medical, police, and biometrics checks. If approved, you become a permanent resident

💡 Key Tips

  • The FSW 67-point grid only gets you into the pool. Invitations use CRS, which is a different score
  • Since 25 March 2025, a job offer does not add CRS points. Language (including French), Canadian experience, and a PNP nomination (+600) matter more
  • Cut-off scores change every round — do not treat a blog number as a guarantee
  • Plan to live outside Quebec; Quebec runs a separate skilled-worker system
Federal Skilled WorkerCanadian Experience ClassProvincial Nominee

Study → PGWP → CEC

Eligible Canadian credential → open work permit → Express Entry CEC

Study length + PGWP (often up to 3 years) to collect 1 year of skilled Canadian work, then Express Entry processing

Step-by-Step Process

1

Complete a PGWP-eligible program of at least 8 months at a designated learning institution

2

Apply for a Post-Graduation Work Permit within 180 days of written program completion

3

Work in a NOC TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3 job and accumulate 1,560 paid hours in Canada (work while you were a full-time student usually does not count for CEC)

4

Meet CEC language levels: CLB 7 for TEER 0/1, CLB 5 for TEER 2/3

5

Create an Express Entry profile under the Canadian Experience Class and wait for an ITA

6

Apply for permanent residence if invited

💡 Key Tips

  • A PGWP is temporary and generally issued once — use it to build skilled hours, not as an end state
  • Language and field-of-study rules that started around November 2024 may apply depending on when you applied for the study permit or PGWP
  • Canadian education can raise CRS even though CEC has no education minimum
  • If CEC cut-offs are out of reach, look at a provincial graduate stream or Atlantic Immigration if you studied in the Atlantic
PGWPCanadian Experience ClassProvincial Nominee

Temporary work / IEC → CEC or PNP

Work permit or International Experience Canada → skilled Canadian experience → PR

IEC or other work-permit length first; CEC needs 1 year of skilled Canadian work, then Express Entry or a provincial stream

Step-by-Step Process

1

Enter Canada on a valid work permit — for example International Experience Canada (Working Holiday, Young Professionals, or International Co-op) if your country participates, or an employer-specific / LMIA-based permit

2

Move into (or stay in) paid skilled work in NOC TEER 0–3 while authorized

3

Track hours and duties against the NOC. After 1,560 hours in the last 3 years you may meet CEC

4

If your occupation or province fits a nominee stream, apply to that PNP in parallel — a nomination adds 600 CRS points

5

Create or update an Express Entry profile (CEC and/or FSW) and wait for an ITA, or follow a base PNP federal application if the stream is not Express Entry–aligned

6

Lodge PR when invited or when the province and IRCC instruct you to

💡 Key Tips

  • IEC is temporary and age- and country-limited. Treat it as a way to get Canadian skilled work, not as PR
  • Working Holiday permits are open; Young Professionals usually need a job offer in a skilled occupation
  • A job offer no longer boosts CRS, but Canadian work still helps CEC eligibility and many PNPs
  • Unauthorized work, unpaid internships, and most full-time-student work do not count toward CEC
Canadian Experience ClassProvincial NomineeFederal Skilled Worker

PNP (base or Express Entry–aligned)

Provincial nomination → federal PR — with or without the Express Entry pool

Provincial intake and processing first; enhanced streams then follow Express Entry, base streams follow a separate IRCC PR application

Step-by-Step Process

1

Choose a province or territory you actually intend to live in (Quebec and Nunavut are not PNP)

2

Match a current stream using the province-by-province hub, then confirm the stream is open on the official site

3

Submit the provincial expression of interest or application with language, work, and (if required) job-offer evidence

4

If you receive an enhanced nomination, add it to your Express Entry profile for 600 extra CRS points, then wait for a federal ITA

5

If you receive a base nomination, apply to IRCC through the non–Express Entry provincial-nominee process

6

Complete federal medical, police, and biometrics checks. If approved, settle in the nominating province

💡 Key Tips

  • Enhanced PNP is usually the faster federal step because +600 CRS almost always results in an invitation
  • Base PNP is useful when you do not meet FSW or CEC but the province still wants you
  • Atlantic job offers may fit AIP instead of (or as well as) a provincial stream — compare both
  • Stream criteria, occupation lists, and intake caps change with little notice — use official provincial sites, not secondary round-ups
Provincial NomineeProvincial nomination hubAtlantic ImmigrationFederal Skilled WorkerCanadian Experience Class