Canada’s Federal Skilled Worker Program: Explained

Immigrating to Canada is not only a complicated process but is also a life-changing decision. Currently, Canada has over 70 different immigration programs and visas to choose from. Even though this may be perceived as a good thing, it practically complicates the entire selection process.

As is the case with every big decision you’ve ever had to make, the more options you have, the greater the chance you have of choosing the wrong opportunity and missing out on a golden chance to succeed. In this case, your golden chance refers to you materializing your Canadian dream and, that too, using the shortest route possible.

With that said, this post is going to be dealing with one of the most popular Canadian immigration programs, which is managed by the Express Entry System. We’re talking about the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSPW), which managed to help more than 70,000 immigrants move to Canada last year.

What Is the FSWP?

The Federal Skilled Worker Program aims to aid highly skilled workers to move to Canada while simultaneously closing an existing gap in the country’s labor market. These programs were implemented by Canada to deal with early retirement ages, the steadily declining birth rate, and the general lack of skilled workers that could fill in posts that are marketed due to the rapid rate of job creation.

These programs are not only beneficial for employers, but for skilled employees as well. To be considered eligible for the FSWP’s requirements, you need to meet certain requirements which include:

• Age
• Language
• Education
• Work experience
• Employment
• Adaptability

If you scroll further down, you will learn more about how to optimize your application process and how to do so without any stress or hassle.

1.   Brush Up on Your English and French

Every applicant is required to prove their language ability by taking a pre-approved language test. For French, you can get yourself tested with the Niveaux De Compétence Linguistique Canadiens (NCLC), and for English, you can try many Canadian Language Benchmarks. In either case, your test will be broken down into reading, writing, speaking and listening sections.

To pass these tests, you will have to score a minimum of 28 points, however, you will also need a minimum of NCLC7 or CLB7 in either test. Once you’ve cleared your first language tests, you can move onto a second language as well.

2.   How to Make Your Knowledge Count

To score points for your education, you will be required to submit:

• A degree, diploma or certificate from a Canadian institution (secondary or post secondary)
• An Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) from a post secondary or foreign secondary institution.

By submitting either of these documents, you will have scored a maximum of 25 points under education. Of course, there are over 150 scoring factors that vary from program to program and only an experienced Canada immigration consultant can guide you through each one.

3.   About Work Experience

Having considerable work experience is another great method of boosting your FSWP points. You will be awarded up to 15 points if you work full-time (a minimum of 30 hours per week) or if you have the equivalent of part-time experience (a minimum of 15 hours per week for at least 24 months).

The factors that affect your points under this category include:

• Whether you possess skill level A or B or have skill type 0
• Whether you worked abroad or in Canada
• Whether you worked while studying
• Whether you are self employed

Depending on these factors, 1 year of experience can grant up to 9 points, whereas 2-3 years of experience could grant up to 15 points.

Note: This is probably where you should use your NOC code to help earn some extra points. Make sure you know the NOC code of the job you are proving experience in.

4.   Age Is Not Just a Number

Unfortunately, age is not a good factor for your FSWP application because the older you are, the fewer points you will score. What’s even worse is that if you are 47 years old (or much older), you will not be awarded any points.

The points allocated here are calculated based on your age during the period of time you submitted your application. The maximum points one can receive in this category are 15.

5.   Full-Time Job Offers

You will be eligible for an extra 10 points if you can land a full-time job offer in Canada, for a minimum of 1 year. As for experience, this job will be required to be for skill level A or B or skill type 0. As soon as you prove that you are capable of pulling off all the tasks and duties assigned to you, you will be granted a Canadian certification or license upon arrival.

Searching for certified Canada Immigration Consultants?

Navigating through the Canadian Immigration system can be quite tedious since you’re dealing with a large amount of documents and forms, all of which have strict submission deadlines. For this reason, you should never go at it alone.

Canada Safe Haven Immigration Consulting was established in Canada since 2010 and they are highly competent and skilled Canada immigration consultants and they are looking forward to guiding you through your application process.

Browse through our website to learn about our services and our reputation, or contact us to book an appointment:

• Tel: (905) 264-7773
• info@cshimmigration.com