What is a step by step procedure for Canada express entry?
Step 1: Take IELTS and attain CLB 9 (viz: band score of 8777 in LRWS)
CLB 9 gives candidates additional language points boost of 50–60 points. If you are able to reach the score of 440+ without CLB 9, that is fine too.
Cost - Approx 200 CAD every time you take IELTS.
Step 2: Get your ECA done (6–8 weeks)
ECA is Education Credential Assessment. It is done by multiple organisations (WES is one of them) and provides you the Canadian equivalent degree assessment of your native country education.
Cost - Approx 285 CAD. (200 CAD Fee + Either 85 CAD EXPRESS International Delivery for WES report or 7 CAD for the Standard Delivery for WES Report)
Step 3: Create EE profile on CIC website with your attained IELTS score and ECA
Making a profile enters you in the pool of candidates waiting for the ITA (Invitation to Apply). Make sure all the information mentioned in the profile is accurate as you will be asked to provide proof of all that information once you are selected.
Cost - 0
Step 4: Wait for the draw to reach your score and receive ITA afterwards
The ROI (Rounds of Invitation) happens every 3–4 weeks. The Canadian govt declares the min cut off score of the EE profile and all the candidates having that score or score more than it will get ITA. The score varies and is tweaked to meet the usual 2800–3000 applicants quota per ROI.
Cost - 0
Step 5: Post ITA, you get 2 months to submit your documents
After candidates receive ITA, they are supposed to provide documents and proofs of all the information mentioned in their profile along with few others. The documents/information needed from the candidates are:
Scan of Travel Document (Passport) of all applicants
Digital Photograph of all applicants
Proof of Employment of primary applicant
Proof of Funds of primary applicant
Proof of Medical of all applicants
Proof of Education & IELTS of all applicants
Police Clearance Certificate (From all countries where you have resided for 6 months or more) of all applicants
Cost varies as Medical cost, PCC fees, Notarization fees etc varies as per the country. Ideally, all expenses should be covered within 300–350 CAD per applicant.
Step 6: Submit documents, pay Immigration Fee and wait for the PPR (PassPort Request - For stamping)
After submitting the documents and paying the Immigration fees, the Canadian Immigration officers verify the documents and information provided. This generally takes 3–6 months depending on the application type, countries a person has resided in and most importantly, the immigration visa office where the application has been sent for processing and how much applications' backlog is there.
New Delhi visa office is infamous for taking usually 4 months to process and verify the submitted documents, sometimes even more!
Cost - 1050 CAD x No. of Applicants in the application
Step 7: PPR received. Submit Passport and get Canada CoPR (Confirmation of PR)
Once the documents are verified, candidates are intimated about the result of their application via mail. On successful processing, candidates are required to submit the passports of all the applicants for the Visa Stamping and CoPR. Passport is being sent by VFS Global and would cost around 30 CAD per passport. The stamped passport is returned to the designated address within 2 weeks along with 2 copies of CoPR.
Cost - Approx 30 CAD x No. of Applicants
Step 8: Reach Canada on CoPR and apply for PR card
Applicants are supposed to travel to Canada within the tenure mentioned on the stamped visa. The tenure is generally till the time passport is valid or till medical proof is valid, whichever is earlier. In any case, visa will not be for more than 1 year.
Applicants are supposed to plan their travel, temporary or permanent migration, to Canada within the Visa timelines and submit one copy of CoPR at the time of landing. The other copy is stamped and returned.
Submitting CoPR means that Candidates have successfully landed in Canada and this in turn initiates the PR card application for each applicant.
Cost - Travel Cost of each applicant
Step 9: Receive PR card (2–3 months)
Official PR Card processing time is 62–65 days and the PR card will be couriered to the address given by the applicants at the time of their landing. The address has to be a Canadian address.
PR Card will be delivered to the address within 50–80 days. In case you have performed soft landing (temporary migration) just to fulfill the landing formalities before the Visa expires, you can request any friend coming to your native country to bring along your PR card or you can apply for PR travel document from your home country next time you want to go to canada without having PR card.
PR cards are not couriered outside Canada and have to be delivered in person in such scenarios.
Step 10: You are Canadian PR. Enjoy!
Once you have your PR card, you are officially a Canadian PR. Have fun!
PR card is provided with validity of 5 years. A person is suppose to live in Canada for 730 days in consecutive 5 years to continue his/her PR card for next 5 years after the expiry.
If a person has stayed in Canada for more than 1095 days in consecutive 5 years, he/she is eligible to apply for Canadian citizenship.
Some Acronyms Frequently Used in this post & during Visa Processing:
CLB - Canadian Language Benchmark
ECA - Education Credential Assessment
EE - Express Entry
ROI - Round of Invitations
ITA - Invitation to Apply
CoPR - Confirmation of Permanent Residency
PPR - Passport Request
PR - Permanent Resident (Residency)