What Employers Need to Know 

On October 16, 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced a significant redesign of the Express Entry Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS), the points system used to rank candidates for Canadian permanent residence. Beginning November 3, 2026, the CRS will place greater weight on Canadian work experience and job offers in high-wage occupations, and employers will no longer need a Labor Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) to support a qualifying job offer.   

KEY CHANGES:   

    1.New Labor Market Integration Factor  

A new CRS factor worth up to 150 points for candidates without an accompanying spouse or common-law partner (or up to 140 points for those with one) will score candidates on either their Canadian work experience or a qualifying job offer. The two cannot be combined, and IRCC will automatically apply whichever produces a higher score.   

    2. Bonus Points for High-Wage Canadian Experience  

Existing work-experience points and eligibility rules for TEER 0–3 occupations remain unchanged. Candidates with at least 12 months (1,560 hours) of qualifying Canadian experience in an eligible high-wage occupation can earn an additional 20, 40, or 70 points, depending on whether the occupation’s median wage is at least 1.3, 1.5, or 2 times the Canadian average median wage. High-wage status is based on the NOC code, not the individual’s own salary.  

    3. Job Offer Points Reinstated  

Valid job offers in eligible high-wage occupations will earn 50, 70, or 100 points under the same wage tiers. Offers outside the high-wage list earn no CRS points. However, for the Federal Skilled Worker and Federal Skilled Trades programs, an offer in any TEER 0–3 occupation may still support program eligibility.    

   4. No LMIA Required:   

An LMIA will no longer be needed for a job offer to count toward eligibility or CRS points, and an LMIA-supported offer will not receive extra points or priority. Offers may be for a new or existing position with a new or existing employer.  

   5. Temporary Pause in Invitations  

IRCC will recalculate the scores of all profiles in the Express Entry pool, a process that may take up to two weeks. Invitation rounds will be paused until recalculation is complete. Because every profile will be rescored, competitive cut-off scores under the new system cannot yet be predicted and will not be known until draws resume after November 3, 2026.    

IMPORTANT NOTES:   

• Candidates who want CRS points for a qualifying job offer must update their Express Entry profiles with the job offer details before November 3, 2026. Points for Canadian work experience will be recalculated automatically.   

• Candidates waiting for an invitation should expect some delay.    

• At the permanent residence stage, officers will assess whether each offer is genuine, including the employer’s business activity, its ability to meet the offer’s terms, its compliance with employment and recruitment laws, and the candidate’s qualifications and likelihood of accepting the position. As such, employers supporting foreign workers should be prepared to substantiate the genuineness of any job offer.     

 If you have questions about how these changes affect your workforce, please contact your T&S Americas team.