Federal Skilled Worker Program

The Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) has been one of the most popular immigration programs.

Skilled worker is a person who can compete and succeed in the country’s knowledge-based economy and has the ability to be self supporting upon the arrival in Canada. In order to qualify, the applicant must score a minimum of 67 points out of the possible 100 points.

As of January of 2015, since the introduction of the Express Entry system, the 2014 accepted occupation list no longer applies and there are no limits on how many applicants are accepted under each occupation.

All applicants must meet the following minimal requirements to apply as a skilled worker:

You must have at least one year of continuous full-time, paid work experience or the equivalent in part-time continuous employment
You must have had this experience within the last 10 years
Your work experience must be Skill Type 0 (managerial occupations) or Skill Level A (professional occupations) or B (technical occupations and skilled trades) on the Canadian National Occupation Classification (NOC)

What are the selection factors?

Your application to come to Canada as a skilled worker will also be assessed against a point system consisting of six selection factors. The six selection factors are:

Factor 1	Education	Maximum 25 points
Factor 2	Ability in English and or French	Maximum 28 points
Factor 3	Experience	Maximum 15 points
Factor 4	Age	Maximum 12 points
Factor 5	Arranged employment	Maximum 10 points
Factor 6	Adaptability	Maximum 10 points
Total		Maximum 100 points
Pass Mark		67 points

Below is a detailed description of all factors that are to be assessed.

Factor 1 – Education

(maximum of 25 points)

Points are awarded for earned educational credentials as well as the number of years of full‑time studies or full‑time equivalent studies. To be awarded points, you must meet both stated criteria.

Full‑time studies: At least 15 hours of instruction per week during the academic year. This includes any period of workplace training that forms part of the course.

Full‑time equivalent studies: If you completed a program of study on a part‑time or accelerated basis, count the length of time it would have taken to complete the program on a full‑time basis.

Use the chart below to determine your points. If you have not completed the number of years of study that correspond to your highest educational credential, award yourself points based on the number of years of study.

Doctoral level	25
Master’s level or professional degree	23
Two or more post-secondary credentials, one of which is a three-year or longer post-secondary credential	22
Three-year or longer post-secondary credential	21
Two-year post-secondary credential	19
One-year post-secondary credential	15
Secondary school (also called high school)	5

Factor 2 – Ability in English and/or French

(maximum of 28 points)

The ability to communicate and work in one or both of Canada’s official languages is very important to you as a skilled worker. Proficiency in English, French or both will help you in the Canadian labour market.

You will be awarded up to 28 points for your basic, moderate or high proficiency in English and French. You will be given points based on your ability to:

listen
speak
read
write

Proof of language proficiency

Use your language test results from a designated testing agency, to determine how many points you will be awarded for language proficiency.

International English Language Testing System (IELTS)

Use the following table to determine how many points you will be awarded for your test scores with the International English Language Testing System (IELTS):

Level	Points (per ability)	Test results for each ability
Level	Points (per ability)	Speaking	Listening	Reading (General Training)	Writing (General Training)
CLB9	6	7.0	8.0	7.0	7.0
CLB8	5	6.5	7.5	6.5	6.5
CLB7	4	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0
CLB6 and lower	0 (not qualified)	Less than 6.0	Less than 6.0	Less than 6.0	Less than 6.0

Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP)

Use the following table to determine how many points you will be awarded for your test scores with the Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP):

CLB Level	Reading	Writing	Listening	Speaking
10	10	10	10	10
9	9	9	9	9
8	8	8	8	8
7	7	7	7	7
6	6	6	6	6
5	5	5	5	5

Test d’évaluation de français (TEF)

Use the following table to determine how many points you will be awarded for your test scores with the Test d’évaluation de français (TEF):

Level	Points (per ability)	Test results for each ability
Level	Points (per ability)	Speaking (expression orale)	Listening (compré-hension orale)	Reading (compré-hension écrite)	Writing (expression écrite)
CLB9		372+	298+	248+	372+
CLB9	6	372+	298+	248+	372+
CLB8	5	349-371	280-297	233-247	349-371
CLB7	4	309	248	206	309
CLB6 or lower	0 (Not qualified)	271 or lower	217 or lower	181 or lower	271 or lower

Second Official Language: Maximum 4 points – CLB 5 in all abilities

Factor 3 – Work experience

(maximum of 15 points)

You will earn points for the number of years you have spent in full-time (37.5 hours per week), paid work.

Minimum work experience requirements

You must meet the following minimum work experience requirements to be eligible to apply as a skilled worker:

You must have at least one year of full-time, paid work experience or the equivalent in part-time employment.
Your work experience must be in an occupation of Skill Type 0, or Skill Level A or B of the Canadian National Occupation Classification (NOC).
You must have had this experience within the last 10 years.

Experience	Maximum 15 points
1 year	9
2-3 years	11
4-5 years	13
6 or more years	15

Factor 4 – Age

(maximum of 12 points)

Points are given for your age on the date that your complete application is received.

Age	Points
18 to 35	12
36	11
37	10
38	9
Less one point per year	–
46	1
47 and over	0

Factor 5 – Arranged employment

(maximum of 10 points)

In some cases, you can get points if you have a permanent, full-time job offer from a Canadian employer. The job must be arranged before you apply to come to Canada as a federal skilled worker.

A valid job offer has to be:

for full-time, permanent and not seasonal work, and
in an occupation listed as Skill Type 0 or Skill Level A or B of the National Occupational Classification (NOC).

Find your points based on the chart below.

If	And	Points
You currently work in Canada on a temporary work permit.	Your work permit is valid both when you apply and when the visa is issued (or you are authorized to work in Canada without a work permit when your visa is issued).andCIC issued your work permit based on a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Your employer would have applied for the LMIA, which you then had to attach to your application to CIC.andYou are working for an employer named on your work permit who has made a permanent job offer based on you being accepted as a skilled worker.	10
You currently work in Canada in a job that is exempt from the LMIA requirement under: an international agreement (such as, the North America Free Trade Agreement) or a federal-provincial agreement.	Your work permit is valid both when you apply and when the visa is issued (or you are authorized to work in Canada without a permit when your visa is issued). andYour current employer has made a permanent job offer based on you being accepted as a skilled worker.	10
You currently do not: have a work permit, or plan to work in Canada before you get a permanent resident visa. OR You are currently working in Canada and a different employer has offered to give you a permanent full-time job. OR You are currently working in Canada in a job that is exempt from a Labour Market Impact Assessment, but notunder an international or federal-provincial agreement.	An employer has made you a permanent job offer based on you being accepted as a skilled worker.andThe employer has a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment from ESDC.

And

Points

You currently work in Canada on a temporary work permit.

Your work permit is valid both when you apply and when the visa is issued (or you are authorized to work in Canada without a work permit when your visa is issued).andCIC issued your work permit based on a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Your employer would have applied for the LMIA, which you then had to attach to your application to CIC.andYou are working for an employer named on your work permit who has made a permanent job offer based on you being accepted as a skilled worker.

You currently work in Canada in a job that is exempt from the LMIA requirement under:

an international agreement (such as, the North America Free Trade Agreement) or
a federal-provincial agreement.

Your work permit is valid both when you apply and when the visa is issued (or you are authorized to work in Canada without a permit when your visa is issued).
andYour current employer has made a permanent job offer based on you being accepted as a skilled worker.

You currently do not:

have a work permit, or
plan to work in Canada before you get a permanent resident visa.

You are currently working in Canada and a different employer has offered to give you a permanent full-time job.

You are currently working in Canada in a job that is exempt from a Labour Market Impact Assessment, but notunder an international or federal-provincial agreement.

An employer has made you a permanent job offer based on you being accepted as a skilled worker.andThe employer has a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment from ESDC.

Factor 6 – Adaptability