Federal Skilled Trades Program Rules & Conditions

You need to meet certain requirements to apply as a skilled tradesperson under the Express Entry (EE) program, such as:

• Having a language proficiency of at least CLB (Canadian Language Benchmark) 5 in Speaking and Listening, and at least CLB 4 in Reading and Writing sections of the approved language tests. You may show your proficiency in English or French or both.
• You must have at least two years of continuous work experience under the relevant NOC group of the skill type B. Canadian experience is preferable but the foreign experience is also accepted if you have performed the duties specified under the NOC code you choose.
• You also need to have a work permit, or a valid job offer for one year, or a proof of funds to settle down in Canada.

The Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores you out of a total of 1,200 points for the EE program and uses your CRS score to rank you amongst all the PR applications it receives. Hence, meeting the minimum requirements is not enough. You should try to work towards the highest score you can achieve as the EE program is highly competitive and only the top scorers win an entry to the EE pool.

There are several ways to increase your CRS score and land an EE invitation, including:

• understanding how your CRS score is calculated and claiming all the points you are eligible for (such as having a sibling in Canada or including the qualifications of your spouse/partner or completing a one-year diploma in Canada or taking the language test in the second language),
• re-taking your language test to get a higher score,
• gaining more work experience,
• applying for a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) to get 600 extra points, etc.

V2I Canada immigration consultants can offer you several insiders’ tips on how to increase your score and fulfil your Canadian immigration dream.

Other things you should know

Canada welcomed its first skilled trades immigrants in 2013 to solve its 'acute labour shortages'. The FSTP program was introduced to quicken up the PR process for the immigrants. The Canadian government has announced that it will accept 81,000 to 88,000 immigrants in 2020 and 84,000 to 91,000 immigrants in 2021 under the Express Entry System. It means that if you dream of living and working in Canada, now is a good time to apply for it.

Canada is investing heavily in its infrastructure, which means that there are several employment opportunities for those skilled in various trades. You can apply under 200+ designated trades but some of them require you to have completed the training for the job and have the certification for it.

Skilled tradespersons typically work in:

• construction
• manufacturing,
• service, and
• transport sectors.

Some trades have specific requirements. For example, migrants who are power engineers will need a license from the province or territory where they plan to live. Other trades (like carpenter, or automotive service technicians) do not require certification but if you have a Red Seal for it, you do not have to pass additional exams if you want to move to another Canadian province or territory later. The Red Seal Program conducts an examination to assess the skills of tradespeople across Canada.

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