Canada: CRS points return
Canada announced that 2026 Express Entry will again award CRS points for qualifying job offers — a major policy pivot designed to reward employer‑tied foreign talent and shift applicant strategy toward employer sponsorship. The change is expected to advantage candidates already working or with firm job offers in Canada. (winnyimmigration.com, widerworld.in)
IRCC tabled its 2026–27 Departmental Plan in Parliament on March 13, 2026, and the plan explicitly says it is “developing a broader suite of reforms to Express Entry, including the addition of points for job offers and Canadian work experience in high‑wage occupations” while also noting consideration of rewards for certification in regulated occupations. (canada.ca)) (canada.ca) IRCC previously removed arranged‑employment job‑offer points on March 25, 2025, a change that eliminated the prior framework under which a valid job offer could have added 200 points for Major Group 00 positions or 50 points for other skilled occupations. (canada.ca)) (canada.ca) The Departmental Plan is a policy roadmap, not a regulation; it signals the return of job‑offer recognition but contains no final CRS point values or implementation dates — IRCC says the reforms are being developed over the 2026–27 planning horizon. (immigration.ca)) (immigration.ca, canada.ca) The same departmental documents set Canada’s permanent resident admission target at 380,000 for 2026 and flag a shift toward a higher share of economic migrants (from 59% to a planned 64% by 2027), linking the Express Entry reforms to broader intake and labour‑market goals. (canada.ca)) (canada.ca) To address past LMIA and employer‑fraud risks, the Plan proposes structural employer‑oversight changes — including transferring employer‑focused compliance inspections to Employment and Social Development Canada — and lists planned departmental spending reductions ($154,982,029 in 2026–27) tied to modernization and integrity measures. (canada.ca)) (canada.ca, kpmg.com)
