In category-based rounds of invitations, we invite candidates in the Express Entry pool who are eligible for a specific category established by the Minister to meet an identified economic goal. We invite candidates to apply for permanent residence based on criteria such as

• ability to communicate in a specific official language
• work experience in a specific occupation
• education

Category-based rounds add to general and program-specific rounds by inviting top-ranking candidates who can help us meet these specific economic goals.

We’ll announce the chosen categories in advance.

How we choose and report on categories

We choose categories based on

• labour market information and projections
• input we received from our partners, including provinces and territories, and stakeholders across the country

Each year, we’ll report to Parliament on

• the categories we chose the previous year
• why and how we chose them
• the instructions to establish a category
• the number of invitations we issued for each category

We’ll also

• include information about category-based selection in the Express Entry Year-End Report
• monitor and assess categories on a regular basis

Who is eligible

To be eligible for an invitation through a category-based round, you must

• meet the minimum criteria for Express Entry, including being eligible for 1 of the 3 immigration programs it covers and
• meet all of the requirements in the instructions for that round

When we hold a category-based round of invitations, we’ll

• rank candidates in the pool who meet the category requirements and
• invite top-ranking candidates to apply for permanent residence