Apply – Skilled immigrants (Express Entry)

When you sign in to your account, there will be a link to apply for permanent residence under Express Entry. You can save the information in this online form and go back to it as often as you need to until you are ready to submit it.

Your Express Entry invitation to apply will be valid for 90 days.

All of your answers must be complete and true.

You must fill out all the mandatory fields in the form. You will not be able to submit your application until these fields are completed.

When you have completed the application, the system will generate a personalized Document Checklist for you. It will show all the supporting documents you need to upload.

In the case of work experience and police certificates, it will show each employer and country you need to get documents from. For the police certificates, there will only be one upload field so be sure to include them all together.

Using your Document Checklist, get all the documents you need to include with your application.

You must be able to make electronic copies of your supporting documents using a scanner or camera.

Once you have your documents ready, upload them.

Some things you will need to attach copies of are:

• your valid passport (we do not accept expired passports or other travel documents)
• your language test results
• your valid written job offer from an employer in Canada, if you have one
• your provincial nomination, if you have one
• in some cases, proof that you have enough money to support yourself (and your family members in Canada, if any are coming with you)
• any other documents on the Document Checklist, and
• your Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) report, if you included the results in your Express Entry profile.

If your passport will expire within six months from the day you apply, you should renew it. Then, update your passport information in your application. This will make sure it is valid when we process your application.

Note: you need an ECA if:

• you are being invited to apply under the Federal Skilled Worker Program (it will tell you this on your invitation letter) and you were educated outside Canada, or
• if you were awarded points for your foreign education (no matter which program you were invited to apply under).

We need copies of these documents to support the claims you made in your Express Entry profile.

You will also need

1. Medical exams

Do not complete any medical exam until you get an invitation to apply. You must have a medical exam before you can become a permanent resident. Your family members must also have one, even if they are not coming with you.

We will not approve your permanent resident application if your health:

• is a danger to Canada’s public health or safety, or
• would cause too much demand on health or social services in Canada.

When the panel physician completes the medical exam, they will either give you an information printout sheet, or an IMM 1017B Upfront Medical Report form. You must provide a copy the document they gave you when you apply online.

2. Police certificates

To immigrate to Canada, you and any family members 18 and older must include their police certificates as part of the application for permanent residence.

If you have a criminal record, you may not be allowed to enter or stay in Canada. People who pose a risk to Canada’s security are also not allowed to come to Canada.

You will have to pay:

a) The processing fee for you and your family members.

When you apply, you need to pay for everyone who will come to Canada with you on your application.

You must pay these fees online through your account using a credit card.

If your application is not complete, we will inform you and return your processing fee.

We will not return the processing fee once we have begun processing your application.

b) The Right of Permanent Residence fee

The right of permanent residence fee is $490.00 per person. There is no fee for dependent children.

You will need to pay this fee if we approve your application.

Note: paying this fee early can help speed up the processing of your application, so it’s a good idea to submit it when you apply.

If you don’t pay it when you submit your application, you must pay this fee before we issue any permanent resident documents to you.

We will refund this fee if you withdraw your application or if you do not use your visa.

c) Other fees

You may have to pay fees to third parties for:

• language testing,
• Educational Credential Assessments,
• your medical exam,
• police checks/clearances and certificates, and
• translation of documents.

Make sure you:

• have filled out all mandatory form fields,
• paid your fees, and
• included clear scans of all the supporting documents.

The system will not let you submit the application unless all required documents are included. Use the Document Checklist to make sure you do not forget anything.

Once you submit your application, we will start to process it. We will verify that all the information you gave us is true, that you are eligible to immigrate, and are admissible to Canada.

If we find you eligible, we will notify you and tell you what to do next.