Express Entry ITAs Possible Before CRS Score Rises
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) may occasionally issue Invitations to Apply (ITAs) under the Express Entry system to candidates whose Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores are lower than a draw’s cut-off. This can occur when a candidate is close to reaching a new work experience threshold that will soon raise their CRS score.
This technical feature of the Express Entry system affects a small number of applicants who are within the 60-day validity period of an ITA and are approaching a milestone such as two or three years of skilled work experience. The timing of an application submission in such cases can influence whether the invitation remains valid.
- IRCC’s Express Entry system can issue ITAs before an applicant’s official score increases.
- Work experience is calculated by completed months rather than exact dates.
- Applicants have 60 days to submit a complete permanent residence application after receiving an ITA.
- Submitting before new experience is officially earned can result in refusal.
- Both Canadian and foreign work experience can trigger this situation.
- Accurate documentation is required to confirm the qualifying experience period.
How the Express Entry System Handles Work Experience
The Express Entry platform ranks eligible candidates for federal economic immigration programs using the CRS. Scores reflect factors such as age, education, language proficiency, and skilled work experience. Work experience points are granted in distinct brackets: one year, two years, or three years or more.
The system typically counts work experience by month rather than exact start and end dates. As a result, a profile might reflect an additional year of experience once the calendar month changes, even if the candidate has not yet reached the full date anniversary.
When this occurs within the 60-day period after an ITA is issued, the candidate’s CRS score may rise after the draw date but before the application submission deadline. In such cases, IRCC considers the updated score once the experience is officially complete.
Why Some Candidates Receive Early Invitations
IRCC’s electronic system can interpret near-complete experience periods as meeting the next threshold if the milestone falls within the 60-day submission period. Invitations are therefore sometimes issued slightly in advance of the actual employment anniversary.
This phenomenon applies to both Canadian and foreign skilled work experience. It is a consequence of how the CRS database reads the information provided in candidate profiles rather than a special exemption or policy change.
Verification and Application Timing
After receiving an ITA, candidates are required to submit their electronic permanent residence application only once all eligibility criteria are fully met. If the additional work experience is still accumulating, the application should be filed once that experience is officially completed and verifiable through documentation.
Submitting before the experience is fully achieved can result in discrepancies between the claimed CRS score and the score confirmed by IRCC at the time of assessment.
Assessment by IRCC Officers
When reviewing an Express Entry application, IRCC officers verify that the applicant met all minimum entry criteria and that their CRS score remains at or above the lowest score for the relevant round of invitations. If documentation shows that the required experience was incomplete at the time of submission, the application can be refused for not meeting eligibility requirements.
Accuracy in employment records and reference letters is therefore critical, as work experience must correspond to the National Occupational Classification (NOC) and duration claimed in the Express Entry profile.
Example: Canadian Work Experience Milestone
A hypothetical candidate, Lina Ahmed, aged 28, with a master’s degree and Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 10 results, began skilled work in Canada on April 1, 2024. On a draw date of February 20, 2026, she has not yet reached two years of Canadian experience but will do so on April 1, 2026. Her ITA, valid for 60 days, covers that period.
Before April 1, her CRS score stands at 509 points. After reaching two years of experience, her score rises to 534 points, a 25-point increase. She can demonstrate the additional points only once the two-year mark is officially completed.
Example: Foreign Work Experience Milestone
Another candidate, Arjun Patel, aged 27, also holds a master’s degree, CLB 10 language scores, and one year of Canadian work experience. His foreign experience began on March 15, 2023. At a February 6, 2026 draw, he has nearly three years of foreign work experience but not the full period until March 15, 2026.
His CRS score before reaching the full three years is 554, increasing to 566 once the milestone is achieved. As with the previous case, only after the three-year mark can he provide supporting evidence of the additional experience.
Importance of Accurate Documentation
IRCC’s evaluation process relies heavily on proof of employment, such as reference letters and pay records. If these documents confirm less experience than claimed when the ITA was issued, the discrepancy can lead to refusal. For this reason, the timing of an application and the accuracy of supporting materials are closely linked to the outcome.
Broader Context Across Immigration Pathways
While this timing issue is specific to the Express Entry system, similar verification principles apply to other immigration streams, including the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) and other provincial nominee programs. Each program requires documentation that aligns precisely with the eligibility criteria in effect at the time of submission.
Understanding how score thresholds interact with submission deadlines highlights the procedural aspect of Canada’s merit-based immigration selection rather than a policy anomaly. It underscores the system’s reliance on objective data entry and date-based calculations.
Procedural Considerations
Applicants are given 60 days to file their complete application following an ITA. Within this timeframe, the responsibility lies in ensuring that all referenced experience and credentials are verifiable as of the date of submission. Once the additional work experience is reached, the updated CRS score becomes the operative figure for assessment.
Failure to align the application date with the completion of work experience milestones can lead IRCC to determine that the candidate no longer meets the criteria under which the ITA was issued.
Conclusion
Issuing ITAs before a candidate’s CRS score officially increases reflects how the Express Entry system processes data rather than a procedural error. The occurrence demonstrates the importance of precise recordkeeping and timing within Canada’s electronic immigration framework. Similar principles apply across federal and provincial nomination programs, ensuring that eligibility remains consistent and verifiable at every stage.
For continued coverage of Express Entry and provincial nomination program updates, including developments in Manitoba and other regions, see related reports in the immigration news section.