- IRCC proposes a new Federal High-Skilled Class merging three current Express Entry streams into one uniform program.
- The revised ranking system will prioritize high-wage job offers and Canadian work experience over other traditional factors.
- Public consultations remain open until May 24, 2026 before final regulations are drafted for potential implementation.
(CANADA) — Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada opened consultations on April 23, 2026 on a plan to remake Express Entry, folding three federal economic streams into a single “Federal High-Skilled Class” and rewriting the Comprehensive Ranking System to give more weight to high wages, job offers and Canadian work experience.
The proposal would merge the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Canadian Experience Class and the Federal Skilled Trades Program into one class for federal economic immigration. Consultations run until May 24, 2026, as IRCC seeks feedback from organizations and the public before it settles on final options.
A confidential slide deck dated April 10, 2026 and shared with immigration lawyers and consultants outlined the core changes. IRCC’s plan aims to simplify Express Entry, cut overlap between programs and place more weight on factors the department links to stronger long-term economic outcomes, including higher earnings.
Under the proposed structure, candidates would face one entry standard for the federal pool instead of separate program rules. A candidate would need 1 year of cumulative, not continuous, skilled work in TEER 0–3 occupations gained anywhere in the last 3 years, a high school diploma or equivalent verified by an Educational Credential Assessment, and language scores of CLB/NCLC 6 in reading, writing, speaking and listening.
That would erase the separate Federal Skilled Worker points grid and treat Canadian and foreign work experience the same at the eligibility stage. Entry into the pool would become more uniform, while competition inside the pool would shift more heavily to ranking under the revised Comprehensive Ranking System.
IRCC’s proposed ranking model would place more weight on predictors of economic success that its research rates highly, with wages near the top. Canadian work experience, now worth up to 80 points, would be restructured and paired with a new High-Wage Occupation factor for jobs or job offers that pay 30% to 100% above the national median wage.
The wage factor would work through three proposed tiers. Job offers, which were removed in March 2025, would return, but only for high-wage roles, a change IRCC says would reduce fraud risks while giving employers another way to support hard-to-fill positions.
Other parts of the ranking system could shrink or disappear. The proposals contemplate lower scores, or no scores, for family in Canada, Canadian study, strong French skills outside Quebec and possibly age, a shift that would reorder who rises to the top of future Express Entry draws.
Amer Rehman of The Visa Canada said the overhaul points toward a broader pool with fewer invitations, as the bar for entering the pool drops but the ranking contest gets tighter. That would leave candidates with higher salaries, stronger offers and Canadian work histories in a better position under the proposed Federal High-Skilled Class.
Alex Titov and Iryna Babenko, both regulated Canadian immigration consultants, expect the scale of the changes to push implementation into late 2027. Before then, Ottawa plans regulatory amendments through the Canada Gazette process and another round of consultations later in 2026 on category-based selection.
The timing overlaps with another cost change. Permanent residence fees rise on April 30, 2026, adding pressure on applicants already weighing whether to enter the current system quickly or prepare for a more selective version of Express Entry later.
IRCC has framed the overhaul as part of a wider push to improve integrity, equity and outcomes while Canada adjusts immigration levels and modernizes digital systems. The proposed model would reward people with high-salary job offers and occupations that command wages well above the median, on the view that they are more likely to contribute tax revenue and fill shortages.
That approach carries tradeoffs. Graduates early in their careers, mid-career workers earning below the median and Francophones who benefited from language points outside Quebec could lose ground if Ottawa adopts the lower point values now under discussion.
Industry groups are preparing submissions before the May 24, 2026 deadline, including employers in Toronto’s tech sector and agricultural interests on the Prairies. Their response will test how far IRCC can push a system that prizes earnings and employer-backed roles without narrowing access for workers who meet labour needs but fall short on wages.
Candidates already planning an Express Entry profile now face a system in transition. Ottawa has not published final regulations, but the direction is clear: a single Federal High-Skilled Class, fewer program-specific rules and a Comprehensive Ranking System that gives more power to pay levels and qualifying job offers than the current model does.
