Alberta invites 294 Express Entry candidates in latest AINP draw

Minimum score at 400 for latest AINP draw

Some 294 Express Entry system candidates received invitations to apply for a provincial nomination in the latest Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP)‘s Express Entry selection drawn August 28. AINP targets issuing up to 6,000 nominations for the 2019 calendar year. This limit is set by the federal Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). 4,115 nomination certificates have been issued so far in 2019. Approximately 1,640 applications await assessment for eligibility. The 294 invitations issued in the August 28 draw more than doubled the 121 issued in the previous draw on August 15.

The federal Express Entry system manages the pool of candidates for three of Canada’s main economic immigration categories — the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class and Canadian Experience Class and some parts of provincial immigrant nomination programs.

The candidates selected in the AINP August 28 draw needed a minimum 400 points under Express Entry’s Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) in order to receive an invitation. This minimum score was 38 points lower than the lowest score drawn through a federal Express Entry invitation round in 2019, which was 438 on January 30.

The minimum CRS score required has dropped to 300 on four occasions since the stream’s creation in June 2018. Four other draws had a minimum CRS requirement of 301 and four selected candidates with CRS scores of 302 and above.

Candidates are ranked in the pool based on their CRS score, which considers factors such as age, education, skilled work experience and proficiency in English or French. If their nomination is approved, these 294 candidates will be issued an additional 600 Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points. The additional points place them in a favorable position to receiving a federal Invitation to Apply (ITA) for Canadian permanent residence in a future Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) draw.

In general, AINP will give priority to candidates with:

• a job offer and/or work experience in Alberta;
• a degree from a Canadian post-secondary institution and a valid job offer; or
• a parent, child or sibling already living in Alberta.

Application – volumes and processing

Approximate volumes and assessment dates for each AINP stream/category are provided below.

“Assessing” means an AINP officer has been assigned a file to make an assessment and decision on eligibility.

Applications received after the date stated below have not yet been assigned to an officer for assessment.

The most common factors considered in AINP application processing include:

• application quality (completeness, eligibility, outdated application information/documents)
• labour market information
• volume of applications received
• the date the application was received

Read the AINP terms and conditions for more information on AINP application processing.

Alberta Opportunity Stream

AINP Stream/Category/Industry	Number of Applications in the queue (approximate)	The AINP is assessing applications received before (approximate)
Alberta Opportunity Stream	Over 900	May 17, 2019

Employer-Driven Stream

The AINP is no longer accepting applications under this stream.

Category/Industry	Number of applications in the queue (approximate)	The AINP is assessing applications before (approximate)
Food and beverage processing industry	All applications under this category have been assessed and received a decision.
Food services industry (Pilot project)	All applications under this category have been assessed and received a decision
Hotel and lodging industry	All applications under this category have been assessed and received a decision
International graduate category	Less than 5	June 14, 2018
Long-haul trucking industry	All applications under this category have been assessed and received a decision
Manufacturing industry	All applications under this category have been assessed and received a decision
Skilled worker category	Less than 5	June 14, 2018

Strategic Recruitment Stream

The AINP is no longer accepting application under this stream.

Category/Industry	Number of applications in the queue (approximate)	The AINP is assessing applications received between (approximate)
Compulsory and optional trades category	All applications under this category have been assessed and received a decision
Engineering occupations category	All applications under this category have been assessed and received a decision
Post-graduate worker category	All applications under this category have been assessed and received a decision

Self-Employed Farmer Stream

The AINP works closely with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry (AAF) to assess the eligibility of applicants under this stream. Processing times are not available.

Application volumes by occupation

The AINP has a high volume of applications and Alberta Expression Entry submissions in the following occupations. These submissions may take longer to process.

6311 – Food service supervisors

6322 – Cooks

6211 – Retail sales supervisors

1241 – Administrative assistants

0621 – Retail and wholesale trade managers

1311 – Accounting technicians and bookkeepers

1221 – Administrative officers

0631 – Restaurant and food service managers

4212 – Social and community service workers

4214 – Early childhood educators and assistants

Alberta Express Entry Stream Selection Draws

The AINP regularly reviews available candidates in the federal Express Entry pool. Based on available profile information in the portal, the AINP draws to select candidates from the pool, inviting them to submit a completed application to the AINP. Information on Alberta Express Entry Stream Notification of Interest factors is included on the AINP – Selection Criteria page.

Past Draws

Information on draws will typically be posted approximately one month after the date of draw.

Date of draw	Number of Notification of Interest (NOI) Letters sent	CRS score of lowest ranked candidate who received a NOI letter
July 6, 2018	155	302
July 26, 2018	67	302
August 23, 2018	24	312
September 14, 2018	152	301
October 10, 2018	47	319
October 16, 2018	94	304
November 6, 2018	57	302
January 10, 2019	337	300
January 25, 2019	81	301
February 1, 2019	168	301
February 22, 2019	130	302
March 5, 2019	473	400
March 12, 2019	462	400
March 15, 2019	106	300
March 19, 2019	271	400
March 26, 2019	370	400
April 2, 2019	356	400
April 9, 2019	172	300
April 15, 2019	179	400
April 24, 2019	133	400
May 2, 2019	119	400
May 15, 2019	197	301
June 21, 2019	262	300
July 10, 2019	180	425
July 17, 2019	251	400
July 24, 2019	220	303
July 31, 2019	319	400
August 7, 2019	35	352
August 15, 2019	121	400
August 28, 2019	294	400

Contact

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