The Canadian Experience Class or CEC is an immigration program that provides aspiring individuals an easy path and opportunity to be a permanent resident in Canada. CEC is one of the three Canadian skilled worker immigration programs that are directly managed by the Federal Express Entry System. Since CEC is managed by the Express Entry System, successful applicants will experience a speedy processing time in Canadian Immigration.

The CEC is specifically designed for applicants who have obtained Canadian work experience for at least one year through a temporary work permit, or have been living and accustomed to Canadian lifestyle and wish to remain as a permanent resident. This program is best fit for former international students who graduated from a Canadian post-secondary institution and remained in Canada to work, or for those temporary foreign workers in Canada.

To be eligible to apply for CEC, applicants must:

• Have at least one year of full time (or equivalent) work experience in Canada under a legitimate work permit
• Provide legal documents while working or studying in Canada
• Meet minimum language levels in English or French
• Applicants must show their proficiency of one of Canada’s official languages through language test from an agency approved by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, such as IELTS, CELPIP, or TEF
• Plan to live outside the province of Quebec
• Must legally be allowed to enter Canada

For international or foreign students, take note that any part-time work experience, co-op placements, apprenticeships, and internships gained during study does not count toward the one year of work experience required to apply for the CEC. The work experience must be gained after graduation and on a valid work permit, such as the Post-Graduate Work Permit (PGWP). A PGWP is an “open” work permit, which can be used to work for any Canadian employer. If a graduate obtains at least one year of work in a skilled occupation, they may become eligible to apply for Canadian Experience Class (CEC) for permanent residency.

Applicants must acquire a skilled work experience that is according to the Canadian National Occupational Classification (NOC) list. The skilled work experience means;

• Skill Level 0 – Managerial Jobs
• Skill Type A – Professional Jobs
• Skill Type B – Technical Jobs and Skilled Trades

Your work experience can be in one or more NOC O, A or B jobs.

• Step 1- Gain Work Experience in Canada for One Year
  
  
• Step 2- Make Sure to Meet all the Minimum Criteria
  
  
• Step 3- Create your Express Entry Profile As mentioned above, CEC is managed directly by Federal Express Entry System. Therefore, you must create an online Express Entry profile to get qualify for the program.
  
  
• Step 4 – Prepare and Gather All Documents Once Invitation to Apply (ITA) is receive for Canadian Permanent Residence, you need to gather all the required documents. Submit all the documents within sixty days upon receiving your ITA.
  
  
• Step 5 – Receive Confirmation of Permanent Residence CEC applications are typically processed within 4 months. Once approved, you will receive a confirmation document