Canada · 18 d ago
Bryan R. Smith · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Ottawa opens a faster path to permanent residence for high-wage workers
Nov
3
Tuesday
Express Entry, outside Quebec
Immigration Minister Lena Diab said the new Express Entry pathways take effect Nov 3. They apply to candidates with Canadian work experience or a job offer in a high-wage field such as engineering.
What counts
High-wage occupation
Ottawa defines a high-wage occupation as one whose median wage is at least 1.3 times the median of the whole Canadian workforce. That median was about $30.77 an hour in 2025, according to Statistics Canada.
Employers will temporarily no longer need a Labour Market Impact Assessment to show they could not find a qualified Canadian for an eligible job. Quebec, which runs its own pathways, is not part of Express Entry.
What's next
Scores of candidates already in the pool will be recalculated, which may take up to two weeks. Invitations to apply for permanent residence are paused in the meantime.
