News

In the future, Canada plans to adopt a new model of immigration known as the ’Expression of Interest’ (EOI) system. The EOI system will be implemented with the intent of better targeting skilled immigrants to fill specific Canadian labour market needs. By more carefully selecting immigrants, it is expected that this system will better benefit both the Canadian economy and newcomers themselves.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) plans to implement the EOI system sometime in 2014. When that happens, it will mean significant change for a system that has been accused of rigidity and stagnation. However, with careful planning, CIC has expressed confidence that the transition to an EOI system will ultimately make Canada a leader in the global competition for the world’s most desirable immigrants.

What is an ’EOI’ System?

Canada’s EOI model will be based on a system that was devised in New Zealand. A similar system was adopted by Australia in 2012 for its economic immigration programs.

Announcements made by CIC, as well as an analysis of the Australian system, give clues as to how an EOI model would function in Canada.

Under an EOI program, prospective immigrants first complete an online form which states their interest in becoming a permanent resident of Canada. It is important to note that an EOI is not an application for a permanent resident visa. Rather, it indicates an individual’s request to become a candidate for permanent residency.

The EOI form will include important information about the prospective applicant, such as work experience, assessed educational credentials, and proof of English/French language proficiency. In addition, EOI candidates will be ’assigned a points score and ranked’. Not all individuals who submit an EOI application will be invited to apply for Canadian permanent residency, and not all those who are invited to apply will necessarily receive a visa.

In the Australian EOI system, prospective immigrants can be found and nominated by either an Australian employer or a state/territory government. It is likely that Canada will follow a similar route.

Speaking to the Globe and Mail newspaper, Canadian Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney explained that candidates would go into a ’pool’, from which the most desirable can be ’fished out’ by employers and by Federal, Provincial, or Territorial governments