Ottawa adds express entry points for high-wage workers, drops key employer rule
The changes, effective Nov. 3, will also temporarily remove the requirement for a Labour Market Impact Assessment.
OTTAWA — Ottawa is adding new express entry points for some permanent residency applicants in “high-wage” jobs, Immigration Minister Lena Diab said Friday.
The government also plans to remove the requirement for an employer to prove they can’t find a qualified Canadian for those jobs.
The policies, which will take effect on Nov. 3, will apply to applicants who already have Canadian work experience, or who have a job offer in a high-wage field such as engineering.
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In a release announcing the change, the government says it considers a high-wage job one that pays “at least 1.3 times the median wage of the overall Canadian workforce.”
Statistics Canada says the median annual income in Canada in 2024 was $46,300.
The new policy offers more points for an occupation’s wage level, with higher paying jobs being worth more express entry points.
“It says the number of express entry points awarded is correlated to how high the wage is,” CBC News reported.
Removing the LMIA requirement
The government is also introducing a temporary policy to remove the requirement for an employer to include a Labour Market Impact Assessment for a qualifying job that’s eligible for the new express entry points.
Diab made the two-pronged announcement in Kitchener, Ont.
The government says this change is meant to simplify the application process and is part of its efforts over the past year to attract more immigrants in high-paying fields to Canada.
The government has introduced measures to give more express entry points to those working in medicine, the skilled trades, transportation and research.
Impact on existing applicants
Permanent residency candidates who are already in the express entry pool will have their scores modified to reflect the new points for Canadian work experience and job offers.
The Immigration Department says it may take up to two weeks for the new totals to be calculated and invitations to apply for permanent residency will be paused during that time.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 16, 2026.
The Canadian Press noted this is a corrected version of its story, as an earlier version incorrectly said the national median hourly wage was $55.03.
With files from The Canadian Press, BNN Bloomberg and CBC News