Canada Express Entry drops LMIA for job offers and adds high-wage CRS points

Canada is rewriting how Express Entry scores Canadian work and job offers.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) says the new rules start on 3 November 2026. Job offers used for ranking and for some program eligibility will no longer need a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). A new labour-market factor can add a large CRS bump for high-wage Canadian jobs. This is a news summary, not legal advice.

No LMIA for qualifying job offers

• From 3 November 2026, a qualifying job offer does not need an LMIA to count for CRS points or for Federal Skilled Worker / Federal Skilled Trades eligibility under the public policy IRCC describes.
• An LMIA will not boost your score or move your file ahead.
• Officers still check if the offer is real. The employer must look active, able to pay, and following hiring rules. You must look able to do the job.
• Form tip: IRCC says the online profile may still ask for LMIA fields for a while. Follow the placeholder answers on the official changes page if you have an offer without an LMIA.

Up to about 150 CRS points

• New labour-market factor. You get points for either qualifying Canadian work or a qualifying high-wage job offer. You do not stack both.
• Canadian work: points for how long you worked in Canada, plus extras if at least 12 months were in an eligible high-wage occupation (extra bands at about 1.3×, 1.5×, and 2× the national median wage).
• Job offer alone: up to 100 CRS points when the offer is in an eligible high-wage occupation, with lower bands at 70 or 50 points.
• Caps: about 150 points without a spouse, or about 140 with a spouse, for this factor.
• Score recalculation: IRCC will rebuild pool scores when the change lands. Invitation rounds may pause for up to about two weeks while that finishes.

Papers that still matter

• Language tests, education assessment, and skilled work proof still drive most of the CRS.
• Settlement funds still apply for many Federal Skilled Worker files.
• Category-based draws (French, healthcare, STEM, trades, and others) still run alongside general rounds.
• A job can help program eligibility even when it is not on the high-wage list for CRS job-offer points.

Skilled workers watching this

• People already in Canada with a year or more of high-wage TEER 0–3 work.
• Candidates with a Canadian job offer who never got an LMIA.
• Applicants comparing Canada with Australia or the United States skilled routes.

Before you update your profile

1. Read the IRCC Express Entry changes page and the eligible high-wage occupation lists.
2. Open our Canada Express Entry residence page.
3. Compare Canada vs United States or Canada vs United Kingdom if you are still choosing a country.

News summary only, not legal advice. Check Canada.ca before you change a pool profile or book flights.