Major drop in CRS scores after removal of points for arranged employment
The Express Entry candidate pool has seen significant changes in its composition following the removal of arranged employment points under the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS).
Thousands of candidates in the Express Entry pool have seen their CRS scores drop by either 50 or 200 points—a change that, in turn, greatly impacts their chances of receiving an invitation to apply (ITA) for Canadian permanent residence (PR).
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This article will cover major changes in the candidate pool and provide an overview of the current distribution of scores among Express Entry candidates.
Changes in the Express Entry candidate pool
By far, the greatest change in scores among Express Entry candidates occurred within the 501-600 CRS score range, which saw a drastic decrease of 5,740 profiles.
Similar decreases in profiles can be observed within score ranges between:
- 491 and 500 CRS points, which saw a decrease of 1,618 profiles; and
- 481 and 490 CRS points, which saw a decrease of 984 profiles.
Cumulatively, these three score ranges (representing above the 90th percentile of scores within the Express Entry candidate pool) saw the exodus of 8,342 profiles between 16 March and 14 April 2025.
With the removal of arranged employment points, these profiles (if they have not expired) will have been redistributed to lower score ranges within the candidate pool.
Note: Figures cited within this article do not distinguish between the natural expiry and addition of Express Entry profiles and those impacted by the CRS change on 25 March 2025.
Despite these radical decreases, the Express Entry candidate pool grew by a total of 7,373 candidate profiles within the same time frame, indicating that larger changes within the pool composition were likely due to the removal of arranged employment CRS points.
Several score ranges also saw marked increases in candidate profiles. The largest among these was the addition of 2,157 profiles within the score range between 461 and 470 CRS points.
As most candidates who had eligible arranged employment likely received an additional 50 CRS points, it is possible that many of the new 2,157 profiles within the 461-470 score range were redistributed from score ranges above 500 CRS points on account of the points removal.
The following table showcases the change in Express Entry profiles between 16 March (nine days before the removal of CRS points for arranged employment) and 14 April 2025 for all score ranges:
| CRS score range | Change in Express Entry profiles |
|---|---|
| 601-1200 | +123 |
| 501-600 | -5,740 |
| 451-500 | +1,487 |
| 491-500 | -1,618 |
| 481-490 | -984 |
| 471-480 | +182 |
| 461-470 | +2,157 |
| 451-460 | +1,750 |
| 401-450 | +5,814 |
| 441-450 | +1,817 |
| 431-440 | +1,722 |
| 421-430 | +1,465 |
| 411-420 | +1,101 |
| 401-410 | -291 |
| 351-400 | +1,677 |
| 301-350 | +1,496 |
| 0-300 | +2,516 |
| Total | +7,373 |
What is the current composition of scores within the Express Entry pool following the CRS points change?
The following table details the current composition of the Express Entry candidate pool as of 14 April 2025.
| CRS score range | Number of candidates |
|---|---|
| 601-1200 | 816 |
| 501-600 | 19,782 |
| 451-500 | 71,542 |
| 491-500 | 12,093 |
| 481-490 | 12,359 |
| 471-480 | 16,215 |
| 461-470 | 16,189 |
| 451-460 | 14,686 |
| 401-450 | 67,301 |
| 441-450 | 14,131 |
| 431-440 | 14,740 |
| 421-430 | 13,084 |
| 411-420 | 13,020 |
| 401-410 | 12,326 |
| 351-400 | 53,479 |
| 301-350 | 22,799 |
| 0-300 | 8,563 |
| Total | 244,282 |
While the Express Entry pool has seen a sharp increase in profiles throughout 2024 and 2025—ballooning to the largest number of total candidates seen in more than a year—the removal of CRS points for arranged employment means that the following CRS score ranges now have roughly the same number of candidate profiles as they did in December of 2024:
- 501-600;
- 490-500; and
- 481-490.
This is in spite of an increase of 25,792 candidate profiles between December 2024 and April 2025.
Occupations listed under the updated STEM category in 2025
Following the changes in February 2025, the STEM category has 11 occupations in total.
You can find the full list of occupations along with their corresponding National Occupation Classification (NOC) codes below, with the newly added occupations bolded.
| Occupation | NOC code |
| Architecture and science managers | 20011 |
| Civil engineering technologists and technicians | 22300 |
| Civil Engineers | 21300 |
| Cybersecurity specialists | 21220 |
| Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians | 22310 |
| Electrical and electronics engineers | 21310 |
| Geological Engineers | 21331 |
| Industrial and manufacturing engineers | 21321 |
| Insurance agents and brokers | 63100 |
| Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians | 22301 |
| Mechanical Engineers | 21301 |
Canada’s National Occupation Classification (NOC) system classifies jobs according to the roles and responsibilities of each occupation. The title corresponding to your NOC code may be different from your job title.
How do I determine whether my work experience is eligible for an Express Entry category?
To be eligible for a category, you must have accumulated at least six months of full-time continuous work experience (or an equal amount of part-time experience) within the past three years in a category-eligible occupation (be it in Canada or abroad).
You also have to meet the minimum criteria for Express Entry, including being eligible for one of the three immigration programs it covers, namely:
- Canadian Experience Class
- Federal Skilled Worker Program
- Federal Skilled Trades Program.
If you are eligible, the next step is to find out if your work experience corresponds to the requirements of the eligible occupations listed.
Step 1: Visiting the Government of Canada’s NOC page and finding the NOC code and occupation that corresponds most closely with your work experience.
Type your job title(s) or other keywords into the “Filter items” search bar. If you don’t find a NOC code, try variations of your job title(s).
Take note of the NOC code(s) which correspond(s) most closely to the work experience for each role you have held in your career, for which you have worked full-time for at least six continuous months during the past three years.
Step 2: Verify this against the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) webpage by clicking on the “Search by NOC Code” tab, looking up each NOC code that corresponds to your work experience.
This will tell you example titles of each NOC code, along with a list of duties that align with each occupation.
Cross reference the duties involved in each role of your work experience with the actions in the lead statement of each NOC code. For your role to be considered to correspond to a given NOC, you must have performed a substantial number of the main duties of the occupation, as set out in the NOC description.
Step 3: Check if one of your NOC codes is in the table above. If it is, you are eligible for the STEM category.
Newly added occupations to the STEM category with alternate job titles
Here’s a look at the occupations that were added to the STEM category in February 2025. It also lists some alternate or example job titles of the eligible occupations.
| NOC Occupation title | Example Job Titles |
| Civil engineering technologists and technicians | Bridge design technician Building materials technician Construction specifications writer Construction technologist Foundation technologist Highway technician Municipal engineering assistant Soil technologist – civil engineering Structural design technologist Structural investigator |
| Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians | Communications technologist Electricity distribution network technologist Electronics design technologist Electronics engineering technician Electronics engineering technologist Electronics manufacturing technician Electronics manufacturing technologist Lighting technologist Metering technologist Microwave maintenance technician Production support technician – electronics manufacturing |
| Geological Engineers | Geophysical engineer Hydrogeological engineer – engineering |
| Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians | Aeronautical technologist Heating designer Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) technologist Machine designer Marine engineering technologist Mechanical technologist Mould designer Thermal station technician Tool and die designer Tool designer |
| Mechanical Engineers | Acoustics engineer Automotive engineer Design engineer – mechanical Energy conservation engineer Fluid mechanics engineer Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) engineer Mechanical maintenance engineer Nuclear engineer Piping engineer Power generation engineer Refrigeration engineer Robotics engineer Thermal design engineer Tool engineer |
| Insurance agents and brokers | Insurance sales representative Insurance sales supervisor |
Removed occupations
The following occupations used to be part of the STEM category, prior to having been removed in February of 2025:
| Job Title | NOC Code |
| Architects | 21200 |
| Business systems specialists | 21221 |
| Computer and information systems managers | 20012 |
| Computer engineers (except software engineers and designers) | 21311 |
| Computer systems developers and programmers | 21230 |
| Data scientists | 21211 |
| Database analysts and data administrators | 21223 |
| Engineering managers | 20010 |
| Information systems specialists | 21222 |
| Land surveyors | 21203 |
| Landscape Architects | 21201 |
| Mathematicians, statisticians and actuaries | 21210 |
| Metallurgical and materials engineers | 21322 |
| Natural and applied science policy researchers, consultants, and program officers | 41400 |
| Software developers and programmers | 21232 |
| Software engineers and designers | 21231 |
| Urban and land use planners | 21202 |
| Web designers | 21233 |
| Web developers and programmers | 21234 |
How can Express Entry categories help my chances of becoming a Canadian PR?
If you qualify for a category-based draw, you have a better chance of receiving an invitation to apply (ITA) for permanent residence through Express Entry. This is because in a category-based draw, IRCC invites only those candidates who meet the category’s criteria, so these draws have a lower CRS cut-off score than general draws and Canadian Experience Class (CEC) draws.
For instance, in 2024, general draw CRS cut-offs ranged from 524 to 549. And the CRS cut-off for CEC draws ranged between 507 and 547.
But the STEM draw that year had a lower cut-off of 491, with 4,500 candidates receiving invitations to apply for PR.
So, even if your CRS score isn’t high enough (for example, 500 or above) for a general or CEC draw, you could still be invited if you work in an in-demand occupation.
