Canadian Express Class or simply CEC is one of the three immigration programs which are a part of Express Entry Immigration to secure permanent residence in Canada. Canadian Express Class program is for the individuals who have already worked for at least one year in Canada and want to immigrate permanently after the gaining experience in Canada. The federal government of Canada is always looking for a pool of highly talented workers who are already contributing to the economy and want them to become permanent residents of Canada with several benefits. That’s the reason for the introduction of the Canadian Express Class program. This immigration plan will help all those individuals who have enjoyed and loved the work culture of Canada and planned to settle down in the country itself.

Canadian Express Class program is also applicable for individuals who no longer live in Canada, but they will have to submit their application within three years from the date of leaving their job in Canada. As with the other programs of Express Entry, the Canadian Express Class Immigration program also uses the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) to assign ranks to the interested individuals against each other. This is followed by inviting only the most competitive candidates eligible to apply for Canadian Permanent Residence through Invitation to Apply (ITA). The pool contains candidates from Canadian Express Class along with the candidates under Federal Skilled Worker Class (FSWC) and Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC). Just like any other immigration program, CEC also has a predefined set of eligibility rules.

They are:

1. Candidates should possess at least one year of skilled work experience in Canada within the last three years. Additionally, their specialized work experience should fall under skill levels of either O, A, or B as per the National Occupational Classification (NOC) code, which should be gained legally.
2. Candidates should attain the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) score in either the English or French languages. CLB level 7 is applicable for NOC O and A categorized jobs, and CLB level 5 is for NOC B jobs.
3. The language tests include speaking, reading, listening, and writing skills.
4. Candidates should plan on living outside the Quebec province.