Canada’s Express Entry in 2025 to prioritize in-country workers to meet labour market needs
To meet the needs of provincial and territorial labour markets, Canada will prioritize Express Entry applications to economic migrants who are already in the country and fall under the Canadian Experience Class (CEC). Plans for Canada’s Express Entry in 2025 also include giving priority to applicants with strong French-language skills.
To meet acute shortages in specific sectors, Canada will also conduct category-based entries to invite people with experience in the following fields:
- Healthcare and social services, such as family physicians, nurse practitioners, dentists, pharmacists, psychologists and chiropractors
- Trades, such as carpenters, plumbers and contractors
- Education, such as teachers, childcare educators and instructors of persons with disabilities
Canada’s Express Entry in 2025 remains focused on economic immigrant selection efforts on priority sectors, such as health care, construction and education. Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will also continue to support economic growth through Francophone immigration outside Quebec by prioritizing candidates with strong French language proficiency in Express Entry.
“Our approach ensures immigration remains a key driver of Canada’s growth, helping businesses thrive while supporting communities across the country,” said Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.
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Express Entry in 2025 and local labour markets
Canada’s immigration programs appear to be in line with meeting the current and future needs of local provincial and territorial labour markets: the job demands of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, for example, are different to those of the bigger, more in-demand provinces of Ontario, British Columbia, and Quebec.
In Ontario, jobs in manufacturing grew 1.3 percent, employing nearly 830,000 people in January 2025, while the agricultural sector grew 5.6 percent, crossing the 75,000-worker mark. However, with the streamlining of immigration programs before 2025, nearly 10,000 people left the finance, real estate and rental industries in January of this year.
In British Columbia, the professional, technical and scientific services sectors grew by 10,000 people in January 2025, before the announcement of plans for Canada’s Express Entry in 2025. Similarly, the province’s forestry, fishing, mining, quarrying, oil and gas sectors crossed the 50,000-worker threshold after absorbing 2,000 more people in January. BC’s construction sector also grew by two percent or nearly 25,000 jobs in the first month of 2025.
“By addressing labour shortages, strengthening our economy and increasing Francophone immigration, we are building a more dynamic workforce with workers and professionals from in-demand fields,” added Minister Miller.
Also read: Canada will not accept any new parents and grandparents visa applications in 2025
International student numbers linked to labour markets
International student numbers across the provinces and territories are also linked to local markets. IRCC will issue a total of 437,000 study permits in 2025, 10 percent less than the permits issued in 2024.
Students who wish to come to Canada to study must also apply for a Provincial/Territorial Acceptance Letter (PAL/TAL). This includes master’s and doctoral candidates as well.
The number of international students allocated to each province depends on the demand for work and planned job growth. Ontario has been allocated 181,590 study permits, followed by Quebec (162,742), British Columbia (76,087), and Alberta (47,338).
Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia have been allocated between 10,000 and 20,000 permits each. The three territories—Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut—have been allocated slightly more than 1,000 permits between them.
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