Canada to stop LMIA points for Express Entry starting Spring 2025
In the process of making changes in the realm of immigration, two updates have been issued. Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada Minister Marc Miller says a move has been introduced concerning bringing updates in areas involving rules providing fairness and stopping fraud, besides streamlining procedures and making systems work smoothly. The first update is related to the LMIA-backed job offers, which state stopping extra points given to these kinds of offers, and the second update states ending flagpoling for work and study permits. Here’s a simple guide to understand what’s happening.
Extra Points for LMIA Job Offers to End in Spring 2025
Starting in spring 2025, Express Entry candidates will no longer get extra points for having a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)– supported job offer. This is a big shift in Canada’s immigration rules aimed at making the process fairer and less prone to fraud.
What is the reason behind this update?
The LMIA processing assists employers in proving a need to hire foreign workers, as no Canadians are available for the job. The system has been abused by buying and selling LMIAs for additional points to increase the pool and chances of getting an Invitation to Apply for permanent residency.
Removing these extra points will stop this kind of cheating and make the system more honest.
“Immigration is essential to our country’s economic success and growth. These changes support a responsive, well-managed, and fair immigration system.” – Minister Marc Miller.
Who will be affected by this update?
This change will have an impact on everyone who is a candidate in the Express Entry pool:
- Existing Candidates: No more points will be added to those who have a secured job offer with an LMIA.
- New Candidates: The people who join the Express Entry pool and have been without LMIA points will be given the same evaluation.
- Exceptions: If you’ve already received an Invitation to Apply or have submitted your application before spring 2025, you won’t be affected.
Impact on Employers and Workers
- Employers: Businesses using LMIA-backed offers to help workers get permanent residency will need to change their offers not to be based on LMIA. However, LMIA will still be required for temporary work permits but will no longer increase Express Entry scores.
- Workers: The other areas from which the candidates can get improved scores are language proficiency, education, and work experience.
Find out if you are eligible to get in Canada →
Flagpoling for Work and Study Permits to be Eliminated – December 23, 2024
What is flagpoling?
Flagpoling is when people in Canada—like students or workers—leave the country for a short time (often to the U.S.) and then re-enter to quickly process or renew their work or study permits at the border. This has been a popular way to speed things up.
Why is flagpoling stopped?
Although legal, flagpoling has caused problems at border crossings. From April 2023 to March 2024, over 69,300 flagpoling requests were processed, mostly in busy areas like Southern Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia.
Stopping flagpoling will help:
- Free Up Resources: It allows border officials to focus on security and other important work.
- Minimizing Delays: During the processing of travelers through the border, wait time reduction would be expected.
At the same time, this procedure is facilitated by the exclusion of those applications that do not interact with the border and are therefore accepted through the appropriate processes for getting permanent resident status, followed by the regulations’ applicants.
Important Dates:
- When will it start: December 23, 2024, at 11:59 PM ET.
- After this date, people can no longer renew or apply for work or study permits at the border.
Who will be affected by this update?
Most temporary residents will now need to apply directly to IRCC. However, some groups are still allowed to process permits at the border:
What do These Changes Mean?
In the following, we’ll discuss how these updates will affect Canada:
For Express Entry Candidates
The removal of LMIA points allows the system to focus more on a candidate’s skills, education, and experience. This ensures a much fairer process in which only the best-qualified individuals are selected.
For Temporary Residents
Putting an end to flagpoling means that one will have to be more careful in submitting the applications to IRCC promptly to avoid delays or issues affecting immigration status.
For Employers
The shift will require employers to rely on either LMIA or flagpoling to assist workers in different ways. LMIA, while remaining crucial for temporary worker hiring, will not affect Express Entry scores again.
For Border Operations
Closing the door on flagpoling will enable border officials to focus on security and enforcement, which means fewer delays for travelers and generally smoother border management.
What’s next for immigration in Canada?
These changes show Canada’s commitment to keeping its immigration system fair and secure while still welcoming skilled workers and students. The goal is to maintain public trust and make the system easier to manage while helping newcomers contribute to Canada’s success.
Canada’s immigration rules are changing to make things fairer and simpler. Removing LMIA points ensures that Express Entry rewards the most skilled and qualified candidates. Ending flagpoling will make border operations smoother and encourage people to use regular application channels. These updates are designed to reduce fraud, improve efficiency, and help Canada continue to welcome talented people from around the world. Planning and staying informed will be key for anyone affected by these changes.
