Details emerging from an IRCC webinar held with immigration lawyers on 21 April and published by Liberty Immigration on 26 April 2026 reveal that Ottawa will introduce a new Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) factor awarding extra points to applicants in high-wage occupations—months before it completes a broader plan to merge the Federal Skilled Worker, Canadian Experience Class and Federal Skilled Trades programs. The “High-Wage Occupation” factor will be based on each NOC’s median hourly wage in the federal Job Bank, not an individual’s salary, creating incentives for employers to hire in-demand, better-paid roles. Once ministerial instructions are issued—expected “within weeks,” according to officials—the CRS of every candidate in the pool will be recalculated automatically. IRCC says age penalties will remain, but older workers may offset lost points with the new bonus. The department estimates that the rule change alone could shift 15,000 invitations in 2026 toward senior engineers, health professionals and experienced trades supervisors, aligning with the government’s productivity agenda and its goal to curb low-wage temporary migration. For employers, workers who already hold high-salary job offers backed by an LMIA or a recognised LMIA exemption stand to gain the largest points bump, making permanent residence pathways more predictable for critical roles. Candidates in lower-paying occupations should review provincial options or upskill quickly to stay competitive. The full structural merger of Express Entry’s three programs will require regulatory amendments and is pencilled in for late 2027, but IRCC’s early move signals a shift to quality-over-quantity selection—and could raise the CRS cut-off in the next general draw slated for 1 May 2026.
Source: Liberty Immigration
