What the Numbers Say: The Impact of Removing CRS Points for Job Offers

With the latest draw on April 14th, 2025, IRCC also released updated numbers showing how many people are in the Express Entry pool and where their CRS scores fall. By comparing the data from March 16, 2025 (before the change) to April 13, 2025 (after), we can start to see how this new rule is affecting candidates. 

In this article, we break down what’s changed in the pool, what it means for different types of candidates, and what to expect moving forward. 

Key Takeaways:

• As of March 25, 2025, Express Entry candidates no longer receive extra CRS points for arranged employment.

• The number of candidates in the 501–600 range fell sharply, showing how many previously relied on job offer points to boost their scores.

• Thousands of candidates dropped into the 451–500 and 401–450 ranges, making competition tighter in these ranges.

• With job offer points gone, many candidates are turning to French proficiency as a key way to stand out, especially in category-based draws.

• While job offers no longer directly add CRS points, they can still help candidates qualify for Provincial Nominee Programs, which can add 600 points if nominated.

Recap: What Changed and Why? 

Before March 25, 2025, Express Entry candidates with a valid job offer could receive 50 or 200 extra CRS points, depending on the type of job. These extra points gave many candidates a major boost, often helping them reach the cut-off for invitations, even if their scores in other areas were lower. 

However, over time, there were rising concerns about the misuse of LMIA-based job offers (Labour Market Impact Assessments), with some individuals fraudulently purchasing LMIA’s to gain the CRS points. 

In response, the Canadian government removed CRS points for arranged employment for all. According to an Access to Information request by RCIC Burcu Akyol, over 64,000 candidates in the Express Entry pool were claiming points for arranged employment, and so would see these points removed.  

Note: Some candidates may be counted more than once if they qualified under multiple programs, so the actual number of unique individuals is likely lower. 

Still, it’s clear that tens of thousands of candidates were benefiting from arranged employment points, some through genuine offers, others not. Now that these points have been removed, and with updated data on the composition of the Express Entry pool, we can start to see the impact.  

Express Entry Pool Composition: Before vs. After 

To understand the early impact of the March 25 removal of CRS points for arranged employment, we compared Express Entry pool data from March 16, 2025 (before the change) and April 13, 2025 (after the change). 

The overall number of candidates in the pool rose from 236,909 to 244,282. This increase was expected, largely due to the pause in draws over the previous four weeks. However, the more telling change lies in how candidates are now distributed across CRS score ranges, and what that means going forward. 

Score Range Shifts: Key Insights from March 16, 2025 to April 13, 2025 

601–1200 Range 

This range usually includes candidates with very high CRS scores, often because they have a provincial nomination (PNP), which adds 600 points. 

The number of candidates with scores above 601 increased from 693 to 816. However, this rise is likely due to the lack of a PNP draw during the week of March 31, rather than the removal of job offer points. 

501–600 Range 

The most dramatic change was the drop in this CRS score range, from 25,522 down to 19,782, which is in line with what we predicted in our earlier article. 

Many candidates in this range likely had job offers before the change, which boosted their scores into the 500s. Now that those extra points are gone, they’ve shifted into lower score ranges. 

Based on past calculations, we expect that most of those affected in this bracket will now fall within the 451–470 range.

Our original estimate assumed that around 20% of candidates in the 501–600 range had job offer points, and that roughly 5,100 people would fall below the 470 mark after losing those points. The latest data now shows a drop of nearly 5,740 candidates in this band, aligning closely with our forecast. 

451–500 Range 

This group got bigger, growing from 70,055 to 71,542, which is likely a result of the change in job offer points pushing many candidates down from the 500s into this range. 

Let’s look more closely at the smaller groups inside this range: 

• 491–500: Went down from 13,711 to 12,093 
• 481–490: Went down from 13,343 to 12,359 
• 471–480: Went up from 16,033 to 16,215 
• 461–470: Went up from 14,032 to 16,189 
• 451–460: Went up from 12,936 to 14,686 

The highest scorers in this range (491–500) are fewer now, likely because many applicants in this range were claiming arranged employment pieces. But the number of people in the mid-to-low 450s has gone up a lot. These candidates may have had decent scores before, and now they’re competing more closely with others. 

401–450 Range 

This range also got bigger, growing from 61,487 to 67,301. That’s an increase of 5,814 candidates. 

Let’s break it down further: 

• 441–450: up from 12,314 to 14,131 
• 431–440: up from 13,018 to 14,740 
• 421–430: up from 11,619 to 13,084 
• 411–420: up from 11,919 to 13,020 
• 401–410: down from 12,617 to 12,326 

Most subgroups in this range grew, likely because candidates who were in the 450s dropped down after losing job offer points. 

What This Means for Candidates in the Pool

With the removal of CRS points for job offers, many candidates are now re-evaluating how to stay competitive in the Express Entry system. For some, this means looking for new ways to boost their scores, especially through language improvement, such as learning or improving French, which continues to be a major advantage in category-based draws. We expect to see more candidates taking French language tests or enrolling in language programs in the coming months, which will, in turn, make the French language proficiency category more competitive. 

Others may now be exploring alternative immigration pathways, especially if their CRS score dropped significantly after the change. 

Were You Impacted by This Update? 

If you lost points due to the removal of job offer points, you’re not alone, and you still have options. While job offers no longer give you CRS points directly, they can still play an important role. A valid job offer might make you eligible for a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), many of which are aligned with Express Entry and can add 600 points to your score if nominated. 

Now is the time to take a closer look at your immigration strategy. Consider your options both within and outside of Express Entry—whether it’s through a PNP, gaining Canadian work experience, improving language test scores, or even pursuing employer-driven provincial streams. We go into more dedicated on this topic in this dedicated article.  

What’s Next for Express Entry?  

After a four-week pause, Express Entry activity has finally resumed with today’s PNP-specific draw—a welcome sign that things are picking back up. 

What many candidates are still waiting for is a Canadian Experience Class (CEC) draw, which is now more than two months overdue. With a large number of CEC-eligible candidates in the mid-to-high 400s, there’s strong interest in a targeted draw to give this group a fair opportunity. 

That said, based on the current pool composition and number of candidates still scoring over 500, it’s unlikely we’ll see CRS cut-offs drop below 500 immediately. Unless IRCC significantly increases draw sizes or frequency, we expect any drop to happen gradually, possibly after mid-2025. 

Still, today’s draw signals that things are moving again, and we’re hopeful that a CEC draw could follow soon, especially as IRCC adjusts to the new post-job-offer-points landscape.