Express Entry adopts new NOC 2021, 16 more occupations eligible for EE

Canada's skilled migration program Express Entry will use a new five-digit TEER system to classify occupations, most jobs remain on the list and 16 jobs are added. #ExpressEntry #EE #Canada #skill #immigration #NOC #TEER

The Canadian government uses the new National Occupational Classification (NOC) to categorize different occupations. The NOC updated every now and then; and it is instrumental to people applying for work permits or PR under different economic immigration programs, e.g. Express Entry, PNPs, etc. as both federal and provincial governments different labour demands under these immigration programs. The NOC 2021 officially became effective on Nov 16, 2022, so what are the key changes?

NOC 2021 - what changed?

1. Skill levels replaced by TEER

NOC 2021 replaced the four-category "Skill level" structure with the new six-category system representing the "Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities (TEER)" required for entry in an occupation. The following table demonstrates a breakdown of NOC 2021's six categories:

TEER	Occupation types	Examples
TEER 0	Management occupations	Advertising, marketing and public relations managers Financial managers
TEER 1	Occupations that usually require a university degree	Financial advisors Software engineers
TEER 2	Occupations that usually require a college diploma apprenticeship training for 2 or more years, or supervisory occupations	Computer network and web technicians Medical laboratory technologists
TEER 3	Occupations that usually require a high school diploma, or several weeks of on-the-job training	Bakers Dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants
TEER 4	Occupations that usually need short-term work demonstration and no formal education	Home child care providers Retail salespersons and visual merchandisers
TEER 5	Occupations that usually need short-term work demonstration and no formal education	Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers Delivery service drivers and door-to-door distributors

2. Occupations now codified by five digits, not four

Before NOC 2021, occupations were codified in a four-digit manner. For example, when searching for "civil engineers" in the NOC 2016 version, they are codified as "2131" with skill level at "A - Occupation usually requires university education".

In the new NOC 2021, "civil engineers" are codified as "21300", where the TEER level is "1 - Occupations usually require a university degree". While most occupations will remain in the NOC system, they might have different NOC codes now and some jobs might be re-organized into other categories. Express Entry applicants who have already submitted their profiles should be aware of this change and make sure their codes are relevant to their main job duties.

The following graph is a demonstration of how each of the five digit is applied to the example of "civil engineer" under the new NOC 2021.

An illustrated example of how the five-tiered NOC works for Civil Engineer (NOC 21300)

Updated eligibility under the three EE streams

Given the above changes, the foreign nationals with work experience in TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3 will be eligible for CEC and FSW.

Eligibility criteria	Canadian Experience Class (CEC)	Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSW)	Federal Skilled Trades Program (FST)
Language skills	English or French skills CLB 7 for TEER 0 or TEER 1 occupations CLB 5 for TEER 2 or TEER 3 occupations	English or French skills CLB 7	English or French skills CLB 5 for speaking and listening CLB 4 for reading and writing
Type/Level of work experience	Canadian work experience in an occupation listed in 1 or more of these NOC TEER Categories: TEER 0 TEER 1 TEER 2 TEER 3	Work experience in an occupation listed in 1 of these NOC TEER Categories: TEER 0 TEER 1 TEER 2 TEER 3	Work experience in a skilled trade under key groups of TEER 2 or TEER 3*
Amount of work experience	One year in Canada in the last 3 years (either combination of full-time or part-time work)	One year continuous within the last 10 years (combination of part-time, full-time or more than 1 job in your primary occupation)	Two years within last 5 years (either combination of full-time or part-time work)
Job offer	Not required.	Not required. But you can get selection criteria (FSW) points for having a valid job offer.	Required: a valid job offer of full-time employment for a total period of at least 1 year or a certificate of qualification in that skilled trade issued by a Canadian provincial, territorial or federal authority
Education	Not required.	Secondary education required. You can get more selection criteria (FSW) points for your post-secondary education.	Not required.

*Major groups in TEER that are eligible for FST:

• Major Group 72, technical trades and transportation officers and controllers, excluding Sub-Major Group 726, transportation officers and controllers

• Major Group 73, general trades

• Major Group 82, supervisors in natural resources, agriculture and related production

• Major Group 83, occupations in natural resources and related production

• Major Group 92, processing, manufacturing and utilities supervisors, and utilities operators and controllers

• Major Group 93, central control and process operators and aircraft assembly assemblers and inspectors, excluding Sub-Major Group 932, aircraft assemblers and aircraft assembly inspectors

• Minor Group 6320, cooks, butchers and bakers

• Unit Group 62200, chefs

16 new occupations eligible for Express Entry, 3 occupations removed

While most jobs remain on the list eligible for Express Entry program, the IRCC has included 16 more occupations eligible for Express Entry in order to tackle labour shortages in high-demand sectors including healthcare, construction, and transportation. On the other hand, 3 jobs are deemed ineligible.

New eligible occupations

Foreign nationals with work experience in the following 16 occupations are now eligible to apply through Express Entry:

• payroll administrators;

• dental assistants and dental laboratory assistants;

• nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates;

• pharmacy technical assistants and pharmacy assistants;

• elementary and secondary school teacher assistants;

• sheriffs and bailiffs;

• correctional service officers;

• by-law enforcement and other regulatory officers;

• estheticians, electrologists and related occupations;

• residential and commercial installers and servicers;

• pest controllers and fumigators;

• other repairers and servicers;

• transport truck drivers;

• bus drivers, subway operators and other transit operators;

• heavy equipment operators;

• aircraft assemblers and aircraft assembly inspectors.

Ineligible occupations

On the other hand, 3 occupations are now ineligible for Express Entry. These are:

• Other performers;

• Program leaders and instructors in recreation, sport and fitness;

• Tailors, dressmakers, furriers and milliners.