Canada’s immigration system is highly competitive. Thousands of skilled workers from around the world are applying every month, and the ones with the highest Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores are the ones who receive Invitations to Apply (ITAs) for permanent residence. This means every single point matters.
While most applicants know they can earn CRS points for work experience, many don’t realize that there are specific strategies to double those points, especially under new guidelines introduced in 2025. This guide will walk you through how it works, who qualifies, and how you can structure your application to get double the CRS point for work experience.
Why Work Experience Matters More Than Ever in 2025
In 2025, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has made work experience a key factor in Express Entry draws. Canada is facing specific labour shortages in fields like healthcare, construction, technology, education, and transportation. To fill those gaps, the government is placing more emphasis on candidates who have real-world experience in Canada or in priority occupations.
This is part of a broader push under the new category-based Express Entry draws, which began in 2023 and are fully operational in 2025. These draws target individuals based on skills and work history rather than just relying on traditional CRS scores. However, if you know how to boost your CRS using work experience, especially in targeted categories, your chances of receiving an ITA go up significantly.
What Counts as Valid Work Experience?
To earn CRS points for work experience, your job must fall under a recognized NOC (National Occupation Classification) code and meet certain conditions. The experience must be:
- Paid and full-time, or the part-time equivalent
- Gained in one or more eligible occupations listed under TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3
- Continuous and verifiable with documents such as pay stubs, employment letters, and contracts
Work experience can be gained inside or outside Canada, but the way it’s rewarded in your CRS score will depend on where and how the experience was earned.
How to Get Double CRS Points for Work Experience in 2025
Here’s how it works: you can unlock double the points for your work experience if you align it with Canada’s new targeted draws and prove that it fits into one of the priority occupations in demand across the country.
1. Get Canadian Work Experience in a Targeted Field
Work experience gained inside Canada continues to be one of the most valuable factors in the CRS system. In 2025, having at least one year of Canadian work experience in a priority occupation can significantly increase your score and also make you eligible for special draws that are not open to the general public. Here’s a breakdown:
- 1 year of talented work involvement in Canada can gain you up to 40 points.
- 2 to 3 a long time of talented work encounters in Canada can win you 53 points.
- 4 to 5 a long time of talented work involvement in Canada can gain you 80 points.
If you are already in Canada on a temporary work permit or post-graduation work permit (PGWP), this is your golden opportunity. Focus on jobs in:
- Health care (nurses, doctors, paramedics)
- Construction (plumbers, carpenters, electricians)
- Tech (software engineers, data analysts)
- Transportation (truck drivers, aircraft mechanics)
- Agriculture (farm supervisors, equipment operators)
These sectors are seeing high demand, and the government is giving them special attention through category-based draws. If your job fits into one of these, the system can reward you with both standard CRS points and additional points through targeted invitations.
2. Foreign Work Experience
Although Canadian work encounters are necessary for getting a high CRS, your work involvement outside Canada can still contribute to your CRS score. Here is a breakdown to use as a guide:
- 1 year of remote work encounter gains you 9 points.
- 2 to 3 a long time of remote work encounter wins you 11 points.
- 4 to 5 a long time of remote work encounter gains you 13 points.
- 6 a long time or more of remote work involvement wins you 15 points.
One more thing you should note about foreign work (remote) is that its focus is lower compared to Canadian work involvement even though it still makes a difference in boosting your general CRS score.
3. Combine Foreign Work Experience with Canadian Work
If you’ve worked outside Canada and now have Canadian experience in the same occupation, you can stack points. By combining three years of foreign work experience with one year of Canadian work in the same field, your CRS score can increase dramatically.
For example, someone with three years of work in IT from India, plus one year of Canadian tech work, can get the maximum CRS points for work experience and potentially be picked in tech-targeted draws. This is one of the most powerful ways to double your points in the 2025 system.
4. Prove You Meet a Category-Based Draw Requirement
One of the newest features of Express Entry in 2025 is category-based selection. This system rewards candidates who have work experience in high-demand fields. These draws run separately from regular rounds and often require lower CRS scores to receive an invitation.
If you can show that your work experience fits into a specific category such as healthcare or Stem, you can benefit in two ways:
- Gain standard CRS points for work experience
- Get a second advantage by being selected in targeted draws with lower cutoffs
This means that the same work history gets you twice the value, and below are the categories classified under the National Word-related Classification (NOC) that can drastically increase your CRS score:
- NOC 0: Administration employment (e.g., senior supervisors, directors)
- NOC A: Proficient occupations (e.g., doctors, lawyers, engineers)
- NOC B: Gifted exchanges (e.g., chefs, circuit testers, plumbers)
5. Improve Your Job Title & Duties to Match NOC Requirements
Even if you have the right kind of work experience, it won’t help you unless your job duties match the official NOC descriptions. One of the biggest mistakes applicants make is listing the wrong NOC or submitting vague reference letters.
To double your work experience points, make sure your job letter:
- Clearly matches the core duties of the correct NOC code
- Shows consistent job titles, start/end dates, and salary
- Includes company letterhead, contact info, and an authorized signature
This not only secures your CRS points but also ensures you qualify for targeted draws.
6. Spouse/Partner’s Canadian Work Experience
Adding to your claim work encounter, your common-law partner’s Canadian work encounter can pose an impact on your CRS score. Below is how advantageous your this could be typically:
- 1 year of Canadian work encounter for your spouse can gain 35 points.
- 2 to 3 long Canadian work encounters with your life partner can gain 46 points.
- 4 to 5 long Canadian work encounters for your life partner can win 58 points.
If you are lucky enough to have a life accomplice that has an important work involvement in Canada, chances of your CRS score being boosted is high, which in return also increases your chances of accepting an ITA.
7. Self-employed Work Experience
Self-employed work experience is another way of boosting your CRS score such that your work involvement may still be numbered if it meets certain criteria to qualify beneath the Express Section framework.
This must occur in a recognized talented occupation under the NOC framework and often requires documentation such as contracts, invoices, and charge records.
Nevertheless, if your involvement in self-employed work experience is categorized under NOC 0, A, or B, you are still entitled to claim CRS focus despite the fact that it is fundamental to guarantee that the Canadian migration specialists acknowledge it.
Why Proficient Acknowledgment and Certification Matters
Although often dependent on certain areas, proficient certification or acknowledgment from a Canadian body can boost your chances of winning higher CRS focuses. If we consider a case where you are working in controlled callings like designing, law, or medication, a Canadian certification can help in validating your work encounter which in return makes it less demanding for your qualification for more focus.
Maximizing CRS Focuses with Work Experience
To maximize your CRS focuses through work encounters, adhere to the following techniques:
- Try to get at least one year of Canadian experience if possible.
- Choose jobs that are in-demand in Canada’s 2025 category-based draws.
- Match your work experience to the correct NOC codes.
- Submit strong reference letters with full job descriptions.
- Combine foreign and Canadian work to stack CRS points.
- Stay updated with IRCC announcements about draw types and priorities.
Common Mistakes That Can Cost You Points
Getting double the CRS points sounds great, but many applicants lose out by making small but critical errors. Here are the most common issues:
- Using the wrong NOC code for your job
- Not including detailed job descriptions in your reference letter
- Submitting work experience without pay slips or contracts
- Listing freelance or self-employed work without strong documentation
- Failing to show work was continuous and full-time
Make sure all your documents are complete and accurate to avoid delays or rejections.
Conclusion
In 2025, simply meeting the minimum CRS score may not be enough. Canada’s new approach to immigration is more targeted, and those who align their experience with the country’s labour needs are the ones being prioritized. If you want to get ahead in Express Entry, your work history must do more than just meet the basic requirements, it should work strategically in your favor just as we have detailed here.