Express Entry

Education Credential Assessment (ECA) — Complete Guide

To confirm that your foreign degree is legitimate and on par with a Canadian one, you can employ an ECA. ECAs come in a variety of forms. You must have an ECA in order to immigrate. Depending on the ECA’s type and/or issuing organisation, you might be able to receive a different sort of ECA issued to you.

ECA Report Requirement

Your Express Entry profile must have both the reference number and your ECA report.

What Your ECA Report Does Not Ensure

Your ECA report might be useful when looking for work. However, it does not ensure that:

• You’ll find employment in your field.
• Once you reach a particular level, you’ll be granted a licence to work in a regulated profession.

If you intend to work in a regulated field, you must get a licence in the province or territory where you intend to make your permanent home.

You must get your Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) from an organisation that has been approved by the IRCC.

How to Get ECA

You must receive your evaluation from a group or professional organisation that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has recognised. You’ll receive a report outlining how comparable your education is to one in Canada.

Following your selection of a designated organisation or a professional body, they will instruct you on how to submit your paperwork for evaluation.

You must work with one of the following recognised organisations:

• University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies’ Comparative Education Service
• International Credential Assessment Service of Canada
• International Qualifications Assessment Service (IQAS)
• World Education Services
• British Columbia Institute of Technology

If you want to know if you require a license to practice your desired profession, get in touch with the regulatory agency in the province where you plan to live.

Who Requires ECA

You require an evaluation if you finished your education outside of Canada to:

• being qualified to apply as the primary candidate for the FSWP, or
• receive points for any schooling received outside of Canada.

If you’re moving to Canada with your spouse or common-law partner, you can also receive points for their education.

Your report must demonstrate that your foreign credential is equivalent to a Canadian secondary school in order to receive points.

Only your highest level of education typically necessitates an exam. If you already have a Master’s degree, for instance, all you need is an evaluation. A bachelor’s degree is not required to have one.

To earn points for holding two or more certifications, you must complete an examination for each one. To obtain full points for several credentials, at least one of the credentials must be for three years or more of study. No matter how you finish your qualifications, you will still receive points.

You could have your secondary credential evaluated to determine if your post-secondary credential is comparable to a Canadian credential. You would earn points for completing secondary school if you did.

What Does Your ECA Report Mean?

Your report has to demonstrate that your international diploma is legitimate and equivalent to a diploma from a Canadian secondary school (high school) or post-secondary institution. If so, your Express Entry profile must reflect the outcome and reference number.

If your assessment reveals that your certification isn’t equivalent to a Canadian credential that has been earned or that the foreign educational institution isn’t acknowledged: You won’t receive any points for it because you won’t fulfil the Federal Skilled Workers Program’s schooling requirement.

Your document must:

• be provided for immigration reasons by a group or organisation that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has designated
• be issued on or after the day we designated the organisation or professional body,
• the day you: submit your Express Entry profile; apply for permanent residency; it should not be older than 5 years old

More Information on ECA

After the report is received

Preserve your original documents and enter the results and reference number into your Express Entry profile. If you are asked to apply for permanent residence, be prepared to upload copies.

In case of two or more credentials

To receive full credit for holding several credentials:

• You require a valid educational credential assessment (ECA) for each certificate, and at least one of the credentials must be for a programme lasting three years or more.
• Points are awarded regardless of how your credentials are completed