30 hours a week is an important limit
Express Entry rules generally limit full-time work experience to 30 hours per week.
This means you can't simply take a very busy period and turn it into a shorter calendar year.
EXPRESS ENTRY · WORK EXPERIENCE
Calculating Express Entry work experience without confusing the rules
The same period of employment may have different meanings in Express Entry. It may help fulfill the requirements of one program, provide CRS credits, or be relevant for a particular occupational category, but they are not always the same thing.
Therefore, it is better to start not with the question “how many years of experience do I have?”, but with another:
for which particular rule do you now consider this experience?
AT A GLANCE
First, determine what you are counting experience for
One work period can be checked according to several rules at once
Express Entry uses work experience in more than one place. Because of this, it is easy to make the wrong conclusion: for example, seeing three years of work and deciding that this is automatically enough for the program and for the required number of points.
In practice, three questions need to be checked separately.
Complete the minimum program
First, you need to determine whether you have the experience required by at least one of the federal Express Entry programs.
Experience requirements differ between the Canadian Experienced Trades (CEC) program, the Federal Skilled Trades (FSW) program, and the Federal Skilled Trades (FST) program.
Get CRS points
Once a person is eligible for Express Entry, their profile receives CRS points.
When calculating points, Canadian and foreign experience are taken into account according to their own rules. Here the requirements may differ from the minimum program requirements.
Participate in selection by profession
Some Express Entry rounds are limited to candidates with experience in certain occupations.
For such selection, the profession, period, duration of experience and the current conditions of a particular category are separately checked.
Important: just because one period is suitable for one of these tasks does not mean that it is automatically suitable for the other two.
What to check for each work period
Important: Do not lump your entire career into one number.
It is more convenient to first divide the experience into separate periods, and only then decide which of them can be used.
For each period, check six things.
- 01
Where did you work?
In Canada or abroad.
For some rules, this is fundamental: CEC requires exactly the right Canadian experience.
- 02
When did you work
Different programs have their own period for which they look at experience.
For example, for CEC, experience over the last 3 years is important, and for FSW, the minimum suitable period is sought within the last 10 years.
- 03
What work did you actually do?
You need to determine the Canadian occupation code NOC and check the actual responsibilities, not just the job title.
- 04
Was the work paid?
Volunteer work and unpaid internships are not considered eligible paid experience for federal Express Entry programs.
- 05
How many hours did you work?
Part-time work may be taken into account, but hours must be counted according to program rules.
More hours in one week does not always allow you to “gain a year” faster.
- 06
If the job was in Canada, did you have the right to work?
For Canadian experience, your status, work authorization, and the circumstances under which the experience was gained are important.
Three Express Entry programs count experience differently
First determine the program, then count the months and hours.
Program for Professionals with Experience in Canada (CEC)
The minimum program requirement is:
- suitable work experience in Canada;
- in a TEER level 0, 1, 2 or 3 occupation;
- at least 1 year or 1,560 hours;
- within 3 years prior to filing;
- Experience may be gained on a full-time or part-time basis;
- experience may relate to more than one NOC;
- the work must be paid;
- the work must be performed in Canada with the right to work.
Self-employment and work acquired during full-time study do not generally count towards the CEC minimum experience. Some doctors have a separate temporary policy.
Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSW)
The minimum program requirement is:
- paid experience in Canada or abroad;
- TEER level 0, 1, 2 or 3 occupation;
- the same NOC that is used as the main occupation for this program;
- at least 1 year of continuous work or 1,560 hours;
- the suitable period should be within the last 10 years.
Work while studying may be considered if it is paid, continuous, and fulfills other program requirements.
Federal Skilled Trades Program (FST)
The minimum program requirement is:
- experience in one of the skilled blue-collar professions provided for by the program;
- at least 2 years or 3,120 hours;
- within 5 years before filing;
- Experience may be gained on a full-time or part-time basis;
- Working while studying does not count toward the minimum length of service in the program.
This program also has separate job offer or Canadian Certificate of Skills requirements. They need to be checked separately.
Do not use this comparison as an automatic test of program eligibility. Each program has other requirements beyond experience.
How to count hours
Example 1: Full-time
30 hours per week × 52 weeks = 1,560 hours.
For a program that requires one year of such experience, this is a clear baseline example.
Example 2: Part-time work
The 15 hours per week can add up longer.
To obtain the equivalent of 1,560 hours, it would take approximately twice as much calendar time.
Example 3: 45 or 60 hours per week
Additional hours above the required limit do not allow several months of work to be converted into a full year of required experience.
Example 4. Two jobs at the same time
If you worked for two employers in the same weeks, those periods cannot be mechanically added together as if calendar time were moving twice as fast.
Practical takeaway: First construct a calendar chronology, and then separately count the valid hours.
Continuity of experience: where it really matters
The main thing: not all rules require one continuous year. This is one of the most common causes of confusion.
For the Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) program
The minimum qualifying period must be at least one continuous year.
If there is a gap between periods, you need to separately check whether you still have another continuous period that fulfills the requirements of the program.
For the Canadian Experienced Specialist (CEC) program
The required Canadian experience can be accumulated within the last 3 years. It does not have to be one continuous period.
For the Federal Skilled Trades (FST) program
2 years of relevant experience within the last 5 years is required. Program rules allow for the accumulation of full-time or part-time equivalents.
For CRS points
Continuity and the minimum requirements of a particular program are not the same thing.
Therefore, the continuous year rule cannot be automatically carried over to the entire Express Entry experience count.
Canadian and foreign experience are not the same thing
Place of work affects not only the name of the experience category.
If experience was gained in Canada
Need to check:
- whether you were physically in Canada;
- whether they had the right to work;
- For the Canadian Experienced Employer (CEC) program, whether you worked for a Canadian employer;
- whether the profession belongs to the required NOC/TEER level;
- whether the experience was gained as self-employment or during full-time study if you wish to use it for CEC;
- whether the dates, hours and responsibilities match the documents.
Remote work does not become a Canadian experience just because you were in Canada. For CEC, IRCC specifically states that when working remotely, the individual must be physically located in Canada and working for a Canadian employer.
If experience was gained outside of Canada
Need to check:
- NOC and actual responsibilities;
- whether the experience was paid;
- when it was received;
- what time and hours you state;
- what rule you want to use it for: FSW requirements, CRS points, professional category or other.
Self-employment outside of Canada requires a separate analysis and a different approach to evidence. A separate page is dedicated to it.
Work while studying
Here it is especially dangerous to apply one rule to all programs.
FSW
Work while studying can be used towards the minimum requirement if it is paid, continuous and meets the other FSW requirements.
CEC
Experience gained during full-time study does not count towards the minimum Canadian CEC experience.
FST
Working while studying does not count towards the minimum FST experience.
CRS points
IRCC specifically states that Canadian experience gained during full-time study does not count towards Canadian experience.
However, suitable foreign experience gained during full-time study outside Canada may be taken into account when ranking the profile.
If positions, responsibilities or NOCs have changed
Break your career into periods before choosing a “total experience”
One person may have multiple employers, promotions, changes in responsibilities, parallel work, different NOCs, work in Canada and abroad, periods of employment and self-employment.
Don’t immediately try to combine this into the formula “I have 6 years of experience.”
First make a table:
Write down dates, employer, country, position, responsibilities, NOC, hours per week and form of work.
After this, it becomes clear which periods belong to one NOC, which can be combined for a specific rule, and which need to be analyzed separately.
How to prove work experience
Documents must confirm not only the fact of employment
What is important is not one document in itself, but whether the documents form a clear and consistent picture.
Check to see if employer, dates, position, hours, pay, responsibilities and changes within the job can be verified.
A personal list of documents is generated by IRCC after filling out the application. Therefore, you should not consider any universal list of documents sufficient for every case.
Typical mistakes when calculating length of service
- Add up all years of work without reference to the program.
- Speed up your year with 50-60 hours a week.
- Don't notice the gap in the FSW period.
- Treat work while studying equally.
- Automatically count Canadian self-employment as CEC experience.
- Consider NOC based on job title only.
Checklist before using work period
Items checked
Your selections remain only on this page and are not sent anywhere.
This checklist does not determine eligibility for the program.
When is it better to consider a question with experience separately?
A separate analysis is especially useful if there were several NOCs, parallel work, long-term part-time work, work coincided with studies, part of the experience was gained in Canada and part abroad, there was self-employment, or documents show different dates and hours.
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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Frequently asked questions
In some situations, yes, but you need to check the specific program's rules, NOCs, and calendar periods first. Simultaneous work does not allow doubling the calendar time itself.
NEXT STEP
Related Pages
How to count experience with multiple NOCs
Analyze periods in which responsibilities or profession changed.
Self-employment and Express Entry
Separately check the program rules and confirmation of independent work.
How to choose a NOC code
Match actual responsibilities with official classification.
How does the Express Entry profile work before the ITA?
Have accurate information ready before creating your profile.
What to do after ITA
Go from profile to application and documents.
How to Prepare an Employer Letter
Check the content and evidentiary role of the letter.
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The materials on the site are for general informational purposes only and do not constitute individual immigration advice.