Federal Skilled Worker Work Experience & Letter Requirements

[Onkar]

I have filled out my express entry profile for FSW. I received my ITA on May 10, 2020. I have the following questions regarding my work experience:

1 ) Can you combine part-time and full-time hours? For example, if I work for only 15 hours in one week and 30 hours in another week.

2 ) Is there a specific format that must be used for the reference letter from my manager which indicates that I have completed the required work experience?

3 ) Due to Covid-19, it is difficult for me to get a new job letter. I have a reference letter from the same company I am working with now from 2 years ago. Would this still be valid?

[Rajpal (Admin)]

1 ) As per IRCC, you need to have at least 1 year of CONTINUOUS work (1530 hours total or 30 hours a week). This work experience can be a combination of full-time and part-time work. As long as you have 1 year of CONTINUOUS work, you should hopefully be fine.

2 ) Your reference letter should include the following information:

– Your name

– Date of employment

– Number of hours worked per week

– Position name

– Duties & responsibilities of your position (these must match the duties & responsibilities list in the NOC code you selected as your primary field of experience).

– Any other salary benefits you may have been receiving

If you have held multiple positions in the same company, then a single reference letter would suffice for your express entry profile. But, the reference must include the above mentioned information for EACH position you’ve held in the company.

3 ) IRCC does not give a specific time as to how recent a reference letter should be – rather they write that it must be RECENT. A reference letter that is 2 years old would not be considered ‘recent’ by any reasonable person, so I would suggest getting a new one.

For further information on Express Entry & Federal Skilled Worker category, you can contact our office.