The Labour Market Integration factor is the part of the CRS that rewards your connection to the Canadian job market. It is worth up to 150 points without a spouse, or 140 with one, and it has been part of the core factors since November 3, 2026.
The rule in one sentence
IRCC works out your points for Canadian work experience and your points for a qualifying job offer, compares the two, and gives you the higher number.
Step 1: work-length points
Count your years of skilled work experience in Canada in the last 10 years. Skilled means TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3 of the National Occupational Classification. One year is 1,560 hours: 30 hours a week for 12 months, or the same hours part-time over a longer period.
| Canadian work experience | With a spouse or partner | Without a spouse or partner |
|---|---|---|
| None or less than a year | 0 | 0 |
| 1 year | 35 | 40 |
| 2 years | 46 | 53 |
| 3 years | 56 | 64 |
| 4 years | 63 | 72 |
| 5 years or more | 70 | 80 |
| Maximum | 70 | 80 |
Step 2: high-wage occupation points
Now look at which occupations that experience was in. If at least 12 months of it was in occupations on IRCC's high-wage list, add the points for the highest level you qualify for.
| Qualifying Canadian work experience | Points |
|---|---|
| At least 12 months in occupations with median wages at least twice the average median wage | 70 |
| At least 12 months in occupations with median wages at least 1.5 times the average median wage | 40 |
| At least 12 months in occupations with median wages at least 1.3 times the average median wage | 20 |
| No qualifying high-wage experience (less than 12 months) | 0 |
| Maximum | 70 |
The table is read from the top down. You get 70 points if you have 12 months in occupations at twice the median wage. If not, IRCC checks whether you have 12 months combined in occupations at 1.5 times or higher, for 40 points. If not, it checks for 12 months combined at 1.3 times or higher, for 20 points.
Rules for counting the 12 months
- The experience must meet the normal Express Entry rules for qualifying Canadian work experience.
- It can be continuous or broken up.
- It can be full-time or the equivalent in part-time work.
- It can be combined across more than one high-wage job.
- If you worked two jobs at once, hours count only up to full-time, which is 30 hours a week.
Step 3: job offer points
If you have a valid job offer for a position in a listed high-wage occupation, find its level.
| Job offer category | Points |
|---|---|
| High-wage occupation with at least twice the average median wage | 100 |
| High-wage occupation with at least 1.5 times, but less than twice, the average median wage | 70 |
| High-wage occupation with at least 1.3 times, but less than 1.5 times, the average median wage | 50 |
| No valid job offer in a high-wage occupation | 0 |
| Maximum | 100 |
An LMIA is not required. The offer must still be valid under Express Entry, and an officer must be satisfied that it is genuine when you apply for permanent residence.
Step 4: keep the higher number
Add Step 1 and Step 2 together. Compare the result with Step 3. Your Labour Market Integration score is the larger of the two.
| Situation | Experience | Job offer | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| One year in Canada as a retail supervisor (not listed), no job offer | 40 + 0 = 40 | 0 | 40 |
| One year in Canada as a software developer (1.5 level), no job offer | 40 + 40 = 80 | 0 | 80 |
| One year as an accountant (1.3 level), with a job offer as a financial manager (twice the median) | 40 + 20 = 60 | 100 | 100 |
| Three years as a registered nurse (1.5 level), with a job offer in the same occupation | 64 + 40 = 104 | 70 | 104 |
| No Canadian experience, job offer as a civil engineer (1.5 level) | 0 | 70 | 70 |
| Five years as a physician (twice the median) | 80 + 70 = 150 | 0 | 150 |
It does not change skill transferability
Your years of Canadian work experience still count in the skill transferability section, where they combine with your education and foreign work experience for up to 100 points. That is true even when your job offer is the option that counts for Labour Market Integration. The two sections are scored separately.
If you have a spouse or partner
With an accompanying spouse or common-law partner, your work-length points are capped at 70 instead of 80, so the factor is capped at 140. High-wage points and job offer points are the same either way. Your partner's own Canadian work experience is scored separately, for up to 10 points, in the spouse section.
Common mistakes
- Using your salary instead of your NOC code. Only the occupation's level matters.
- Adding job offer points to experience points. You get one or the other.
- Assuming a job offer in any skilled occupation earns points. It must be on the high-wage list to earn CRS points, although other offers can still count for program eligibility.
- Counting foreign experience. High-wage points are for Canadian work experience only.
Check your occupation in the high-wage occupation checker, then enter your details in the CRS calculator to see the result.