You have made your choice to immigrate to Canada. Now, the next step is to arrange all the necessary documents required to create your profile in the Express Entry System. An Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) is one of the essential documents that the Canadian government demands in your immigration process.
If your educational certificate, diploma, or degree is obtained from overseas and not from a Canadian institution, you would be required to verify that your level of qualification matches with a Canadian one.
Thus, before applying for an immigration visa, you need to ensure that your level of education is equivalent to the Canadian level of education. So, here comes the role of ECA which is a document that provides an equivalency report of your education.
Is an ECA report necessary for you?
First and foremost, you should know whether you need an ECA report or not. If you are applying to the Express Entry System under the Federal Skilled Worker and Federal Skilled Trades immigration programs, you must provide your ECA report.
However, if you are applying through the Canadian Experience Class program of the express entry or already have prior Canadian work experience, you may not have to submit your ECA report.
Which Organization should be chosen for ECA?
The federal government has given permission to six organizations to issue ECA reports. These are:
- World Education Services
- International Qualifications Assessment Service
- International Credential Assessment Service of Canada
- International Credential Evaluation Service
- Comparative Education Service – University of Toronto
- Medical Council of Canada (for Doctors)
- Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (for pharmacists)
Candidates can go for the ECA report through any of the above-mentioned systems. However, the most popular one among the immigrants is the World Education Services (WES) because of its lucid procedure and less processing time.
Save money on your Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) report from WES
You need to pay a hefty fee to get your ECA report. Since the immigration process is itself costly and now that the immigration fee is also increased by the Government of Canada, it becomes evident that you try to minimize your immigration expenditure.
So, here are some handy tips to avoid burning a hole in your pocket:
1. Do not send your documents directly to WES
It is a common practice that candidates send their documents without any consultation to the WES and sometimes their ECA report turns out negative. So, a large sum of money is wasted. Therefore, we recommend you get your documents evaluated by your educational organization before sending them to WES.
2. Always select the correct application
While creating an online account on the website of WES, you will have to select the type of report you need:
- WES Standard Application, or
- ECA Application for IRCC
Make sure that you select the second option. This would reduce some amount from your fee and will ensure that your ECA report is sent to the IRCC (Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada) as well.
3. Choose standard shipping
You will be asked to choose a delivery option from the following two:
- Standard Mail via Canada Post – $7
- International Courier – $85
You will be able to save a huge amount if you choose Standard Mail Shipping. The hard copy of your report will be delivered to you at a slower pace and without any tracking. However, you will get a PDF version of your ECA report and that is what you require for the Express Entry System.
4. Evaluate all degrees in a single application
If you have multiple degrees that need to be evaluated, you can do so in a single WES account and save your money. Because WES charges a fee for an ECA report per application and not per degree.
5. Do not add additional recipients
Your ECA report copy will be automatically sent to IRCC after the evaluation. You do not need to send this to any other recipients. If in the future, you want to send it to someone, you can always send the PDF version.
6. Your spouse may skip the ECA report process
The Federal Skilled Worker program of the Express Entry does not demand an ECA report for an applicant’s spouse. However, if the spouse submits an ECA report, only 10 points will be awarded to the CRS score. So, you can try applying without your spouse’s ECA report and if you feel that you need more points, you can always get the report for your spouse.
Useful Immigration Suggestion
When couples apply for Canadian immigration application, they are sometimes hesitant about who should be the principal applicant. If doubtful, you should seek some professional help and clear all your queries.
You can fill out our online assessment form and one of our immigration specialists will contact you shortly to discuss your points and clear your doubts.
So, now you know some simple tips that should be kept in mind while sending your Educational Credentials Assessment to World Education Services before submitting it in your express entry profile. If you are still not sure whether you require an ECA report or not, or if you need to clear a few doubts, you can fill out our online assessment form and our experts will guide you to discuss your eligibility for Canada Immigration.