New Year’s resolutions can be powerful vehicles to aid and advance your immigration journey.

The surges of motivation that mark the start of the year can work two-fold: both to help you meet your personal goals and to increase your eligibility and competitiveness as a candidate for Canadian immigration.

Resolution 1: Learning a language or improving language ability

“This is the year I want to get serious about learning French/English.”

How it benefits immigration

Canada’s immigration system (particularly the Express Entry system) heavily rewards language ability because it predicts how easily you’ll be able to work and settle in Canada, and has a significant impact on the short and medium-term success of newcomers in the labour market.

For many people who are English speakers, attaining a higher level in the language can often be a goal, particularly when it comes to spoken or written English.

In addition, learning or improving French ability is another common goal, with the language being one of the most widely spoken in the world.

Increasing ability in either language can benefit your immigration chances.

For example, your Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score significantly increases as your language ability does, particularly in the “skills transferability” points section, where language ability is combined with work experience and education to give candidates combination points.

This effect is further augmented for candidates who have abilities in both English and French, due to the fact that the CRS awards points for both these factors, meaning candidates can double up on score benefits.

For example, in addition to core language points and skills transferability, an additional 50 points are available under the CRS just for French speakers.

The relevance of French to Canadian immigration in recent years also cannot be overstated.

Not only has Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) instituted a new French proficiency category within the Express Entry system in late 2023, but the department has also telegraphed that the targeted immigration of French speakers outside of Quebec is only set to increase in the coming years.

Further to this, multiple provincial and regional pathways specifically target French speakers, meaning that gaining ability in the language can meaningfully increase the number of immigration options that candidates have. Some examples of such pathways include:

• Ontario’s