Educational Credential Assessment Canada: What an ECA Is and How to Get One (2026)

An educational credential assessment Canada, or ECA, is a report from an organization designated by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) that confirms your foreign degree, diploma, or certificate is valid and equal to a Canadian one. You need it to claim education points in Express Entry and to qualify as a Federal Skilled Worker.

What an educational credential assessment actually proves

An ECA tells IRCC what your foreign education is worth in Canadian terms. If you studied in Canada, you do not need one. If you studied outside Canada, the report has to show that your completed credential is equal to a completed Canadian secondary school (high school) or post-secondary credential before it can earn you points.

It is just as important to know what an ECA does not do. It may help when you look for work, but it does not guarantee a job, and it does not give you a licence to practise a regulated profession. If you plan to work in a regulated job, you still have to get licensed in the province or territory where you settle.

Who needs an educational credential assessment Canada

Under Express Entry, an educational credential assessment Canada is required in two situations: to be eligible as the principal applicant for the Federal Skilled Worker Program, or to earn points for education you completed outside Canada. You can also claim points for your spouse or common-law partner's foreign education if they are coming with you.

This is where a lot of confusion starts. The Canadian Experience Class has no foreign-education requirement, so an ECA is not needed to be eligible for CEC. But if you want the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points your foreign degree can add, you still need one on file. In practice, the Express Entry profiles we review often stumble here: a candidate skips the ECA because they qualify through Canadian work experience, then scores lower than they had to.

Which organizations can do your ECA

You must get your assessment from an organization or professional body designated by IRCC. According to IRCC's official educational credential assessment page (updated June 22, 2026), the designated organizations for general ECAs are:

1. Comparative Education Service, University of Toronto

2. International Credential Assessment Service of Canada (ICAS)

3. World Education Services (WES)

4. International Qualifications Assessment Service (IQAS), Alberta

5. International Credential Evaluation Service (ICES), British Columbia Institute of Technology

For applicants in Metro Vancouver and across British Columbia, ICES is the locally based designated organization, housed at BCIT. Any of the five is valid for Express Entry, so you do not have to use the one nearest you, but a report from an organization that is not on this list will not count.

If your primary occupation is architect, doctor, or pharmacist, you must use the designated professional body for your occupation instead of a general organization. Physicians use the Medical Council of Canada and pharmacists use the Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada.

How to get an ECA and how long it stays valid

Once you choose a designated organization, it will tell you exactly how to submit your documents, and processing times and costs vary from one organization to another. In most cases you only need an assessment for your highest level of education. If you hold a Master's degree, for example, you generally assess that degree and not your Bachelor's.

Validity is where timing quietly trips people up. Your ECA must be less than five years old when you complete your Express Entry profile and again when you submit your application. An assessment that was fresh when you created your profile can age past the five-year mark before you receive an invitation and file your e-APR, so it is worth tracking that expiry date the same way you track your language test results.

If you are unsure whether your ECA is still valid or which credential to assess, book a consultation with Amir Ansari, RCIC. A short review of your education history before you build your profile can protect points you would otherwise lose. Reserve a consultation time online.

How an ECA fits into your Express Entry profile and CRS score

When you build your profile, you enter the result and the reference number from your ECA report, keep your original documents, and upload copies if IRCC invites you to apply. The result maps your credential to a Canadian level of education, and that level feeds the education points in both the CRS and the Federal Skilled Worker selection grid. IRCC publishes a full table of results and the points each one is worth.

One nuance is worth flagging for anyone chasing every point: the CRS can award an extra point for a second eligible credential, but only for the right combination, and getting two assessed is not always worth the cost or delay. This is one of the more common miscalculations we see when candidates self-assess their score. Education is just one lever when you are working to increase your Express Entry points, alongside language and provincial nomination.

Why this matters for your immigration application

The ECA is one of the first documents you handle and one of the easiest to get subtly wrong. Ordering an evaluation for employment instead of immigration, using an organization that is not designated, or assessing the wrong credential are errors that surface weeks later, when fixing them means re-ordering and waiting again. Because the ECA sits at the front of the process, a mistake here delays everything downstream, from your Express Entry profile to your final application for permanent residence.

Frequently asked questions about educational credential assessment Canada

What is an educational credential assessment in Canada?

It is a report from an IRCC-designated organization confirming that your foreign degree, diploma, or certificate is valid and equal to a Canadian credential. Express Entry uses it to verify your education and to award education points.

Do I need an ECA for Express Entry?

You need one to be eligible as a principal applicant under the Federal Skilled Worker Program, or to earn CRS points for education completed outside Canada. The Canadian Experience Class does not require it for eligibility, but you still need an ECA to claim foreign-education points.

How do I get an educational credential assessment for Canada?

Choose one of the five IRCC-designated organizations, or the designated professional body for your occupation, and follow its instructions for submitting your documents. In most cases you assess only your highest completed credential.

How long is an ECA valid for?

Your ECA must be less than five years old when you complete your Express Entry profile and when you submit your application. Watch the expiry date, because an ECA can lapse between profile creation and your invitation to apply.

Does my spouse need an ECA for Express Entry?

Your spouse or common-law partner does not need one to accompany you, but you can claim CRS points for their foreign education only if their credential has a valid ECA from a designated organization.

Which organizations are designated for an ECA?

For general assessments: Comparative Education Service (University of Toronto), ICAS, World Education Services, IQAS in Alberta, and ICES at BCIT. Architects, doctors, and pharmacists must use the designated professional body for their occupation.

Before you order an ECA, a brief planning call can save weeks. Amir Ansari, RCIC, a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant in Vancouver, can confirm which credential to assess and how your education fits your CRS strategy. Reserve a consultation time before you start.

Related Posts

• How to Create an Express Entry Profile in Canada — A step-by-step guide to building your profile, including where your ECA reference number goes.

• How to Increase Your Express Entry Points — Practical levers for raising your CRS score, from education to language to provincial nomination.

• Canada CLB Score: What CLB 5 and CLB 7 Mean — How your language test result, the other key Express Entry document, converts into CRS points.

This article is for general information only. It is not legal advice. Program criteria, requirements, processing times, and selection approaches can change without notice. Always confirm details on official government websites or consult a licensed Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) for advice specific to your situation.