I got a raise / new job / French test result after entering the pool — do I have to update my profile?
Yes — update it. IRCC states plainly: "you must update your profile if your situation changes." Updating before you receive an ITA carries no penalty and does not reset your original entry date (which matters for tie-breaking). Your CRS is recalculated automatically each time you save. The real danger isn't updating — it's letting your profile go stale, because at ITA time IRCC expects your application to match what you declared.
What each change means for your score
A raise alone changes nothing. CRS doesn't score salary, so a pay bump with the same job, same NOC, and same hours adds zero points. You don't even need to update it (though it's harmless to do so).
A new job can change a lot. What matters is skilled work experience, occupation, and authorization:
- More months of Canadian skilled work can push your core experience points up and unlock skill-transferability combinations.
- A change of occupation may change your NOC/TEER code — which affects program eligibility (e.g. CEC needs TEER 0–3) and category-based draws.
- A lost job offer that you claimed points for must be removed; keeping it is how refusals happen.
A French test result can be worth 25–50 points. If you score NCLC 7 or higher in all four abilities, you get 25 additional CRS points (English at CLB 4 or lower, or no English test) or 50 additional points (English at CLB 5+ in all four). It also makes you eligible for French-language category draws, which have cut off far below general rounds.
How to update (and what not to do)
- Sign in to your IRCC secure account, go to "View the applications you submitted" → "Check full application status" → "View your profile."
- Click "Update form" on the relevant section, make the changes, then "Save and exit" and resubmit the updated profile.
- If a field is greyed out, it was carried over from the Come to Canada tool — click "Modify Family Information" to change it at the source.
The boundary between a legitimate update and misrepresentation is simple: prompt, honest corrections are always safe; stale or inflated claims at ITA time are dangerous. A profile that says you have two years of experience when you only have one, left uncorrected until after an ITA, can be refused — and misrepresentation carries up to a five-year ban from Canada, even if the error was "just an oversight." When in doubt, update early and keep the documents that back every claim.
Two clocks that run while you wait
| Clock | Rule |
|---|---|
| Profile validity | An Express Entry profile expires 12 months after submission; resubmit a new one if you're still in the pool |
| Language test validity | Test results must be less than 2 years old both when you enter the pool and when you submit the PR application |
If your IELTS/CELPIP or TEF/TCF expires while you're waiting, your profile can be found ineligible and removed from the pool — retest and update before that happens.
After you get an ITA, the rules change
Once invited, your profile is locked. If anything material changes between the ITA and your application submission, you must report it through the IRCC webform, not by editing the profile. And the golden rule: your final application must match the profile that earned the ITA. If the update would have made you ineligible for that round, you may have to decline the invitation rather than submit a doomed application.
Frequently asked questions
Will updating my profile move me to the back of the line?
No. IRCC keeps your original date and time of submission, which is what breaks ties between candidates with equal CRS scores. Update as often as you need.
I forgot to update something and already got an ITA. What now?
Don't submit hoping nobody notices. Use the IRCC webform to disclose the change. If the corrected information still supports the ITA, you're fine; if it doesn't, declining this ITA and staying in the pool is usually better than a refusal on record.
My spouse got a great language score — do I update my profile with it?
Yes. An accompanying spouse's first-language score is worth up to 20 CRS points, so update their results and their work experience too. But remember: if you declared them non-accompanying, different (lower) rules apply — don't mix the two.