Originally published: July 08, 2025 | Updated: November 17, 2025
Can I claim CRS points for Canadian Work Experience as well as Foreign experience while residing in Canada? Maybe, but it’s complicated.”
These questions stirred debate after IRCC’s interpretation of Section 73(1) of the IRPR was shared by respected immigration lawyer Steven Meurrens..
Summary in a Nutshell:
- IRCC doesn’t automatically reject foreign work done while in Canada, if it meets verification standards.
- Concurrent Canadian and foreign jobs do not mean multiple years of experience in a single calendar year.
- Genuineness and documentation are crucial, fake or inflated roles risk misrepresentation.
- IRCC officers have significant discretion and will examine whether the job duties, hours, and timelines hold up under scrutiny.
Since this blog was first published on July 08, 2025, it has generated tremendous interest, questions, and even celebration from some, who believe concurrent Canadian and foreign work experience can be claimed together. Many have read IRCC’s recent clarification to mean that this is now acceptable and will help boost CRS scores dramatically.
Let’s clear the air. While the IRCC clarification does mention there is nothing precluding both Canadian and foreign work experience from being counted simultaneously, that doesn’t mean it’s an open invitation to exploit the system. The nuance is that officer discretion remains the final determining factor.
What’s being missed in the excitement is that Ministerial Instructions 23 and 24 clearly prohibit stacking overlapping full-time jobs as two separate qualifying years. One year = one calendar year. Period. Whether Canadian or foreign, you must demonstrate a single full-time role per time frame, not two.
Now here’s the real-world issue: candidates are trying to claim 30–40 hours/week for a Canadian job and an additional 30 hours/week for a remote job in another country. Even if both are declared, the problem isn’t just time, it’s authenticity.
I’ve seen examples where officers have asked for extensive proof of duties, hours, communication, pay, and even photos, not just for work done in Canada but also for foreign experience. In many cases, things started falling apart when applicants couldn’t describe their day-to-day work, couldn’t produce emails, couldn’t name their supervisor, or had little to no digital footprint of the so-called remote job.
IRCC isn’t just looking at whether you had a job. They’re evaluating whether you actually performed the duties claimed, for the hours claimed, under TEER 0/1/2/3 codes. You could be asked to justify your salary (especially if you claim to be working full-time for 20,000 INR a month). They might ask whether such an arrangement was even feasible with the timezone differences.
This is where officer discretion becomes key. They are allowed to, and do, assess whether the experience makes sense contextually, whether it aligns with labor norms in the country of work, and whether it realistically fits into your timeline.
Just because people on social media are promoting it as a CRS cheat code doesn’t mean it’s going to work. The real risk is that if your experience is not credible or verifiable, you could be facing misrepresentation, a five-year ban from applying for Canadian immigration programs.
🚨 Inflation is Real, even in CRS scoresLet’s also not forget basic economics. If everyone suddenly gets credit for double experience, the CRS thresholds will just go up. It’s like helicopter money — if everyone gets more points, no one really gains.
In fact, what it will likely lead to is more intense scrutiny, higher refusal rates, and more stress for genuine candidates.
So yes, while the policy language may not strictly forbid dual experience claims, the risk lies in interpretation, and interpretation lies in the hands of IRCC officers.
The prudent approach?
Focus on verifiable, credible, well-documented experience. Don’t attempt to pad your timeline. If you’ve got legitimate foreign experience, great — use it. If you’re in Canada and gaining Canadian experience, focus on maximizing that. You can always build foreign work experience after your time in Canada ends.
My recommendation:
- Work full-time for a foreign employer after returning to your home country — no overlap with Canadian job.
- Or, if in Canada, ensure you’re only working remotely for a foreign employer — not simultaneously with Canadian work.
Stick to one verifiable full-time job per time period. Anything more will not count extra.
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Special thanks again to Steven Meurrens for initiating this discussion with his original post.
