Indian and Chinese nationals dominated the total number of ‘Invitations to Apply’ (ITA) for permanent residence in Canada last year, according to a new federal government report.

The Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)’s 2018 year-end report for the Express Entry system stated that 46 percent of the ‘‘Invitations to Apply’, went to Indian citizens. China came second with 6,248 ITAs, followed by Nigeria, Pakistan, and the United Kingdom.

In total, more than 92,000 immigrants were admitted to Canada through Express Entry in 2018, year-end report showed.

“As demonstrated through this report, Express Entry continues to provide a pathway to permanent residence for a range of highly skilled candidates, in a timely manner,” the reports’ authors said.

“IRCC will continue to monitor Express Entry results, at the same time as it maintains its focus on improving and innovating processes and policies, with the aim of ensuring that Canada continues to benefit from immigrants with the diverse skills and experience needed to grow our economy.”

The increase in admissions is in line with Canada’s rising admissions targets for the three Federal High Skilled economic-class immigration programs managed by the Express Entry system — the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class, and Canadian Experience Class — as well as a portion of Canada’s Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).

Canada’s federal government and many of its provinces and territories have immigration streams that are used to select candidates from the Express Entry pool and provide these candidates with the opportunity to apply for Canadian permanent residence.

Canada’s admissions target for the three programs managed by the Express Entry system rose in 2018 and is slated to continue to rise each year through 2021.

Canada has also expanded its admissions target for the PNP, which rose to 55,000 in 2018 and is scheduled to increase each year through 2021.

Many invited candidates are only admitted the following year. IRCC attributed the increase in Express Entry admissions last year to a large number of Federal High Skilled candidates who were processed in 2017 but only admitted in 2018. Additional Express Entry candidates who were processed and admitted through the PNP in 2018 also contributed to the spike, IRCC said.

Admissions include principal applicants and their accompanying family members.

Express Entry manages the pool of candidates for the Federal Skilled Worker Class, Federal Skilled Trades Class, and Canadian Experience Class.

The year-end report shows that nearly 280,000 Express Entry profiles were submitted in 2018, of which 70 percent were eligible for at least one of the three Federal High Skilled programs.

Federal Skilled Worker Class candidates received 53 percent of ITAs issued in 2018 or 47,523 of 89,800 ITAs.

A total of 10,802 Express Entry candidates with a provincial nomination received an ITA in 2018, up from 8,733 the year before.

Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and British Columbia all saw increases in this category, with Ontario experiencing a year-over-year increase of 3,082 — by far the largest of any Canadian province.

IRCC also noted that Ontario, which is home to major cities such as Toronto and Ottawa, was the destination province for 64 percent of all candidates who applied for Canadian permanent residence through Express Entry in 2018.

Of the 122,247 applications received in 2018, 78,838 had Ontario listed as their province of destination.

British Columbia placed a distant second, with 22,153 applicants listing it as their destination, followed by Alberta (8,868), Saskatchewan (3,708) and Nova Scotia (3,532).

Software Engineer was the most common occupation among those who received an ITA last year, displacing Information Systems Analysts and Consultants, which fell to second place.

Computer programmer remained the third most common occupation, followed by financial auditors and administrative assistants.

Human capital factors include age, proficiency in English and French, education, and work experience. Combined, they provide what is known as a candidate’s core score, which can reach a maximum of 600 points.

The IRCC data shows that 51 percent of Express Entry candidates who received an ITA in 2018 were between the age of 20 and 29.

In terms of education, 48 percent had a Master’s degree or entry-to-practice professional degree and another 42 percent had a post-secondary credential of three years or longer.

A majority of candidates (60 percent) had no Canadian work experience, while 39 percent had five years or more of foreign work experience.

“The evolution of Canada’s Express Entry system has been thrilling to experience and 2018 was no exception, as this report makes clear,” said David Cohen, senior partner with the Campbell, Cohen Canadian immigration law firm in Montreal, who publishes the Canada Immigration Newsletter.

“More than 90,000 foreign workers and their families were welcomed to Canada last year through Express Entry, an unprecedented number that we may see upstaged in the future given the higher targets that Canada has set for 2019 and 2020.”

Most common occupations among invitations issued, 2018

Software engineers and designers 6,126

Information systems analysts and consultants 5,429

Computer programmers and interactive media developers 3,450

Financial auditors and accountants 2,483

Administrative assistants 2,335

Professional occupations in advertising, marketing, and public relations 2,049

University professors and lecturers 1,942

Financial and investment analysts 1,921

Professional occupations in business management consulting 1,915

Advertising, marketing, and public relations managers 1,775

Other 60,375