Yes, you can demonstrate self-employed work experience for the Express Entry program, but there are certain restrictions based on the program you are applying for:

·        Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP)- ✅ Accepted

·        Canadian Experience Class (CEC)- ❌ Not accepted

·        Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)- ⁉️ Some does, some doesn’t

 

For FSWP / PNP, please note that self-employed work experience may be acceptable, but you may need to go a little extra mile to convince the officer about your experience / skill set / TEER.

The following are the mandatory requirements anyway:

•         Must work in a skilled occupation (NOC TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3).
•         Work must be paid for ; volunteer or unpaid internships doesn’t count.
•      My personal recommendations are to include all/as many as below:  
•         Business registration documents
•         contracts, invoices, and payment receipts from / to the clients.
•         Bank statements and tax returns which reflect business or self-employment income.
•         Support / business reference letter from the clients / contractors which clearly mention the weekly/monthly working hours to prove 1560 hours of work / year.
•         A business website is highly recommended with reviews provided by the clients / contractors (if possible).

 

Disclaimer: None of the above statements are legal advice and are not meant to be the same for everyone. You must check the latest policy from the IRCC website before applying. Everything is stated clearly on the official website, still if you don't understand something, you can seek legal advice.

I am NOT assuring you that every information / opinion mentioned above is 100% true and updated, therefore, liability goes to you to verify if you are acting upon any of those.  

If you notice any error / mistake, please feel free to reach out to me by email: [email protected]. And I will be more than happy to cross check and modify as/if necessary.