WES Canada Credential Evaluation: What It Checks and How Long It Takes
By Muntasir Minhaz • Published Aug 19, 2026 • Career Planning, Canadian Universities & Colleges
World Education Services (WES) Canada compares your foreign transcripts and degree certificates against Canadian education standards and issues a report employers, schools, and licensing bodies can read. A document-by-document report starts at 133 CAD, a course-by-course report starts at 242 CAD, and both prices rise 3% from January 1, 2026.
📩 Document-by-document report: confirms credential type and year, starts at 133 CAD.
🎓 Course-by-course report: lists individual courses plus a Canadian GPA equivalent, starts at 242 CAD.
ECA for Canadian immigration (Express Entry and similar programs): 264 CAD, for immigration applicants only.
Your institution must send official documents directly to WES, not you.
Why a Foreign Transcript Alone Sometimes Is Not Enough
A Canadian employer, admissions office, or licensing body reading a transcript from another country has no built-in way to know what a given grade, credit, or credential title means locally. WES exists to close that gap by translating your specific academic record into terms a Canadian reader already understands, backed by an organization the recipient can independently verify.
What WES Canada Checks
WES compares your foreign secondary or post-secondary credential against Canadian education standards and issues a written report stating what it equals in Canada. Employers, universities, colleges, and some licensing bodies accept this report as third-party confirmation of your education instead of interpreting a foreign transcript themselves.
WES does not grant you a Canadian degree or a professional license. It states an academic equivalency only, and a regulator can still require exams, supervised hours, or extra coursework beyond that.
Report Types and Current Fees
WES publishes the following Basic-tier fees for Canada-bound evaluations:
| Report type | What it includes | Fee (CAD, Basic tier) |
|---|---|---|
| Document-by-document | Confirms credential type, institution, and year awarded | 133 |
| Course-by-course | Lists every course with a Canadian GPA equivalent | 242 |
| ECA for Canadian immigration | Designated by IRCC for Express Entry and similar programs | 264 |
WES also sells an ICAP tier with added features at a higher price, 175 CAD for document-by-document and 284 CAD for course-by-course. These prices rise 3% starting January 1, 2026, so confirm the current fee on the WES site before you apply.
Which Report to Choose
Choose document-by-document when an employer or general application only needs confirmation that you hold a specific degree. Choose course-by-course when a Canadian school, licensing body, or employer wants to see your individual grades converted to a Canadian GPA scale.
The ECA for immigration report exists specifically for economic immigration programs such as Express Entry. A Canadian citizen applying for a domestic job or school does not need this specific report type, even if a WES evaluation is needed for another reason.
Documents You Need to Provide
WES asks your institution to send your official transcripts and confirmation of your credential directly to WES, not through you, either by mail or through an approved digital delivery service. If your original documents are not in English or French, you also need a certified translation submitted alongside them.
Create your WES account and pay before your institution sends anything, since WES matches incoming documents to your file by name and reference number.
How Long It Takes
Processing begins once WES receives your documents directly from your institution, not from the day you create your account or pay. Turnaround time changes with application volume and time of year, so check the current processing estimate on your WES applicant account before you commit to a deadline, rather than assuming a fixed number of days.
Apply earlier than you think you need to if a job offer, school deadline, or licensing application depends on the result, and build in extra buffer time around holidays and the start of Canadian academic terms, when application volume tends to run higher.
Secondary School Documents
WES also evaluates secondary school credentials for students applying to a Canadian college or university straight out of high school in another country. The same two report formats apply: document-by-document for a straightforward confirmation, and course-by-course when a school wants your individual subject grades converted to a Canadian-style record.
The Application Process Step by Step
Create your WES account online and choose the report type you need.
Pay the evaluation fee for that report type.
Request your institution send official transcripts and credential confirmation directly to WES.
WES matches the received documents to your file and completes the evaluation.
WES sends the finished report to you and, if you requested it, directly to a recipient such as an employer or school.
Costs Beyond the Evaluation Fee
The evaluation fee covers the report itself, but certified translations for non-English or non-French documents cost extra and are billed separately by the translator, not WES. If your institution charges its own fee to issue official transcripts or mail them, that cost is separate too. Budget for these add-ons before you start, especially if your documents need translation. If you're curious about who does that certified translation work, Canadian translation and interpretation degree programs train people for exactly that role.
If Your Institution Will Not Send Documents
An institution that closed, merged, or stopped responding to alumni requests does not automatically block your evaluation. WES has an alternate documentation process for these situations. Contact WES support directly and explain your situation before assuming a WES evaluation is out of reach.
When You Actually Need One
You need a WES report when a specific employer, regulator, or Canadian school asks for one by name, or when you are applying through an immigration program that requires an ECA. For most private-sector jobs outside regulated professions, employers accept your foreign transcript and degree as listed on your resume without a formal report.