Since I applied under CEC, I know that for CEC, you need to apply within a year of leaving your job in Canada.
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/cec/apply-who.asp
The process of CEC seems much more simpler than FSW program. The checklist for CEC is very straight forward and if you can provide everything they ask for, you should have no problem. There are people that has applied under FSW and they've waited for years and they still haven't gotten their PR.