BREAKING: Canada holds first Express Entry draw in over one month

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has held its first Express Entry round of invitations in over a month.

It issued 3,200 invitations to candidates in an all-program  draw.

The minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score required to receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) was 531.

Get a Free Express Entry Assessment

Note: This is a developing story. CIC News will update it throughout the week.

There were more Express Entry draws this summer than in previous years due to the introduction of category-based selection rounds of invitations. However, until today a draw has not taken place since the most recent all-program draw on August 15 in which 4,300 candidates received ITAs.

IRCC has not provided an explanation for the pause in draws. On September 18, it confirmed it would be resuming Express Entry draws this week.

Summary of Express Entry draw results since June 2023 DateProgramNumber of ITAsMinimum CRS Aug 15All-program4,300496 Aug 3Trade occupations1,500388 Aug 2French language proficiency800435 Aug 1All-program2,000517 July 12French language proficiency3,800375 July 11All-program 800505 July 7French language proficiency2,300439 July 6Healthcare occupations1500463 July 5STEM occupations500486 July 4All-program 700511 June 28Healthcare occupations500476 June 27All-program4,300486 June 8All-program4,800486 What is Express Entry?

Express Entry is an application management system for three of Canada’s most prominent economic immigration pathways: the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program and the Canadian Experience Class.

Each Express Entry program has different eligibility criteria, but they all use the Comprehensive Ranking System to evaluate candidates and rank them alongside each other. It does this by assigning scores for individual human capital factors such as language ability, age, work experience, occupation, and education. Those with the highest CRS scores are the most likely to receive invitations to apply for status as a permanent resident in Canada.

Express Entry candidates who have received a provincial nomination are even more likely to receive an ITA. This is because Express Entry candidates who are also in the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) automatically receive an additional 600 CRS points. This is advantageous because most Express Entry draws have a CRS score that ranges from 350-550, depending on the program or category.

Category-based selection

On May 31, IRCC introduced six new categories that may be eligible for category-based selection Express Entry draws. One is for Express Entry candidates who have strong French-speaking ability and the other five are for candidates who have work experience in one of the following sectors:

• Healthcare;
• STEM professions;
• Trades;
• Transport; and
• Agriculture and agri-food

On June 28, IRCC issued the first category-based selection invitations to candidates who had experience in a healthcare profession. Since then, there have been draws for those in STEM professions, trades and candidates with proficiency in French.

Eligible candidates for an ITA through category–based selection must still be in an Express Entry program, and it is advantageous to get as high a CRS score as possible as IRCC will still be ranking candidates against each other.

IRCC has said that the new categories will help Canada fill urgent job vacancies in in-demand sectors of Canada’s workforce and help strengthe,n the economy. The categories were chosen following discussions with provincial governments, business associations and other IRCC partners and stakeholders.

Get a Free Express Entry Assessment

Share your voice

Join our free newsletter. Get Canada's top immigration stories delivered to your inbox.