Express Entry
Express Entry is the online system that manages three federal permanent residence programs. You submit a profile, receive a Comprehensive Ranking System score, and wait to be invited from the pool. In 2026 almost every invitation comes through a category-based or programme-specific round rather than a general draw.
The three programs behind Express Entry
One profile can make you eligible for more than one of these. Which programme you are invited under affects your documents, not your final status.
- ● Federal Skilled Worker — one year of skilled work in the last ten years, CLB 7 in all four language abilities, an educational credential assessment for foreign study, proof of settlement funds, and 67 points on the separate FSW selection grid.
- ● Canadian Experience Class — one year of authorised skilled work in Canada in the last three years, CLB 7 for TEER 0 and 1 occupations or CLB 5 for TEER 2 and 3. No education requirement and no proof of funds.
- ● Federal Skilled Trades — two years in an eligible trade in the last five, CLB 5 speaking and listening, and either a valid one-year job offer or a provincial certificate of qualification.
Job-offer points are gone — and what that changed
On 25 March 2025 IRCC removed the arranged-employment points from the CRS. A job offer no longer adds 50 or 200 points, and the change applied to candidates already in the pool, not just new ones. IRCC has described the removal as temporary and is consulting on replacing it with points tied to high Canadian wages, but nothing is in force.
A job offer still matters in three concrete ways: it is worth up to 10 points on the FSW selection grid, it is an eligibility requirement for Federal Skilled Trades unless you hold a certificate of qualification, and it exempts FSW and FST applicants from proof of funds if you are already authorised to work in Canada. If a website still tells you an LMIA is worth 200 CRS points, it has not been updated in over a year.
The ten categories IRCC is drawing from in 2026
Category-based selection is now the main route in. IRCC announced the 2026 categories on 18 February 2026, and the minimum work experience for the occupational categories rose from six months to twelve.
- ● French-language proficiency — NCLC 7 in all four abilities. The largest category by volume, with rounds of about 5,000 invitations and cut-offs in the high 300s to low 400s.
- ● Healthcare and social services — the broadest occupational list, covering 37 occupations.
- ● Trade — construction, electrical, mechanical and related occupations.
- ● Education — teachers, early childhood educators and teaching assistants.
- ● STEM — narrowed sharply for 2026 to a short list of engineering, cybersecurity and technologist occupations.
- ● Transport — reinstated for 2026 after being dropped in 2025.
- ● Physicians, senior managers and researchers with Canadian work experience — three new categories requiring twelve months of the relevant work inside Canada.
- ● Skilled military recruits — for experienced foreign military personnel with a Canadian Armed Forces offer.
- ● Agriculture and agri-food was retired for 2026.
What scores actually look like right now
Through mid-2026 the pattern has been clusters of draws over consecutive days rather than tidy fortnightly rounds. Canadian Experience Class rounds have been holding steady around 516, provincial nominee rounds land in the 700s because of the 600-point nomination, French-language rounds sit in the 390s to low 420s, and the small new categories clear at much lower scores simply because few people qualify.
There have been no general all-programme draws in this period. If your score is in the 400s and you are not in a category, a provincial nomination is usually the realistic route rather than waiting for a draw that is not coming.
The maximum CRS without a provincial nomination is 695 in a best case. With a nomination the total reaches the 1,200 cap. Anyone quoting a higher number without a nomination has the maths wrong.
Money, deadlines and documents
Settlement funds start at $15,263 for a single applicant, last set by IRCC on 7 July 2025 — check the figure before you rely on it, because it is revised periodically. Canadian Experience Class candidates are exempt, as are FSW and FST candidates who are authorised to work in Canada and hold a valid job offer.
- ● A profile sits in the pool for 12 months, then expires.
- ● You have 60 days from an invitation to submit the complete application — not 90.
- ● Government fees rose on 30 April 2026: $990 processing plus a $600 right of permanent residence fee, so $1,590 per adult.
- ● Language results must be less than two years old at profile submission and again at application.
- ● Police certificates are needed for every country you lived in for six consecutive months or more since turning 18, in the last ten years.
Reviewed by a licensed RCIC · Last updated 13 August 2026. Immigration rules change often — confirm anything time-sensitive with us or on canada.ca.
Looking for related services? See our full Permanent Residency overview or all services.
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Frequently asked questions
Does a job offer still help my Express Entry application?
Not in the CRS. The 50 and 200-point additions for arranged employment were removed on 25 March 2025 and have not returned. A job offer is still worth up to 10 points on the separate Federal Skilled Worker selection grid, it is an eligibility requirement for the Federal Skilled Trades programme unless you hold a certificate of qualification, and it can exempt you from proof of funds. So it helps — just not in the way most websites still claim.
What CRS score do I need in 2026?
It depends entirely on which door you come through. Canadian Experience Class rounds have been clearing around 516. French-language rounds have been in the 390s to low 420s. The newer Canadian-experience categories for physicians, senior managers and researchers have cleared far lower because the eligible pool is small. There is no single number, and there have been no general draws for all programmes in this period.
How long does an Express Entry application take?
IRCC's service standard is six months for a complete application, measured as the time in which it finishes eight out of ten files. Provincial nominee applications through Express Entry have been running longer than that. Treat six months as a planning figure, not a promise, and remember the clock only starts when the application is complete.
Can I still apply if my score is below the recent cut-offs?
Yes, and you should still have a profile in the pool, because you cannot be invited from outside it. The real question is what changes your position: a provincial nomination adds 600 points, French at NCLC 7 adds 25 or 50, and moving into a 2026 category can matter more than adding points at all. That assessment is what a consultation is for.
Is Express Entry being replaced?
IRCC opened a consultation in 2026 on merging the three federal programmes into a single Federal High Skilled programme and reworking the CRS. Nothing has been enacted, and consultation proposals are not law. We track this and will tell you if it starts to affect a live file.
Still unsure how this applies to your case? Book an appointment with a licensed RCIC.
More Permanent Residency services
Other pathways we handle in this area — or talk to a licensed RCIC about which fits your case.
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