5900 ITAs were sent to candidates in the recent Express Entry draw. IRCC conducted the third draw in the same week, on December 8. This was a category-based selection draw for candidates having professional work experience in STEM professions. The minimum CRS score requirement turned out to be 481.
On December 7, IRCC issued invitations to 1,000 candidates, and the minimum CRS score requirement was 470 in a French-language targeted draw. Similarly, on December 6, 4,750 candidates received ITAs, while the minimum CRS score turned out to be 561. It was an all-program draw.
It took over a month for the Express Entry draws to resume since October—the last draw before these three consecutive draws occurred on October 26, when 3,600 candidates received invitations. The CRS score for this healthcare category-based draw was 431.
On November 14, IRCC confirmed the technical challenges due to which a few candidates could not upload their profiles. Two days later, the immigration department said they had resolved the problem. However, it is speculated that the pause might have occurred due to a technical glitch.
Express Entry – a summary of draws since June 2023
Refer to the table given below:
| Date | Program Type | ITAs Issued | Lowest CRS Score |
| June 8 | All-program | 4,800 | 486 |
| June 27 | All-program | 4,300 | 486 |
| June 28 | Healthcare occupations | 500 | 476 |
| July 4 | All-program | 700 | 511 |
| July 5 | STEM occupations | 500 | 486 |
| July 6 | Healthcare occupations | 1500 | 463 |
| July 7 | French language proficiency | 2,300 | 439 |
| July 11 | All-program | 800 | 505 |
| July 12 | French language proficiency | 3,800 | 375 |
| August 1 | All-program | 2,000 | 517 |
| August 2 | French language proficiency | 800 | 435 |
| August 3 | Trade occupations | 1,500 | 388 |
| August 15 | All-program | 4,300 | 496 |
| September 19 | All-Program | 3,200 | 531 |
| September 20 | Transport Occupations | 1,000 | 435 |
| September 26 | All-Program | 3,000 | 504 |
| September 27 | French Language Proficiency | 500 | 472 |
| September 28 | Agriculture and Agri-Food Occupations | 600 | 354 |
| October 10 | All-Program Draw | 3,725 | 500 |
| October 24 | PNP-only | 1,548 | 776 |
| October 25 | French language proficiency | 300 | 486 |
| October 26 | Healthcare occupations | 3,600 | 431 |
| December 6 | All-Program Draw | 4,750 | 561 |
| December 7 | French Category-based draw | 1,000 | 470 |
| December 8 | STEM Occupations | 5,900 | 481 |
5900 ITAs sent to candidates in the recent Express Entry draw – more about Category-based selection
Canada looks forward to receiving more skilled workers to combat the current labor shortages. The country is already preparing to address future labor shortages that will only increase if 9 million Canadians meet their retirement by 2030.
Currently, the total number of ITAs issued in Category-based selection draws is nearly 11,000 ITAs. The candidates already existed in the Express Entry pool. The current immigration target for Federal High Skilled Immigration is 114,000.
The Express Entry immigration target will be around 110,700 Permanent Residents in 2024. In 2025 and 2026, the target will rise to 117,500 PR admissions.
Conclusion
The Express Entry system is one of the most prominent pathways for immigration candidates. It tackles the Permanent Residence applications and operates through three programs. These include the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the CEC, and the Federal Skilled Trades Program. The entire system operates based on several human capital characteristics. These factors are age, education, occupation, work experience, and language proficiency. Each attribute has a certain value attached to it. If a candidate can attain an ITA, they will have to submit the final application for Canadian Permanent Residence within sixty days.
IRCC will process applications under Express Entry within six months.
Do you have any queries on Canada Express Entry? Get in touch with our immigration representatives at MakeHomeCanada by writing to us at [email protected].
