Latest Express Entry Draw: Current CRS Cut-Off, Recent Rounds, and What Changed (2026, Continuously Updated)

The latest Express Entry draw was round 430 on July 23, 2026: the first-ever Skilled Military Recruits category round, which issued just 4 invitations to apply (ITAs) at a CRS cut-off of 368. This page is a continuously updated hub for every recent Express Entry draw of 2026: the date, the round type, how many invitations to apply IRCC issued, and the CRS score of the lowest-ranked candidate invited. All figures below were taken directly from IRCC's official rounds of invitations record and verified on July 23, 2026. Cut-offs change with every round, so treat this as a live snapshot and confirm the newest number on the official page before you rely on it.

The single most useful read from the latest draws

Here is the one actionable pattern in the current numbers: the category-based rounds are cutting far below the general programs. In July alone, the French-language proficiency rounds came in at CRS 399 and 420, while the Canadian Experience Class sat at 516. That gap is not a rounding error, it is a doorway. If your profile can qualify for a category, the score you actually need to be invited can drop by 100 points or more. Someone sitting in the pool this week at, say, 430 is nowhere near a CEC invitation but could be invited in a category round they are eligible for. The move this week is to find out which category, if any, your profile fits, and to make sure your Express Entry profile is already in the pool so you can be ranked the moment a category round runs.

The latest Express Entry draw and recent rounds

The most recent Express Entry rounds are listed below, newest first. Round type is the program or category IRCC invited from, and CRS cut-off is the score of the lowest-ranked candidate who received an invitation in that round.

• Round 430 — July 23, 2026: Skilled Military Recruits, 4 invitations, CRS cut-off 368.

• Round 429 — July 22, 2026: French-language proficiency, 5,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 399.

• Round 428 — July 21, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 2,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 516.

• Round 427 — July 20, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 511 invitations, CRS cut-off 744.

• Round 426 — July 10, 2026: Senior managers with Canadian work experience, 500 invitations, CRS cut-off 392.

• Round 425 — July 9, 2026: French-language proficiency, 5,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 420.

• Round 424 — July 7, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 2,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 517.

• Round 423 — July 6, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 534 invitations, CRS cut-off 708.

Source: IRCC, Express Entry rounds of invitations (official table). Verified July 23, 2026. IRCC adds each new round to that table as it happens, so it is the source of truth for the current number.

The headline change in the latest draws is round 430. On July 23, 2026, IRCC held its first Skilled Military Recruits category round and issued only 4 invitations at a CRS cut-off of 368. That is the smallest Express Entry round on record and one of the lowest cut-offs of the year. It is a brand-new category for 2026 with a tiny eligible pool, which is exactly why the cut-off fell so low and the invitation count was so small. It does not signal that general cut-offs are dropping.

Every 2026 Express Entry draw: the rolling table

Below is the full rolling record of every 2026 round to date, newest first. This is the reference list people bookmark: use it to see where the cut-offs have actually landed by category so you can judge whether your own CRS score is realistic for the Express Entry round you are targeting. Between January 5 and July 23, 2026, IRCC held 42 rounds.

• Round 430 — July 23, 2026: Skilled Military Recruits, 4 invitations, CRS cut-off 368.

• Round 429 — July 22, 2026: French-language proficiency, 5,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 399.

• Round 428 — July 21, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 2,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 516.

• Round 427 — July 20, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 511 invitations, CRS cut-off 744.

• Round 426 — July 10, 2026: Senior managers with Canadian work experience, 500 invitations, CRS cut-off 392.

• Round 425 — July 9, 2026: French-language proficiency, 5,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 420.

• Round 424 — July 7, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 2,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 517.

• Round 423 — July 6, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 534 invitations, CRS cut-off 708.

• Round 422 — June 25, 2026: Healthcare and social services occupations, 4,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 475.

• Round 421 — June 24, 2026: Physicians with Canadian work experience, 271 invitations, CRS cut-off 223.

• Round 420 — June 23, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 4,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 516.

• Round 419 — June 22, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 955 invitations, CRS cut-off 730.

• Round 418 — May 28, 2026: French-language proficiency, 4,500 invitations, CRS cut-off 409.

• Round 417 — May 27, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 3,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 518.

• Round 416 — May 25, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 334 invitations, CRS cut-off 805.

• Round 415 — May 11, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 380 invitations, CRS cut-off 798.

• Round 414 — April 29, 2026: French-language proficiency, 4,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 400.

• Round 413 — April 28, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 2,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 514.

• Round 412 — April 27, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 473 invitations, CRS cut-off 795.

• Round 411 — April 15, 2026: French-language proficiency, 4,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 419.

• Round 410 — April 14, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 2,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 515.

• Round 409 — April 13, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 324 invitations, CRS cut-off 786.

• Round 408 — April 2, 2026: Trades occupations, 3,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 477.

• Round 407 — March 31, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 2,250 invitations, CRS cut-off 509.

• Round 406 — March 30, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 356 invitations, CRS cut-off 802.

• Round 405 — March 18, 2026: French-language proficiency, 4,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 393.

• Round 404 — March 17, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 4,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 507.

• Round 403 — March 16, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 362 invitations, CRS cut-off 742.

• Round 402 — March 5, 2026: Senior managers with Canadian work experience, 250 invitations, CRS cut-off 429.

• Round 401 — March 4, 2026: French-language proficiency, 5,500 invitations, CRS cut-off 397.

• Round 400 — March 3, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 4,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 508.

• Round 399 — March 2, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 264 invitations, CRS cut-off 710.

• Round 398 — February 20, 2026: Healthcare and social services occupations, 4,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 467.

• Round 397 — February 19, 2026: Physicians with Canadian work experience, 391 invitations, CRS cut-off 169.

• Round 396 — February 17, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 6,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 508.

• Round 395 — February 16, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 279 invitations, CRS cut-off 789.

• Round 394 — February 6, 2026: French-language proficiency, 8,500 invitations, CRS cut-off 400.

• Round 393 — February 3, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 423 invitations, CRS cut-off 749.

• Round 392 — January 21, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 6,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 509.

• Round 391 — January 20, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 681 invitations, CRS cut-off 746.

• Round 390 — January 7, 2026: Canadian Experience Class, 8,000 invitations, CRS cut-off 511.

• Round 389 — January 5, 2026: Provincial Nominee Program, 574 invitations, CRS cut-off 711.

Source: IRCC, Express Entry rounds of invitations (official table). Verified July 23, 2026. Figures can change without notice and the table is updated after each round.

How to read the latest Express Entry draw

Four things in the lists above tell you what a round means for you. The round number is IRCC's own sequential label for each draw. The round type is the group IRCC chose to invite from: a program-specific round (Canadian Experience Class or Provincial Nominee Program) or a category-based round (French-language proficiency, healthcare and social services, trades, physicians, senior managers, or the new skilled military recruits). The ITAs issued is how many candidates were invited. The CRS cut-off is the single number most people look for: the Comprehensive Ranking System score of the lowest-ranked candidate who still got in.

The cut-off is not a target IRCC sets in advance. IRCC decides the round type and how many invitations to issue, then the cut-off falls wherever the last invited candidate happens to score. That is why a bigger round, or a round drawn from a narrower category, usually produces a lower cut-off: the invitation count reaches further down the ranked list. 2026 has featured program-specific rounds alongside category-based selection rounds. If you want the full picture of how your own number is built, see how your CRS score is calculated factor by factor before you compare yourself to any cut-off in these lists.

How Amir reads the 2026 draw pattern

The 2026 Express Entry draw history rewards a practitioner who knows which cut-off actually applies to a given candidate, and this is where reading the numbers wrong costs people a year. In practice, the numbers separate cleanly into three worlds.

Canadian Experience Class rounds have sat in a tight band all year, roughly 507 to 518. That is the number an in-Canada worker with no provincial nomination and no special category should treat as the real bar. When a client tells me they are at 505 and close, I show them this column: close is not invited, and the CEC cut-off has not dropped below 507 in any 2026 round.

Provincial Nominee Program rounds look terrifying at 708 to 805, but those numbers include the 600-point nomination bonus. A PNP cut-off of 805 does not mean you need an 805 profile; it means the invited candidates already held a provincial nomination worth 600 points on top of a human-capital score. Read the PNP line as nominated candidates only, not as a general bar.

Category-based rounds are the escape hatch, and 2026 shows it plainly. French-language proficiency draws have run between 393 and 420 all year, far below the CEC band, which is why I tell strong bilingual candidates that a tested French result is often the single highest-return move on the board. The physician rounds dropping to 169 and 223, and the July 23 skilled military recruits round at 368 with only 4 invitations, are the extreme version of the same logic: a very narrow category with a small eligible pool pulls the cut-off through the floor and keeps the round tiny. That is also the caution: eligibility for a category never guarantees a round will run for it, or that it will invite many people. Ten categories exist for 2026, but only some have actually been drawn, and one of those invited four people. Read the history, do not predict the future.

There is one thing I tell almost every candidate, and it comes straight from watching draws land. Create your Express Entry profile the moment you are eligible, even if your points are low and will not be invited soon, and then improve your score while you wait in the pool. We have had clients sitting at exactly a round's cut-off who did not get invited, purely because they entered the pool later than others at the same score. If you sit out until your points are higher, you are throwing away the time that later becomes your tie-breaking rule advantage.

Have you been invited in a 2026 round? Sharing the CRS score you were invited at in the comments gives other candidates a real-world reference point beyond the official cut-off, and keep it general rather than posting personal file details.

How the latest Express Entry draw affects your application

Reading the latest Express Entry draw changes three practical decisions. First, it sets a realistic CRS target: rather than aiming for a vague high score, you can aim at the specific band that has actually been invited in the round type you qualify for. Second, it tells you whether to chase a category: if your profile fits French-language proficiency, healthcare and social services, trades, or one of the work-experience categories, those cut-offs have generally run below the CEC band, which can turn a not-enough-points profile into an invited one. Third, it shows whether a provincial nomination is the more realistic route: if your human-capital CRS is nowhere near the CEC band and you do not fit a category, a nomination that adds 600 points, through the Provincial Nominee Program, may be the practical path rather than waiting for a general cut-off that has not appeared in 2026.

None of this replaces confirming your own eligibility. Two candidates with the same CRS score can face completely different odds depending on which programs and categories they qualify for. If one row in these lists made you rethink your plan, that hesitation is worth an eligibility check with Ansari Immigration's licensed RCIC, who will map your score against the exact draw band you are targeting: check your eligibility.

What to do if your CRS score does not fit the latest draw pattern

Some situations do not map neatly onto the rounds above, and these are the ones worth flagging. Work through them in order:

1. If your score sits just below a category cut-off, remember that category rounds are established year to year and some 2026 categories have not been drawn at all. Build your plan around your program eligibility first, and treat a category round as a bonus you may or may not receive.

2. If you sit exactly at a round's cut-off score, the tie-breaking rule decides your outcome based on the date and time you submitted your Express Entry profile, so an early profile submission can be the difference at the margin.

3. If your profile fits the Provincial Nominee Program, understand that the high PNP cut-offs reflect the 600-point nomination bonus, not the strength you need before a nomination.

4. If you have no realistic route to the CEC band and do not fit a current category, that is the moment to look seriously at provincial nominee options, or at whether a tested language retake, more skilled work experience, or an educational credential assessment could move your number.

When your case genuinely does not fit the standard draw pattern, that is a consultation question, not a comment-thread question, so keep the details general and get advice specific to your file.

Frequently asked questions about the latest Express Entry draw

What was the latest Express Entry draw?

As of July 23, 2026, the latest Express Entry draw was round 430 on July 23, 2026: the first Skilled Military Recruits category round, which issued 4 invitations to apply at a CRS cut-off of 368. IRCC adds each new round to its official table as it happens, so confirm the newest figure there before relying on it.

When is the next Express Entry draw?

IRCC does not announce specific draw dates in advance. It holds rounds of invitations roughly every two weeks throughout the year, and publishes each round's instructions online at the time of the draw. Any date circulating before IRCC posts it is a prediction, not official. Check the official rounds of invitations page for the confirmed schedule and results.

What is a Skilled Military Recruits Express Entry draw?

Skilled military recruits is one of the category-based selection categories IRCC has established for 2026, alongside French-language proficiency, healthcare and social services, STEM, trades, education, transport, physicians, senior managers, and researchers. In a category round, IRCC invites top-ranking candidates who meet that specific category's requirements. The first skilled military recruits round ran on July 23, 2026 and invited only 4 candidates at CRS 368, reflecting a very small eligible pool.

How often are Express Entry draws held?

About every two weeks, according to IRCC. In practice, IRCC often runs several rounds within a few days when a program-specific round and one or more category-based rounds fall in the same window, then leaves longer gaps. In 2026 there were 42 rounds between January 5 and July 23.

How is the CRS cut-off score decided?

The cut-off is set by the results of the round, not chosen ahead of time. IRCC selects the round type and the number of invitations, then ranks eligible candidates by CRS score and invites from the top down. The cut-off is simply the score of the lowest-ranked candidate who received an invitation to apply for permanent residence, so larger and more narrowly targeted rounds tend to produce lower cut-offs.

Why are Provincial Nominee Program cut-offs so high?

PNP round cut-offs of 700 to 805 look extreme because candidates in those rounds already hold a provincial nomination, which adds 600 points to the CRS score. The underlying human-capital score is far lower; the nomination is what carries the total into the 700s and 800s. A PNP cut-off should be read as applying to nominated candidates only.

Related Posts

• Express Entry Draw History 2026: Every Round, CRS Cut-Off, and Category: The complete archive of every 2026 round in one reference table, for when you need the full history rather than the latest few.

• CRS Points Breakdown 2026: How Your Express Entry Score Is Calculated: The factor-by-factor reference behind every cut-off in these lists, so you can see how your own score is built.

• How Express Entry Category-Based Selection Can Fast-Track Your Canadian PR: Why category rounds often cut lower than program rounds, and who qualifies for each 2026 category.

Why work with Ansari Immigration: you pay for a straight answer, not a pitch. Reading the latest draws tells you the cut-off, not which cut-off applies to you or whether a category or nomination is your route. Express Entry representation is a flat CAD $3,000, all family members included, quoted upfront, handled personally by the firm's licensed RCIC with direct access throughout. Book a 30-minute consultation ($80) to map your score against the real cut-offs: reserve a consultation time. Invited in a 2026 round? Tell us the score you were invited at in the comments, general details only, to help others gauge the bar.

This article is for general information only. It is not legal advice. Program criteria, requirements, processing times, and selection approaches can change without notice. Always confirm details on official government websites or consult a licensed Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) for advice specific to your situation.