Blue Bird Blog

IRCC has invited 700 candidates in the most recent Express Entry draw.  It was an all-program draw and candidates required a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 511. This draw comes as a surprise as Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has said it will invite 1,500 healthcare workers via category-based selection tomorrow, July 5. In addition, it is expected IRCC will also invite candidates with work experience in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) occupations in the first-ever category-based selection Express Entry draw for STEM professions. It remains to be seen what the minimum CRS score will be required for healthcare and STEM candidates.

On May 31st, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser announced the launch of category-based selection draws for Express Entry candidates. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has confirmed the first round of category-based draws for STEM professions will take place this week. Last week, IRCC held the first-ever round of category-based Express Entry draws, inviting healthcare workers.

Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry announced the first STEM round for category-based selection will open the week of July 5th. The draw will prioritize sending invitations to candidates with Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) expertise, which includes data scientists, software developers and programmers, mathematicians, statisticians and actuaries, and electrical and electronic engineers.

The first half of 2023 has been an interesting chapter in Express Entry history. In some ways, Express Entry has been unpredictable, as it has worked to re-establish itself after a months-long pause throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the resumption of all-program draws in July last year, Express Entry draws occurred every two weeks on Wednesdays and resumed the pre-pandemic established patterns. Draw sizes increased by predictable increments while the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score decreased slightly with each draw.

IRCC has invited 500 healthcare workers under the new Express Entry category-based selection draws. Candidates required a minimum comprehensive ranking system (CRS) score of 476. This is the very first category-based selection draw since the six new categories were announced on May 31. A second round, inviting 1,500 workers to apply, will take place on July 5. A draw inviting eligible candidates from science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professions is also expected to occur in the same week.