Express Entry is Canada’s main online system for managing skilled permanent residence applications. To use it, you must first qualify for one of three programs. IRCC then ranks your profile in the pool, and invitations go to the highest-scoring candidates in each round.
One major change affects how people build a score. Job-offer points no longer count in the Comprehensive Ranking System. As of March 25, 2025, IRCC removed those points, although a valid job offer can still matter for eligibility in some streams. Your score now depends more heavily on language, education, work experience, spouse factors where relevant, and other additional points such as a provincial nomination or French-language ability.
The three Express Entry programs
Express Entry manages applications for three economic immigration programs:
- Canadian Experience Class
- Federal Skilled Worker Program
- Federal Skilled Trades Program
You cannot enter the pool unless you are eligible for at least one of those programs. Once you are eligible, you create a profile and submit your information to IRCC’s pool of candidates.
This structure also underpins coverage of the Federal Skilled Worker Program Explained: A Plain-English Guide for Skilled Immigrants and What Is the Canadian Experience Class and Who Qualifies in 2026?. The pool-ranking step is what turns eligibility into a chance at an invitation.
How IRCC scores profiles
IRCC uses the Comprehensive Ranking System, or CRS, to rank candidates in the Express Entry pool. The score is out of 1,200 points.
That total has two parts:
- Core points: up to 600
- Additional points: up to 600
Core points cover skills, work experience, education, language ability, spouse or partner factors, and skill transferability. Additional points can come from Canadian education, a provincial or territorial nomination, strong French-language skills, a valid job offer, or a sibling in Canada who is a citizen or permanent resident.
IRCC also offers a CRS tool for people who want to estimate their standing before creating a profile. For applicants trying to raise a score already in the pool, our guide on How to Increase Your CRS Score for Express Entry: Proven Strategies That Work covers the main options that still matter.
How invitations are issued
IRCC does not invite everyone in the pool. It holds rounds of invitations through the year and selects the highest-ranking eligible candidates based on the round type.
The official rounds page says IRCC can run three broad kinds of draws:
- General rounds, which can invite candidates eligible for any of the three programs
- Program-specific rounds, which target one Express Entry program
- Category-based rounds, which target candidates who meet a specific economic goal
When a round has a cutoff score, candidates at that score are not treated as identical if there are too many of them. IRCC uses a tie-breaking rule based on the date and time the profile was submitted.
Two profiles with the same CRS score can be treated differently if one was submitted earlier. In a tight round, the earlier submission gets the edge.
What the latest round shows
IRCC’s latest posted round on March 31, 2026 was a Canadian Experience Class draw. It issued 2,250 invitations with a CRS cutoff of 509.
The tie-break rule for that round meant that candidates at CRS 509 were invited only if they submitted their profile on or before March 18, 2026 at 08:27:11 UTC. The score alone was not enough; submission time decided who crossed the line.
The recent sequence of rounds also shows how targeted Express Entry has become. On March 30, 2026, IRCC ran a Provincial Nominee Program round with 356 invitations and a CRS cutoff of 802. Earlier in the year, a February 17 Canadian Experience Class draw issued 6,000 invitations at CRS 508, and a February 6 French-language round issued 8,500 invitations at CRS 400.
For applicants, the cutoff score is only part of the picture. The draw type and tie-break timestamp can change whether a profile gets invited.
What happens after an invitation
If IRCC invites you to apply, you submit the full permanent residence application. IRCC then reviews the file and makes a decision. The Express Entry process page lists the main steps clearly: create a profile, enter the pool, receive an invitation, submit the application, and wait for the decision.
After an ITA, the file still has to be completed correctly. After AOR, there can still be a long wait for review and portal stages. We covered those post-ITA steps in How to Read Your IRCC Application Status: What Each Stage Means, which is useful if your profile turns into an application this year.
Costs and planning
IRCC lists the main application fee for Express Entry at $1,525 for the principal applicant. It also lists $1,525 for a spouse and $260 for a dependent child.
For families, the upfront budget can rise quickly once dependants are included. Applicants often focus on the CRS score and leave the fee side too late, even though medical exams, language tests, police certificates, and other supporting steps still need to be paid for and collected.
Why job offers still show up in Express Entry conversations
Even though job-offer points were removed from CRS in March 2025, the offer itself has not disappeared from the system. IRCC says a valid job offer can still be part of eligibility for the Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Federal Skilled Worker Program, and some provincial nominee streams.
A job offer may still help you qualify, but it no longer boosts your CRS score by 50 or 200 points. Candidates who were relying on that boost need to reassess their pool position instead of assuming the old math still applies.
Express Entry remains a points-based competition, but the scoring rules now lean more heavily on profile quality, category selection, and timing in the pool. If you are tracking rounds this year, watch both the cutoff score and the tie-break timestamp before you treat any draw as safely within reach.
This article is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice.
