On February 18, 2026, Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab announced a new Express Entry category for foreign medical doctors with Canadian work experience, alongside the continuation of category-based draws for health care and social services occupations. Two days later, IRCC held a round of invitations under the updated health care and social services category (Version 3), issuing 4,000 invitations to apply (ITAs) with a CRS cut-off of 467.
A new dedicated stream for foreign medical doctors
The most significant structural change is a category created specifically for foreign-trained doctors who have already obtained Canadian work experience. Unlike the broader health care draws—which cover dozens of TEER 0, 1, 2, and 3 occupations—this stream is limited to physicians (NOC 31100 and 31101) who can demonstrate at least one year of full-time, or equivalent part-time, authorised work in Canada within the previous three years. Because the category is housed under Express Entry, candidates must still qualify for one of the managed programs—typically the Canadian Experience Class. The minister’s office confirmed that the first physician-targeted round would happen “in the coming days,” a signal that IRCC intends to move quickly on a backlog of doctors already practising under temporary permits.
For many international medical graduates, this represents a long-awaited recognition that the licensing gauntlet does not need to block permanent residence indefinitely. However, the prerequisite of Canadian work experience means the pathway is useless without a valid work permit. The category does not waive provincial licensing, nor does it excuse candidates from the credential-recognition process. As we have explained in detail separately, foreign credential recognition remains a hurdle that must be cleared before a doctor can practise—and therefore before the required work experience can be earned.
The February 20 health care draw: cut-off, volume, and on-the-ground feedback
The first Version 3 round for health care and social services arrived on February 20, 2026, with 4,000 ITAs and a CRS cut-off of 467—identical to the final 2025 healthcare draws. The tie-break rule applied to profiles submitted before December 9, 2025, at 18:22:06 UTC. On Reddit, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, pharmacists, dental hygienists, and medical laboratory technologists from India, the Philippines, and Nigeria reported receiving ITAs. Several users noted that their scores were in the low 470s, consistent with the published cut-off. A recurring observation was that the draw appeared to pull heavily from the pool of candidates who had already been waiting since late 2025, which aligns with the tie-break date.
These real-world signals confirm that the Version 3 list is large enough to cover most frontline clinical roles. The government has not published a single consolidated table on one page, but the occupations it highlighted in its backgrounder—nurse practitioners, dentists, pharmacists, psychologists, and chiropractors—are indicative. Reddit posters also mentioned physiotherapists and occupational therapists, suggesting allied health occupations remain in scope. The full category-based selection page provides the authoritative list, and applicants should verify their NOC code against it before relying on a CRS projection.
One year of work experience: a tighter rule for revived categories
All renewed categories—including health care and social services—now require a minimum of one year of eligible work experience, up from the previous six-month requirement. The experience must have been gained in Canada or abroad within the three years before the application and must be continuous full-time (or the equivalent in part-time hours) in an occupation on the relevant category list. IRCC’s rationale is to select candidates who are more likely to succeed in their field after landing, but the practical effect is that recent graduates with only a few months of post-qualification work are excluded. Nurses and allied health professionals who completed a bridging programme but have not yet accumulated a full year of clinical work will need to wait—or consider a provincial nominee stream that does not impose the same duration rule.
“Canada’s future depends on a workforce ready to meet the challenges of a changing economy. By refining Express Entry to focus on the skills our communities truly need, we are strengthening our labour market, supporting provincial priorities and ensuring newcomers can contribute from day one.”
— The Honourable Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship
What healthcare applicants should act on now
For doctors still outside the country, the new category does not create a fast track; it rewards those who have already navigated the licence-and-permit path. The priority should be to secure a provincial licence and a job offer that can support a work permit. Once Canadian experience is accumulating, entering the Express Entry pool under the Canadian Experience Class remains the cleanest route, because the physician-specific category draws from that same pool. For nurses, pharmacists, and allied health workers, the main takeaway is that IRCC is continuing to pull from the healthcare occupation list at a cut-off far below the 540+ scores seen in general draws. This makes language scores critical: a spike in English or French proficiency can lift a profile from the 440s into a competitive 460–470 range. The low 467 cut-off also means that losing points on age, or failing to claim spousal education, could drop a candidate below the line.
The next healthcare draw date is not pre-announced, but the combination of a large opening round and a clear tie-break suggests IRCC has a substantial caseload to work through. Monitoring the IRCC rounds page weekly is the only way to react. Candidates who meet the one-year work threshold but are not yet in the pool should file a profile now: a tie-break date of December 2025 means that newer profiles may be frozen out if the cut-off rises in future rounds. And for anyone still short of the experience requirement, a well-timed profile entry—paired with updated work history as soon as the calendar hits 12 months—can make the difference between an invitation this year and a wait until 2027.
This article is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice.
