Between March 30 and April 2, 2026, IRCC ran three Express Entry rounds. Round 406, a Provincial Nominee Program draw, issued 356 invitations at a CRS cut-off of 802. Round 407, a Canadian Experience Class round, issued 2,250 invitations at a cut-off of 509. Round 408, a Trades Occupations round, issued 3,000 invitations at a cut-off of 477.
The PNP cut-off of 802 is the highest recorded up to this point in the run, a reminder that the figure reflects candidates who already carry a 600-point provincial nomination rather than a general benchmark. The Canadian Experience Class round at 509 gives a clearer read on the general pool, and the Trades Occupations round shows how a skilled-trades profile can be invited well below either of those thresholds.
In total, this batch issued 5,606 invitations across the three programme streams, a volume broadly in line with the batches immediately before and after it.
| Round | Date | Category | Invitations | CRS cut-off |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #406 | March 30, 2026 | Provincial Nominee Program | 356 | 802 |
| #407 | March 31, 2026 | Canadian Experience Class | 2,250 | 509 |
| #408 | April 2, 2026 | Trades Occupations | 3,000 | 477 |
Each bar is the lowest CRS score invited in that round. Invitation counts differ by orders of magnitude between rounds, so they are given as text rather than as a second axis.
PNP
#406 · 356 ITAs
802
CEC
#407 · 2,250 ITAs
509
Trades
#408 · 3,000 ITAs
477
600 points is what a provincial nomination adds on its own.
- Provincial nomination
- General programme round
- Category-based selection
Unpacking a CRS of 802 in the PNP round
Round 406's cut-off of 802 is built almost entirely on a 600-point provincial or territorial nomination. Once that nomination is added, a candidate needs only around 202 additional points from age, education, language ability and work experience to clear this round, a bar many nominated candidates reach comfortably. It is one of the higher PNP cut-offs seen recently, but the height says more about nomination volume and timing than about any change in the underlying human-capital bar.
Candidates weighing whether a provincial nomination is worth pursuing can use the CRS calculator to model their own score with and without a 600-point nomination added, which makes the comparison concrete rather than abstract.
The Canadian Experience Class round at CRS 509
Round 407 invited 2,250 Canadian Experience Class candidates at a cut-off of 509, a general round with no category filter beyond CEC eligibility. With arranged-employment points removed from the CRS since 25 March 2025, a job offer adds nothing here, so the ranking runs on age, education, official language results and Canadian work experience alone.
This is the figure to compare against a general profile with no nomination and no category eligibility. A candidate close to 509 should look closely at which factors on the CRS calculator would move their score, since even modest language or education gains can matter at this margin.
Why the Trades Occupations round cut-off sits at 477
Round 408 drew 3,000 invitations from the Trades Occupations category at a cut-off of 477, well below the general CEC round. Trades categories select only from candidates whose occupation and eligibility criteria match the category definition, which narrows competition and allows a large invitation volume at a lower overall CRS threshold than a general round would produce.
For a candidate working in an eligible trade whose CRS score falls short of general-round cut-offs, this category is often the more realistic route into an invitation, and it is worth checking occupation eligibility carefully rather than assuming a trades background alone qualifies.
How this batch compares with its neighbours
The batch before this one, closing March 18, 2026, ran a PNP round at 742, a CEC round at 507, and a French-Language round at 393. Against that batch, the PNP cut-off climbed sharply from 742 to 802, while the CEC cut-off moved only slightly, from 507 to 509. The category round changed type entirely, from French-Language proficiency to Trades Occupations, which reflects a different slice of the pool rather than a shift in the same category's threshold.
The following batch, closing April 15, 2026, brought the PNP cut-off back down to 786 and the CEC cut-off up to 515, with the category round returning to French-Language proficiency at 419. Batch-to-batch swings of this size are ordinary; readers tracking a trend rather than a single data point should follow several consecutive batches on the live draw table.
What to take from this round
- Round 406's PNP cut-off of 802 reflects a 600-point nomination stacked on top of a candidate's human-capital score, not a general-pool requirement.
- Round 407 invited Canadian Experience Class candidates down to CRS 509, the clearer reference point for a profile without a nomination.
- Round 408 shows a Trades Occupations category round clearing 3,000 invitations at CRS 477, a route worth checking for candidates in an eligible trade.
- Compare your own score against these cut-offs using the CRS calculator, and confirm any category eligibility before assuming a lower cut-off applies to you.
Round numbers, dates, invitation counts and CRS cut-offs are IRCC's own, from their published rounds of invitations. The analysis is general information, not immigration advice, and reading it creates no consultant-client relationship.