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Provide Complete Information:

1. Required Positions(s), Location(s), Wage(s), Weekly Hours, Employment Duration
2. Workforce @ Location(s): Total Current Employees & # of Current Foreign Workers
3. Business Start Date (Year established)
4. Observations.

Provide Complete Information:

1. Care type (child, elderly, illness, disability) & Details of person(s) requiring care (e.g., ages, medical conditions).
2. Live-in or Live-out preference, Wage (per hour) & Weekly Hours.
3. Caregiver Candidate (if identified): Age, Highest Level of Education, English/French Ability, and Relevant Experience.
4. Observations.

Provide Complete Information:

1. Sponsor Status: (Canadian Citizen/PR) & Current Country of Residence (if Canada, which province).
2. Spouse/Partner Being Sponsored: Nationality & Current Location.
3. Dependent Children: (if any to be included).
4. Sponsorship History:
- Has the Sponsor previously sponsored a spouse?
- Was the Sponsor themselves sponsored as a spouse in the last 5 years?
5. Financial Eligibility: Is the Sponsor receiving Social Assistance or currently in Bankruptcy, or in default of child support or immigration loans?
6. Background Check: Do either the sponsor or applicant have any past criminal convictions, serious medical conditions, or previous visa refusals?
7. Status & Marital History: If the applicant is inside Canada, what is their current legal status? Are all previous divorces (if any) fully finalized?
8. Relationship Details: (Marriage Date or Start of Cohabitation, other details).
9. Observations: (Please list any other details or specific concerns).

Provide Complete Information:

1. Applicant Nationality & Current Country of Residence (Immigration Status).
2. Purpose of Visit, Travel dates & duration.
3. Are you visiting specific family/friends? (which family/friends).
4. Any previous Canadian or US visa applications/refusals?
5. Financial Support & Ties to Home Country (e.g., Job, Property, Family).
6. Observations.

Provide Complete Information:

If through your Canadian ancestry (you may already be Canadian by law — no residence, tax or language history needed):

1. Your Canadian relative (parent, grandparent, great-grandparent…) and how they became Canadian (born in Canada, naturalized, or by descent).

2. What you can provide to prove the family connection (e.g., birth/marriage certificates, their citizenship or naturalization record).


If you are a permanent resident (citizenship by grant):

1. Date you obtained your Permanent Residence.

2. Approximate number of days spent in Canada over the past 5 years.

3. Did you hold any temporary status in Canada (e.g., Student, Worker) prior to becoming a PR? If so, type and duration.

4. Have you filed Canadian Income Tax Returns for a minimum of 3 out of the last 5 years?

5. Your level of proficiency in English or French (Basic, Intermediate, Fluent).

6. Prohibitions & Background: any criminal record (convictions, probation, or parole, inside or outside Canada); and whether you are currently under a Removal Order or being investigated by immigration authorities.


Additional comments or notes (either case).

Provide Complete Information:

1. Visitor (Parent/Grandparent):
- Nationality & Current Location.
- Previous Canadian or US visa applications/refusals.
- Any major medical conditions?
2. Inviter (Child/Grandchild in Canada):
- Status (Citizen/PR).
- Total Household Size (Number of people living in the Inviter's home, including spouse/children).
- Total Annual Household Income (Gross).
3. Observations.

Provide Complete Information:

1. Do you have a Canadian job offer? (Employer, Position, LMIA status, Transfer). Related Work experience and previous Canadian visa/permit applications or refusals
2. If no job offer detail your Open Work Permit Eligibility: (e.g., spouse of worker/student, PGWP, IEC/Working Holiday)?
3. History of previous Canadian visa/permit applications or refusals.
4. Observations.

Provide Complete Information:

1. Intended Program (level of study) & Canadian Institution's Letter of Acceptance.
2. English/French Skills (IELTS, CELPIP, TEF scores)
3. Financial Support, Ties to Home Country
4. Any previous Canadian or US visa applications/refusals?
5. Observations.

Provide Complete Information:

1. Current Status (e.g., Visitor, Study, Work) & its Expiry Date.
2. Detail Basis for Extension: Study (Letter of Acceptance), Work (LMIA details), Visitor (purpose e.g., tourism, family, family sponsorship).
3. Observations.

Provide Complete Information for You and your Spouse/Partner:

1. Age, Nationality, Marital Status, Education (Highest level Completed), English/French Skills (IELTS, CELPIP, TEF scores), Funds.
2. Work Experience (last 10 years):
- Years of Foreign Skilled Work Experience.
- Years of Canadian Skilled Work Experience.
3. Intended province of residence (e.g., Ontario, Quebec, BC)
4. Canada Connections:
- Any family, previous study, or work experience in Canada, Job Offer (Province)
5. Observations.

1. What specific immigration program or application do you need help with?

2. What is your current situation (citizenship, country of residence, immigration status, family in Canada, etc.)?

3. What specific action do you want to take (apply, renew, appeal, check requirements, etc.)?

4. Do you have any important deadlines or key dates?

5. Observations (brief case description)

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Express Entry Category-Based Draws: Which Categories Exist and What They Ask For

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Express Entry category-based draws are the reason two candidates with the same score can have very different chances. IRCC no longer invites only by CRS ranking: it also runs rounds for people with specific skills, and in those rounds the cut-off can be dozens of points lower.

Here is what the categories are in 2026, what each one asks for, and what the recent rounds actually looked like.

What are category-based draws?

Rounds of invitations limited to candidates who meet a specific criterion — an occupation, a language, or a type of Canadian experience.

Inside each category, candidates are still ranked by CRS score. The difference is who competes: only the people in the pool who meet the category’s requirement. That is why the minimum score in a category round is often well below the score in a round for the Canadian Experience Class or for provincial nominees.

Category rounds do not add invitations to the total. They work within the targets of the 2026–2028 immigration levels plan.

Which categories exist in 2026?

Ten. IRCC announced them on February 18, 2026: five renewed and five new.

CategoryNew in 2026?
French-language proficiencyRenewed
Healthcare and social services occupationsRenewed
Science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) occupationsRenewed
Trade occupationsRenewed
Education occupationsRenewed
Transport occupationsNew
Physicians with Canadian work experienceNew
Senior managers with Canadian work experienceNew
Researchers with Canadian work experienceNew
Skilled military recruitsNew

What does each category ask for?

Architect's hands marking up building plans with a pen and ruler, experience in a listed occupation

For the occupation categories, one year of experience in a single listed occupation. For French, a high level in all four skills.

  • Healthcare, STEM, trades, education and transport: at least 12 months of full-time work experience (or the equivalent part-time) in the last 3 years, in one occupation on the category’s list. It can be in Canada or abroad.
  • Physicians, senior managers and researchers: the same 12 months in 3 years, but the experience must be in Canada.
  • French-language proficiency: a minimum of NCLC 7 in all four skills.
  • Skilled military recruits: a job offer arranged with the Canadian Armed Forces, among other conditions specific to that route.

One change that catches people out: in 2026, the experience required for the renewed categories went from 6 months to 1 year. Anything you read that still says six months is out of date.

What did the recent rounds look like?

From July 6 to October 1, 2026, the category rounds and their minimum scores were these.

DateCategory · Invitations · Minimum CRS
October 1
Category:
Trade occupations
Invitations:
3,500
Minimum CRS:
476
September 16
Category:
Senior managers with Canadian work experience
Invitations:
250
Minimum CRS:
389
September 4
Category:
Healthcare and social services occupations
Invitations:
3,500
Minimum CRS:
475
September 3
Category:
Physicians with Canadian work experience
Invitations:
229
Minimum CRS:
198
August 19
Category:
French-language proficiency
Invitations:
5,000
Minimum CRS:
382
August 7
Category:
Transport occupations
Invitations:
300
Minimum CRS:
470
August 6
Category:
French-language proficiency
Invitations:
5,000
Minimum CRS:
391
July 22
Category:
French-language proficiency
Invitations:
5,000
Minimum CRS:
399
July 10
Category:
Senior managers with Canadian work experience
Invitations:
500
Minimum CRS:
392
July 9
Category:
French-language proficiency
Invitations:
5,000
Minimum CRS:
420

In the same period, the Canadian Experience Class rounds needed between 516 and 523 points, and the provincial nominee rounds between 697 and 768.

Three things stand out:

  • French was the most frequent category, with four rounds of 5,000 invitations each and cut-offs between 382 and 420.
  • There were no STEM, education or researcher rounds in those three months. A category existing does not mean it will be drawn.
  • The gap is real: a trade or healthcare candidate needed around 475 points, against more than 515 in the CEC rounds.

These figures change with every round. Check IRCC’s rounds page for the latest results before you build a plan around them.

How to use this

Young woman walking along a downtown street on her morning commute with a coffee and a tote bag
  1. Check whether your experience fits one category list, in a single occupation, for 12 months in the last 3 years.
  2. If you speak French, test it. It is the category with the most invitations, and the same result also adds CRS points.
  3. Do not plan on a category that has not been drawn recently. Watch the rounds, not just the list.
  4. Keep your profile accurate. Your occupation code and dates are what place you in a category.

Where we come in

The categories reward a specific profile, and the hard part is knowing whether yours is one of them. Immigration Pros can help you:

  • Check whether your experience qualifies for a category
  • Work out whether a French test would change your chances
  • Keep your profile ready for the rounds that fit you

If you are not sure which rounds you could be invited in, start with a free assessment and we will tell you.

Start Your Free Assessment Today!

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