On September 4, 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held Express Entry Draw #441, issuing 3,500 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to candidates in the Healthcare and Social Services Occupations category. The minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score was 475.
The day before, IRCC drew physicians at a CRS of 198 – a number we explained is a pool-emptying artefact you cannot plan around. This healthcare round is the opposite kind of number. At 475, it is the seventh consecutive healthcare draw to land in a tight band between 462 and 475. For a healthcare worker, that stability is the most valuable thing about this category: 475 is a real, reliable target you can actually build a plan toward. Below, the Earnest Immigration team explains why healthcare behaves so differently from the week’s other draws, and what it means for you.
Express Entry Draw #441 at a Glance
| Detail | Information |
| Draw number | #441 |
| Date | September 4, 2026 |
| Category | Healthcare and Social Services Occupations (2026 – V1) |
| Invitations issued | 3,500 |
| CRS cut-off score | 475 |
| Tie-breaking rule | May 26, 2026 at 00:26:14 UTC |
| Draw position in 2026 | 53rd Express Entry round; 3rd Healthcare round |
| Previous Healthcare draw | June 25, 2026 – 4,000 ITAs |
| Application deadline | 60 days from the date of the invitation |
Why 475 Is a Real Threshold – and 198 Was Not
This week produced two category-based draws a day apart, and the numbers behind them mean opposite things. Understanding the difference is the key to reading any category draw correctly.
The physicians category, which drew at 198 on September 3, has a tiny eligible pool – a few hundred candidates. IRCC invites nearly all of them each round, so the cut-off is just the lowest score that happened to be present. It is noise. It swings from 169 to 223 to 198 across three draws and predicts nothing.
Healthcare is a genuinely large category. It spans dozens of occupations – nursing and nurse aides, medical and laboratory technologists, therapists and allied health roles, and social and community service workers, among others – and the eligible pool numbers in the thousands. When IRCC runs a healthcare round, it does not empty a small pool; it ranks a deep field and stops at a real competitive line. That is why 475 means something the physician 198 does not: it is the actual score you needed to beat, and it has barely moved across seven consecutive draws.
Healthcare Cut-Offs Are Remarkably Stable
The stability is not a one-off. Across the last seven healthcare draws, every single cut-off has fallen between 462 and 475. For historical context, the highest healthcare cut-off ever recorded was 510, back in May 2025; the lowest was 422, in February 2024. The category has never been wildly volatile, and in 2026 it has been about as steady as any category-based stream gets.
For a healthcare candidate, that consistency is worth more than a lower headline number elsewhere. It means you can set a concrete goal – get comfortably above the mid-470s – and trust that the target will not lurch out of reach between draws. Few pathways in Express Entry offer that kind of predictability.
Expect at Least One More Healthcare Draw in 2026
There is a clear forward signal in the volume data, and it is good news for healthcare candidates still in the pool.
Since healthcare draws began in 2023, the category’s annual invitation total has grown every year: 5,600 ITAs in 2023, 10,250 in 2024, and 14,500 in 2025. So far in 2026, across three rounds, healthcare has issued 11,500 – still below last year’s total with roughly four months of the year remaining. If IRCC holds anywhere near the trajectory of recent years, at least one more healthcare draw before year-end is likely.
That said, it is not guaranteed. IRCC front-loaded an enormous volume of invitations into the first half of 2026 – nearly 90,000 ITAs in the first six months alone – and most analysts, our team included, expect the overall pace to ease in the closing months. A slowdown could affect healthcare along with everything else. The reasonable planning assumption is that another healthcare round is probable but not certain, so a candidate who is close should be working to be ready for it rather than counting on it.
Healthcare Draws in 2026
| Draw | Date | ITAs | CRS |
| 1st | February 2026 | 4,000 | ~467 |
| 2nd | June 25, 2026 | 4,000 | ~475 |
| 3rd (#441) | September 4, 2026 | 3,500 | 475 |
Three rounds, 11,500 ITAs, and cut-offs clustered in the high 460s to mid 470s. This draw’s 3,500 invitations stepped down slightly from the record 4,000-ITA rounds earlier in the year, but at 3,500 it was still the largest occupation-based round in two months and the biggest draw of any kind since the 5,000-invitation French round on August 19. The category-CRS figures for the earlier 2026 rounds are approximate and should be confirmed against IRCC records before publishing.
Who Qualifies – and Why This Is the Route for Foreign-Trained Health Workers
This is the point that connects directly to yesterday’s physicians draw. Eligibility for a healthcare round requires:
- At least six months of continuous work experience – Canadian or foreign – within the last three years in a single eligible healthcare or social-services occupation (note that renewed 2026 categories generally require 12 months; confirm the current requirement for this category against IRCC instructions)
- Eligibility for one of the three core Express Entry programs – the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Canadian Experience Class, or the Federal Skilled Trades Program
- An active Express Entry profile and a CRS score at or above the cut-off on the draw date
The crucial feature is that this category accepts qualifying foreign experience. Unlike the Physicians with Canadian Work Experience category – which requires you to have already worked as a licensed doctor in Canada – a healthcare round can invite candidates whose experience was gained entirely abroad. For an internationally-trained physician or other health professional who does not yet have Canadian experience, this is often the realistic category-based route, provided the occupation is on the healthcare list. It is the pathway we pointed toward in our coverage of the physicians draw, and this round is the reason why.
If You Received an ITA in Draw #441
You have 60 days from the date of your invitation to submit a complete permanent residence application. For this category, documenting your healthcare occupation precisely is the priority.
- Accept the invitation in your IRCC secure account and record your exact 60-day deadline.
- Confirm your occupation is on the eligible healthcare list and that your NOC and duties match it. Category eligibility rests on this.
- Assemble work-experience evidence: reference letters on company or facility letterhead stating your job title, NOC-relevant duties, hours per week, salary, and employment dates, plus any professional registration or licensing relevant to your role.
- Request police certificates from every country where you have lived six months or more since age 18. Start the same day; some jurisdictions take six to eight weeks.
- Book your medical exam with an IRCC-approved panel physician.
- Obtain an Educational Credential Assessment if claiming foreign education points, and prepare proof of settlement funds if applying under the Federal Skilled Worker Program without a Canadian job offer.
- Arrange certified translations for any document not in English or French.
- Budget the fees. As of April 30, 2026, an economic-class principal applicant pays $990 in processing fees plus a $600 Right of Permanent Residence Fee – $1,590 in total. Biometrics and accompanying family members are additional.
If You Were Not Invited
Because the healthcare cut-off is so stable, your position is unusually easy to read.
At 465–474, in an eligible occupation:
You are just below a target that has barely moved in seven draws, and another healthcare round is plausible before year-end. A modest, specific CRS gain should bring you into range. A language retest is usually the fastest lever, and confirming every year of experience and every credential is correctly entered often recovers overlooked points.
Below 460, in an eligible occupation:
The gap is larger but the target is stable, so the work is clear rather than a gamble. Beyond language and experience, a provincial nomination adds 600 points and effectively guarantees an invitation in a PNP round – and many provinces run dedicated healthcare streams. Strong French additionally opens the French-language category, which has cleared around 100 points below CEC all year.
Not in an eligible healthcare occupation:
This category is not your route, but your CRS work is not wasted – it applies to CEC and general standing. Assess whether another active category fits your occupation, or whether a provincial nomination or the French pathway is the stronger play.
How Earnest Immigration Can Help
Healthcare applications turn on classifying your occupation correctly and documenting it to IRCC’s standard. Getting the NOC right is where category eligibility is won or lost.
As a CICC-regulated, RCIC-licensed firm, Earnest Immigration supports healthcare and social-services candidates with:
- Confirming whether your occupation is on the eligible healthcare list and the correct NOC/TEER classification for it
- Assessing whether the healthcare category, a provincial healthcare stream, or another route is the strongest fit – especially for internationally-trained candidates without Canadian experience
- Building and optimising an Express Entry profile that claims every legitimate point
- Identifying the fastest realistic route to clear the stable mid-470s target before the next round
- Preparing a complete, deadline-proof permanent residence application after an ITA
If you work in healthcare or social services and want to know where you stand after Draw #441, book a consultation with our team.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the CRS cut-off for Express Entry Draw #441?
The minimum CRS score for Draw #441 on September 4, 2026 was 475 – the seventh consecutive healthcare draw to land in a tight 462–475 band.
How many invitations were issued in Draw #441?
IRCC issued 3,500 Invitations to Apply to candidates in the Healthcare and Social Services Occupations category – the largest occupation-based round in two months, though slightly below the 4,000-ITA rounds earlier in 2026.
What CRS score do I need for a healthcare Express Entry draw?
Healthcare cut-offs have been remarkably stable: the last seven draws all cleared between 462 and 475. A score comfortably above the mid-470s is a reliable planning target, unlike the volatile cut-offs in small categories such as physicians.
Why is the healthcare cut-off so much higher than the physicians cut-off?
Because the pools are completely different sizes. Healthcare is a large category spanning dozens of occupations, so IRCC ranks a deep field and stops at a genuine competitive threshold (475). The physicians category has a tiny pool that IRCC empties each draw, so its cut-off (198) reflects who was eligible, not how competitive it is.
Does the healthcare category accept foreign work experience?
Yes. Unlike the Physicians with Canadian Work Experience category, healthcare rounds can invite candidates whose qualifying experience was gained abroad. For internationally-trained health workers without Canadian experience, this is often the realistic category-based route.
Will there be another healthcare draw in 2026?
Likely, though not guaranteed. Healthcare invitation totals have grown each year (5,600 in 2023, 10,250 in 2024, 14,500 in 2025), and 2026 stands at 11,500 so far – below last year with months to run. An overall Express Entry slowdown late in the year could affect the timing.
Which occupations qualify for a healthcare draw?
The category covers a broad set of occupations across nursing, allied and technical health roles, and social and community services, among others. Confirm your specific occupation against IRCC’s current category-based selection instructions, as the eligible list is defined by NOC code.
How long do I have to apply after receiving an ITA?
You have 60 days from the date of your invitation to submit a complete permanent residence application.
What does a PR application cost in 2026?
As of April 30, 2026, an economic-class principal applicant pays $990 in processing fees plus a $600 Right of Permanent Residence Fee – $1,590 in total. Biometrics and accompanying family members cost extra.
Talk to a Licensed Consultant
Earnest Immigration and Citizenship Services Inc. is a CICC-regulated, RCIC-licensed Canadian immigration consultancy with offices in Windsor, Ontario and Regina, Saskatchewan, serving clients across North America and North India.
Book a consultation to have your healthcare occupation eligibility and Express Entry profile assessed by a licensed consultant.
