IRCC Issues Thousands of Invitations to Healthcare Professionals via Express Entry
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has
once again issued Invitations to Apply (ITAs) through the Express Entry system
— this time targeting healthcare and social services professionals.
Key Facts of the Latest Draw
- IRCC
issued 2,500 ITAs to candidates in the Healthcare and Social
Services category.
- To
take part in this draw, candidates needed:
- A
minimum CRS (Comprehensive Ranking System) score of 472
- An
Express Entry profile created before 11:17 p.m. UTC on May 12, 2025
These requirements ensured that only those who met the
threshold and had valid profiles in time were eligible for consideration.
Express Entry Draws in 2025 — A Quick Overview
Below is a snapshot of some major draws in 2025, showing
how many ITAs were issued and the corresponding CRS cut-offs:
|
Date |
Draw Type |
ITAs Issued |
CRS Cut-off |
|
October 14 |
Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) |
345 |
778 |
|
October 6 |
French language proficiency |
4,500 |
432 |
|
October 1 |
Canadian Experience Class (CEC) |
1,000 |
534 |
|
August 19 |
Healthcare & social services |
2,500 |
470 |
|
July 22 |
Healthcare & social services |
4,000 |
475 |
|
… |
… |
… |
… |
This latest draw is the fifth time IRCC has held a healthcare-oriented
draw in 2025. Among those, it is tied for the second largest in terms of
ITAs issued (the August 19 draw also had 2,500). Only the July 22 draw was
larger (4,000 ITAs).
Even though there have been just five healthcare draws so
far this year, healthcare candidates have received nearly 10,000 ITAs in
total — making this the third highest among all Express Entry streams.
Context Within October 2025 Draws
The recent healthcare draw is the fourth draw of
October. Before it, IRCC held:
- A
PNP draw on October 14
- A
French language draw on October 6
- A
CEC draw on October 1
Altogether in 2025, IRCC has now issued 73,183 ITAs
under the Express Entry system.
Distribution of Draw Types in 2025
Here’s how many rounds each draw type had this year:
|
Draw Type |
Number of Draws |
|
Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) |
19 |
|
Canadian Experience Class (CEC) |
10 |
|
French language proficiency |
6 |
|
Healthcare & social services |
5 |
|
Education |
2 |
|
Trade |
1 |
And here is how many ITAs each stream has received so far:
|
Stream / Category |
Total ITAs Issued |
|
French language category |
30,000 |
|
Canadian Experience Class (CEC) |
21,850 |
|
Healthcare & social services |
9,792 |
|
Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) |
6,947 |
|
Education |
3,500 |
|
Trade |
1,250 |
What This Means for Healthcare Professionals
For healthcare and social services professionals interested
in immigrating to Canada, this draw is a strong signal that IRCC continues to
actively target these occupations under Express Entry. The CRS cutoff of 472
suggests that competition is significant, but not unreachable for
well-qualified candidates.
If you are in this field and considering applying, it is
important to:
- Monitor
your CRS score and find ways to boost it (e.g. improving language scores,
gaining additional work experience)
- Make
sure your Express Entry profile is active and up to date
- Stay
informed about future draws and changes in IRCC policy
