September 29, 2026 Express Entry Draw: 2,000 CEC Invitations, CRS 518

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada held an Express Entry draw on September 29, 2026. The department issued 2,000 Invitations to Apply to Canadian Experience Class candidates.

The Comprehensive Ranking System cut-off score was 518 points. This round exclusively invited candidates with qualifying Canadian work background.

Latest round details

The table below summarizes the official results from the ministerial instructions for this round.

The CRS score distribution of candidates in the pool is current as of September 27, 2026.

What the Canadian Experience Class is

The Canadian Experience Class is a program managed under Express Entry. It is designed for individuals who have gained skilled work experience inside Canada.

Candidates must hold at least one year of skilled Canadian work experience in NOC TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3. They must have accumulated this experience in the three years before applying.

Many eligible candidates currently live and work in Canada on valid work permits.

Why the CRS cut-off is 518

Express Entry utilizes three round types: general, program-specific, and category-based rounds. This draw was a program-specific round limited to CEC applicants.

Candidates in this draw were ranked on base CRS scores without an additional 600-point provincial nomination. Consequently, CEC cut-offs typically remain in the 500s.

By comparison, the Provincial Nominee Program round held on September 28 required a minimum score of 725 points.

What the tie-breaking rule means

The tie-breaking rule applies when multiple candidates share the lowest qualifying score. In this draw, the cut-off score was 518.

IRCC selected individuals who entered their profile before February 13, 2026 at 20:48:08 UTC. Candidates who submitted profiles after this time did not receive invitations.

This tie-break date falls more than seven months before the draw date. It shows a significant concentration of candidates at the 518 mark.

What happens next for invited candidates

A total of 2,000 candidates received an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence. These individuals now enter the final stage of the application process.

Invited applicants have a limited window to submit a complete permanent residence application to IRCC with all supporting documents.

What This Data Tells Us

The tie-breaking timestamp is the most revealing figure in this round. February 13, 2026 sits more than seven months before the draw, which means candidates at 518 had been waiting in the pool since winter.

That gap marks a sharp change from recent CEC rounds. The September 1 round drew from profiles under two weeks old, and the August 5 round from profiles about a month old. The pool at this score level has stopped turning over quickly.

The 518 itself is a real base score with nothing inflating it. Set against the 725 required in the PNP round the previous day, the lower number describes the stronger human-capital profile.

Two thousand invitations is a moderate round, and the cut-off followed that size. It sits three points below the September 1 round of 521 and two above the August 5 round of 516, so the band has held steady all quarter.

For candidates in the low 500s, that stability is the useful signal. The cut-off is not drifting far in either direction, so closing a gap of a few points through language results or a provincial nomination is what changes the outcome, not waiting.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal or immigration advice. Readers should consult a licensed immigration consultant or lawyer about their own specific situation.

Source: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/immigrate-canada/express-entry/rounds-invitations.html