Figures on this page come from IRCC's published Express Entry rounds of invitations for the Express Entry healthcare category, current as of September 11, 2026. Cut-offs, invitation sizes and category eligibility change from draw to draw; always verify against IRCC's official pages before acting.
- Healthcare and Social Services draw, September 4, 2026: 3,500 invitations at a CRS cut-off of 475
- Physicians with Canadian Work Experience draw, September 3, 2026: 229 invitations at a CRS cut-off of 198
- Healthcare and Social Services draws have issued 11,500 invitations across three rounds so far in 2026
- Physicians with Canadian Work Experience draws have issued 891 invitations across three rounds so far in 2026
- By September 4, 2026, IRCC had issued 121,156 invitations across all Express Entry draw types this year
- A provincial nomination adds 600 CRS points
What happened with Express Entry's healthcare category in September 2026?
IRCC ran two category-based Express Entry draws within 24 hours of each other in early September 2026, both aimed at the healthcare workforce, but structured very differently.
On September 3, 2026, IRCC invited 229 candidates in the Physicians with Canadian Work Experience stream, at a CRS cut-off of 198. Candidates needed to have created their Express Entry profile before 7:40 p.m. UTC on August 6, 2026 to be included on a tie-break basis. This was the third physician-focused draw of 2026, and it issued the fewest invitations of the three while posting the second-highest CRS cut-off among them. Physician-specific draws have now issued 891 invitations in total this year.
The next day, September 4, 2026, IRCC ran a much larger round: 3,500 invitations under the broader Healthcare and Social Services occupations category, at a CRS cut-off of 475. The tie-break for that round fell on candidates who created their profile before 12:26 a.m. UTC on May 26, 2026. It was the 53rd Express Entry draw of the year, and it brought this category's 2026 total to 11,500 invitations across three rounds. By that point IRCC had issued 121,156 invitations across every Express Entry draw type in 2026.
How do the healthcare and physicians draws differ?
The gap between the two rounds is the story. The Healthcare and Social Services draw issued more than fifteen times as many invitations as the Physicians draw, yet its CRS cut-off, 475, sat far above the physicians' cut-off of 198.
That is not a contradiction, it reflects two different pools. The physicians category targets a narrow, specific occupation with comparatively few eligible candidates in the Express Entry system, so IRCC can invite deep into the pool at a low CRS score and still fill a small round. The broader healthcare and social services category draws from a much larger group of eligible occupations, so competition for each invitation is higher and the cut-off climbs accordingly.
Both draws also sit inside a wider 2026 pattern. Year-to-date figures published alongside the physicians round show the Canadian Experience Class leading all categories with 51,250 invitations issued in 2026, with French-language proficiency close behind at 50,500. Category-specific rounds, healthcare included, make up a smaller share of the total but have remained a consistent monthly feature of the year's draw calendar.
Who does this affect in Saskatchewan?
Two groups in our practice watch these draws closely. The first is internationally trained physicians already working in Saskatchewan, often in rural or underserved communities, who hold Canadian work experience that can qualify them for the narrower physicians stream. For this group, a 198 cut-off is a meaningfully lower bar than the general pool, and the tie-break date matters: a profile created after August 6, 2026 for this round simply was not eligible for it, regardless of score.
The second is the wider healthcare and social services workforce, nurses, personal support workers, allied health professionals, and others, many of whom arrived in Saskatchewan on a work permit tied to the province's healthcare sector. For this group, the September 4 cut-off of 475 is competitive, and a candidate scoring below it in the general system needs another lever to move up.
Employers recruiting for healthcare roles in the province also have a stake here. Category-based draws change who becomes eligible for permanent residence and when, which affects retention planning for staff who arrived on temporary status.
What can Saskatchewan healthcare workers and physicians do now?
A few practical points follow from these numbers:
- Check your tie-break date. Both September rounds used the profile creation date to break ties at the cut-off score. If your profile score sits near a recent cut-off, when you entered the pool can matter as much as your score.
- A SINP nomination changes the math. A nomination through the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program's Express Entry stream adds 600 points to a candidate's CRS score, which to date has placed candidates above every Express Entry cut-off. For a healthcare worker below the 475 general-category cut-off, or a physician outside the narrower stream's eligibility, a provincial nomination is often the more direct route.
- Confirm which category you actually qualify for. The physicians stream and the broader healthcare and social services category have different eligibility rules, and category-based selection generally has continued to evolve through 2026. An Express Entry profile review can confirm which categories apply to your occupation before the next round.
No one can promise an invitation in a future draw, and cut-offs move with each round. What these two September draws show is that the size of the invitation pool and the score needed to clear it can look very different depending on which category a candidate falls into.
Frequently asked questions
What is Express Entry's healthcare category?
It is one of Express Entry's category-based selection streams. In September 2026, IRCC used it to invite candidates through two separate rounds: a Healthcare and Social Services occupations draw and a Physicians with Canadian Work Experience draw, each with its own invitation count and CRS cut-off.
What CRS score did the September 2026 healthcare draws require?
The Healthcare and Social Services draw on September 4, 2026 invited 3,500 candidates at a CRS cut-off of 475. The Physicians with Canadian Work Experience draw on September 3, 2026 invited 229 candidates at a CRS cut-off of 198. Cut-offs are set separately for each round and can change from draw to draw.
How can a Saskatchewan nomination help a healthcare worker or physician in Express Entry?
A nomination through the SINP Express Entry stream adds 600 points to a candidate's CRS score, which to date has placed candidates above every Express Entry cut-off. That can matter for a healthcare worker or physician whose profile does not clear a given category cut-off on its own.
Sources: IRCC Express Entry draw data as reported by CIC News (September 4, 2026 and September 3, 2026); IRCC rounds of invitations. This article provides general information, not legal advice.
Related: Express Entry's category-based selection is being redefined in 2026