Invitations to apply outpace growth in top-scoring Express Entry profiles, latest data shows
Canada’s Express Entry pool, from which candidates are selected for permanent residence, may have nearly 50% fewer top-scoring profiles under the government's Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) than it did two weeks ago.
We can draw this conclusion if we consider the published data of the top-scoring ranges alongside recent draw results.
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| CRS score range | Number of profiles on Feb 2, 2026 | Number of profiles on Feb 15, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 501 – 600 | 14,911 | 16,559 |
| 601 - 1200 | 423 | 280 |
After February 15, we saw a PNP draw of 279 with a cut-off of 789 on February 16, followed by a Canadian Experience Class (CEC) draw of 6,000 with a cut-off score of 508 on February 17.
Given the distribution of profiles in the pool on February 15, and the draws that have taken place since then, we can infer that, as of the time of writing, there are likely approximately 11,000 top-scoring profiles in the Express Entry pool, defined as profiles scoring 501 or higher.
The figure of ~11k profiles represents only a rough estimate, of course, as we do not know which profiles have been added to the pool or have increased in score since February 15.
That said, the ~11k top-scoring profiles that we can infer are currently in the pool represent a significant decrease from the number of profiles on February 2, and coincide with a decrease in CRS cut-off scores, as the Canadian federal government has been issuing ITAs at a pace exceeding the growth in high-scoring profiles.
The following chart shows the trend in CRS cut-off scores in CEC draws since January 2025:
The recent trend may offer hope to CEC candidates with CRS scores in the low 500s, who before January of this year had last seen a CEC draw with a cut-off score below 510 on September 19, 2024.
So far, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has issued 20,000 CEC ITAs in 2026, representing 18% of the year’s Federal High Skilled (FHS) landing target of 109,000.
On Feb 28 of 2025, IRCC had issued 9,350 CEC ITAs, or 7.5% of that year’s FHS landing target.
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