2026 consultations on economic priorities for category-based selection in Express Entry
Current status: Open
August 4, 2026 to September 1, 2026
Canada’s immigration system is critical to supporting our economy and building a stronger Canada for all. That’s why Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) introduced category-based selection in 2023.
Category-based selection provides more flexibility in the way economic immigrants are selected through Express Entry, the online system we use to manage immigration applications from skilled workers.
It builds on the high human capital approach that has been a hallmark of Canada’s economic immigration system. It maintains the focus on bringing in skilled workers who can integrate and contribute to Canada’s future.
We regularly review these categories, and the overarching economic priorities that they support. This allows Express Entry to be more responsive to changing economic and labour market needs of communities across the country. We’re now collecting input from stakeholders and partners, as well as the public, on economic priorities and categories under consideration for 2027.
In addition to these public consultations, we will engage federal, provincial and territorial partners on priorities and categories under consideration, and review labour market information and past results on category-based selection.
We are not currently seeking input related to potential Express Entry reforms
Consultations on this topic closed in May 2026. Through extensive consultations and engagement activities, we received more than 17,000 submissions from participants. As this input is now being analyzed, we are not seeking additional feedback at this time. We invite you to watch our public consultations and engagement webpage for a report on what we heard during these consultations.
On this page
- We want to hear from you
- Background on Express Entry and category-based selection
- Who we’re prioritizing in Express Entry in 2026
- Proposed economic priorities and categories for 2027
- How your views help us to set priorities for the future
- Contact us
We want to hear from you
To provide your feedback on the economic priorities that the Government of Canada should consider to help address Canada’s economic and labour force needs through category-based selection in 2027, we invite you to complete our online survey.
The survey provides an opportunity to share your perspectives on the economic priorities we’re considering, and your views on other priorities for consideration.
You may want to prepare your answers in advance. You can review the questions (PDF, 174 KB) before completing the online survey.
If you would like to include other perspectives from within your organization, we encourage you to consult with your colleagues and submit one response on behalf of your organization.
Please submit your responses by September 1, 2026.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email our engagement team.
Background on Express Entry and category-based selection
Canada has a variety of economic immigration programs designed to balance filling current job vacancies with selecting people who have the skills that will make them successful over the long term. Federal economic programs are complemented by regional immigration programs, which aim to spread the benefits of immigration across all regions of Canada.
What’s Express Entry?
Express Entry is an online system used to manage applications for 3 federal skilled immigration programs:
- the Canadian Experience Class
- the Federal Skilled Worker Program
- the Federal Skilled Trades Program
The system allows prospective immigrants currently living abroad, and many temporary residents (former international students and temporary workers) already in Canada to apply for permanent residence.
Occupations eligible for these programs require a high level of training, education, experience and responsibilities (TEER categories 0, 1, 2 and 3).
Express Entry is designed to select individuals on the basis of factors (such as official language proficiency, education, work experience) known to predict positive economic outcomes, including higher employment rates and earnings.
Candidates interested in immigrating through Express Entry are ranked using the Comprehensive Ranking System. Top-ranking candidates are invited to apply for permanent residence during invitation rounds, which are held regularly and documented online.
Invitations can be sent to top-ranking candidates eligible to one (“program-specific” invitation round), or any (“general” invitation round) of the three programs managed in Express Entry. A third invitation round type was introduced in 2023 with category-based selection.
The number of candidates invited to apply for permanent residence through Express Entry in a given calendar year is based on planned permanent resident admissions under Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan. Express Entry typically makes up more than 30% of economic immigration admissions.
Express Entry year-end reports on our website include data from across all stages of the Express Entry continuum, including a summary of invitations to apply (ITAs) that were issued, applications received, processing times, admissions, and economic outcomes of applicants. Read the latest Express Entry year-end report.
What’s category-based selection?
In 2023, we implemented a new way of selecting candidates through Express Entry with the introduction of “category-based” invitation rounds, where candidates eligible to a category defined by the Minister and with the highest Comprehensive Ranking Score are invited to apply for permanent residence.
Categories allow us to issue ITAs to candidates who have specific skills, training or language abilities linked to an economic goal. Category-based invitation rounds supplement other Express Entry invitation round types. A candidate may be eligible for selection via one or more invitation round types.
An annual target is set for each category, establishing the percentage of Express Entry invitations the department intends to send to eligible candidates. All invitations can count towards the achievement of these targets, irrespective of the type of round they were issued under. In some cases, targets can be reached without category-based invitation rounds being held.
The table below offers data on ITAs issued to category-eligible candidates in 2023, 2024 and 2025 by category (excluding Provincial Nominee Program ITAs).
| Category | Year | Number of category-eligible candidates who received an ITA | Proportion already in Canada (%) | Average [range] Comprehensive Ranking Score | Proportion relative to total number of Express Entry invitations issued (%)Footnote * |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care | 2023 | 8,180 | 50% | 473 [354 - 692] | 9.7% |
| 2024 | 11,967 | 56% | 468 [336 - 768] | 16.0% | |
| 2025 | 19,200 | 57% | 476 [379 - 630] | 18.6% | |
| Trades | 2023 | 2,855 | 90% | 447 [355 - 612] | 3.4% |
| 2024 | 3,884 | 85% | 461 [339- 641] | 5.2% | |
| 2025 | 4,589 | 78% | 499 [379 – 636] | 4.4% | |
| Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) | 2023 | 24,084 | 79% | 498 [355 - 698 ] | 28.7% |
| 2024 | 13,749 | 74% | 500 [336 - 699] | 18.4% | |
| 2025 | 5,942 | 50% | 479 [379 – 698] | 5.8% | |
| TransportFootnote ** | 2023 | 2,033 | 77% | 468 [377 – 613] | 2.4% |
| 2024 | 1,340 | 75% | 465 [336 - 768] | 1.8% | |
| 2025 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
| Agriculture and agri-food | 2023 | 1,092 | 51% | 427 [354 - 567] | 1.3% |
| 2024 | 346 | 36% | 464 [369 -593 ] | 0.5% | |
| 2025 | 101 | 59% | 498 [382 – 555] | 0.1% | |
| EducationFootnote ** | 2023 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 2024 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
| 2025 | 9,200 | 36% | 459 [379 – 619] | 8.9% | |
| French-language proficiency | 2023 | 14,944 | 17% | 476 [375 - 763] | 17.8% |
| 2024 | 24,303 | 19% | 450 [336 - 770] | 32.5% | |
| 2025 | 50,701 | 22% | 449 [379 – 770] | 49.2% | |
| Total ITAs sent to eligible candidatesFootnote *** | 2023 | 49,285 | 60% | 483 [354 - 763] | 63.5% |
| 2024 | 49,323 | 50% | 469 [336 - 770] | 74.3% | |
| 2025 | 73,586 | 39% | 464 [379 – 770] | 87.0% |
Source: MBR_FACT_EE_ITA_CBS as of April 7th 2026. Data are operational and subject to change. All values exclude Provincial Nominee Program ITAs.
Who we’re prioritizing in Express Entry in 2026
In February 2026, the department announced its intention to focus this year’s Express Entry invitations on candidates with work experience in Canada (Canadian Experience Class invitation rounds), and on candidates whose profile can support three key economic priorities (category-based invitation rounds): addressing labour shortages, attracting and retaining top talent, and supporting economic growth through Francophone immigration outside Quebec.
These priorities are not mutually exclusive. For example, a candidate’s profile may respond to more than one economic priority, such as a French-speaking candidate with work experience in an occupation facing long-term labour shortages.
Selection focused on candidates eligible for 2026 categories
Categories to help address long-term labour shortages:
- Education occupations
- Trades occupations
- Transport occupations
- Health care and social services occupations
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) occupations
Categories to attract and retain talent:
- Physicians with Canadian work experience
- Researchers with Canadian work experience
- Senior managers with Canadian work experience
- Skilled military recruits who have a job offer from the Canadian Armed Forces
Category to support economic growth through Francophone immigration outside Quebec
- French-language proficiency
For occupation-based categories, candidates are required to have at least one year of cumulative work experience in a single eligible occupation acquired in the previous three years.
For the French-language proficiency category, eligible candidates must have French-language test results that show a minimum score of 7 in all 4 language abilities on the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens, the French version of the Canadian Language Benchmarks.
Selection focused on candidates eligible for the Canadian Experience Class program
The Canadian Experience Class program is for skilled workers who have Canadian work experience and want to become permanent residents.
Focusing selection on candidates eligible for this program in 2026 reflects the department’s priority to transition temporary residents to permanent residence.
Economic priorities and categories under consideration for 2027
The department is considering where to focus its selection of economic immigrants while taking into account broader objectives, including a return to sustainable immigration levels, domestic capacity, and the need to ensure a well-managed immigration system.
This year, economic priorities under consideration for category-based selection include a continued focus on addressing long-term labour market shortages, facilitating the attraction and retention of top talent, and supporting economic growth through Francophone immigration outside Quebec.
More specifically, we are considering expanding our approach to attract and retain highly-skilled international workers with expertise in occupations that support Canada’s economic growth. We are also considering narrowing the number or eligibility of categories aimed at addressing labour shortages to support a more strategic focus.
Addressing long-term labour shortages
Since 2023, categories in Express Entry have aimed to help address Canada’s long-term labour shortages in a range of sectors, such as health care, trades (including in construction occupations that will help address housing needs), education, STEM, and transport. These shortages continue to have significant impacts across the country.
Occupations eligible for these categories have aligned with those occupations anticipated to face long-term labour shortages according to projection results released by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC).
Continuing to address labour shortages will further support the country’s long-term growth and the sustainability of the Canadian economy. Finding the right labour force will help boost Canada’s housing supply, and offer Canadians and their families timely access to the health and education services they need, when and where they need them.
Collecting feedback from stakeholders and partners as part of these public consultations will help assess the role that Express Entry should play in addressing these long-term labour shortages relative to other immigration programs or policy levers, such as upskilling or retraining the domestic workforce. The limited levels space context could require further prioritization of the labour shortages on which to focus federal immigration selection.
Attracting and retaining top talent
Canada must continue to work towards positioning itself more proactively as a destination of choice for highly-skilled professionals who can boost the country’s competitiveness and advance economic growth and prosperity.
To help achieve this, Canada has developed a number of strategies and initiatives that include measures to attract highly-skilled international talent with the skills, education and experience that can help strengthen our economy.
Economic priorities and categories in Express Entry for 2027 will be considered in light of these talent-focused strategies or initiatives. This includes assessing the role that Express Entry could play in facilitating permanent residence pathways to help attract and retain this talent, and within the context of sustainable immigration levels.
More specifically, we are considering how the following Government initiatives and strategies could inform Express Entry category-based selection in 2027:
- IRCC’s International Talent Attraction Strategy helps ensure that Canada can prioritize, attract, and/or retain top talent in priority sectors (e.g., emerging technologies, health care, skilled trades). It also aims to identify clear pathways to permanent residence to keep the talent that Canada needs.
- The Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative is designed to recruit leading international researchers in critical fields, support Canada’s position at the forefront of scientific innovation, and deliver economic, societal and health benefits.
- Canada’s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy recognizes AI talent as one of the country’s most important strategic assets. By expanding the temporary worker Global Talent Stream to accelerate entry and onboarding of highly-skilled AI talent, it aims to make it faster and easier for global AI talent to come to Canada, work, and build their careers.
- Budget 2025 includes a commitment to launch an accelerated pathway for H-1B visa holders (i.e., foreign workers based in the United States and working in specialty occupations), to strengthen Canada’s innovation ecosystem, address labour shortages and attract top talent in STEM, health care, research, advanced industries and other key sectors.
Supporting economic growth through Francophone immigration
Canada’s bilingual character is an asset for diversified, expanded trade and economic activity. The Official Languages Act recognizes the contribution of Francophone immigration to the economy, and French-speaking immigrants bring a wide range of skills that are vital to Canada’s long-term prosperity.
Francophone immigration plays a crucial role in supporting Canada’s economic growth by promoting the economic development and vitality of Francophone minority communities and helping meet labour needs for French-speaking and bilingual workers across the country. One aim of our Policy on Francophone Immigration is to maximize permanent resident admissions of French-speakers outside Quebec, and category-based selection continues to be the primary mechanism to support this objective.
While many candidates receiving an invitation to apply through Express Entry are selected via the French-language proficiency category, many of them are also eligible for other Express Entry categories (such as education).
The 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan set admission targets for French-speaking permanent residents outside Quebec at 9% in 2026, 9.5% in 2027, and 10.5% in 2028. In support of these objectives, and given recent commitments to increase French-speaking permanent resident admissions to 12% by 2029, we’re considering maintaining the focus on Francophone immigration for category-based selection in 2027.
How your views help us to set priorities for the future
Categories are established to respond to specific, identified economic priorities, which can change over time. Before the Minister establishes a new category in Express Entry, the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) requires us to gather feedback from:
- provincial and territorial representatives
- members of industry
- unions
- employers
- workers
- worker advocacy groups
- settlement provider organizations
- immigration researchers and practitioners
This input allows us to explore whether and how category-based selection can be used as a tool to address particular needs and priorities, and whether other immigration tools may be more appropriate (such as temporary programs, federal pilots, regional immigration programs, etc.).
New categories are posted on our website once they are approved by the Minister. Each year, we report to Parliament on the selection process and the categories that were implemented during the previous year, including the rationale for doing so. We’ll keep measuring and reporting on outcomes of principal applicants coming through Express Entry, including those selected through category-based selection.
Lessons learned in implementing category-based selection also inform future work on enhancing the Express Entry system.
2026 Consultations on potential Express Entry reforms
The department conducted consultations on potential reforms to the Express Entry system in the spring of 2026 (now closed), with the objective of refocusing the points system to factors that are strong predictors of economic success and enhancing the overall system’s responsiveness to Canada’s economic priorities. These consultations explored options to simplify program requirements and ensure that they are based on the latest research on economic outcomes.
As most of these potential changes are being considered for future implementation, responses to this survey should primarily account for the current Express Entry system. A small number of survey questions will ask about possible interactions between category-based selection and Express Entry reforms.
Past consultations and engagement initiatives
- 2025 consultations on economic priorities for category-based selection in Express Entry – final report
- 2024 consultations on economic priorities for category-based selection in Express Entry – final report
- 2022–2023 consultations on enhancing Express Entry through category-based selection – final report
Contact us
If you have any comments or questions, please do not hesitate to email our engagement team.