Latest Working Holiday Canada News and IEC Draws

IEC Draw: 1,387 Invitations Issued The Week of October 27, 2025

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) issued 1,387 invitations to International Experience Canada candidates this week.

The total number of IEC invitations issued this year now sits at 102,289 according to our calculations.

Check below our analysis of the key trends from this week’s data!

Everything You Need for Your IEC Adventure

Key Trends from the October 27, 2025 Invitation Data

This week saw over 1,300 invitations issued. South Korea’s Working Holiday program led the way with 312 invitations, followed by Australia with 156.

Rounding out the top five were the Working Holiday programs for Germany and Ireland, and France’s Young Professionals category.

While major programs such as the UK and France Working Holiday issued limited invitations throughout the year, the number of candidates in the IEC pool decreased slightly – from 40,435 on October 17 to 40,080 on October 27.

Since both these programs remained among those with very low chances of success (with France’s pool oversubscribed from the start), and several additional programs joined the low-odds list toward the end of the season. It is safe to say that competition for spots in the 2026 season is building in some core countries.

The 2025 IEC season officially closed, following this final round of invitations on October 27, 2025.

Who Had Very Low Odds of Receiving an IEC Invitation in the Final Week of the 2025 Season 

Although there were 40,080 candidates in the pool competing for just 7,605 available spots, most programs still showed strong chances of receiving an invitation in the last round. That was encouraging news for candidates in select pools. However, with the final round of invitations taking place on October 27, 2025, applicants had one last opportunity to secure an invite for the 2025 season.

Some programs had low or very low odds of receiving an invitation in the final round (programs added that week are in bold):

• Austria – Working Holiday
• Austria – Young Professional
• Belgium – Working Holiday
• Chile – Working Holiday
• Chile – Young Professional
• Costa Rica – Working Holiday
• Costa Rica – Young Professional
• France – Working Holiday
• Japan – Working Holiday
• Latvia – Working Holiday
• Netherlands – Working Holiday
• Netherlands – Young Professional
• Spain – Working Holiday
• Spain – International Co-op
• Spain – Young Professional
• Taiwan – Working Holiday
• Taiwan – Young Professional
• United Kingdom – Working Holiday
• United Kingdom – Young Professional
• Greece – Working Holiday

All other programs concluded the 2025 season with excellent odds of receiving an invitation.

Quotas & invitations for the 2025 IEC season

Updates for 2025 IEC season

The first round of invitations took place in the week of January 13, with the quota for this year’s IEC season sitting at 63,555. Over the course of the year, 102,289 invitations were issued before the final round on October 27, 2025, marking the close of the 2025 IEC season.

Here’s the data from the most recent round of IEC invitations:

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What’s New For 2025?

For the 2025 season, applicants are required to pay an increased IEC fee of CAN $179.75, up from the 2024 fee of CAN $172.

Here are some notable changes we saw to quotas this year:

France: The Working Holiday and Young Professionals quota decreased by over 2,000 combined.

United Kingdom: The International Co-op program and Young Professionals quota increased however the quota for the Working Holiday program decreased by 500.

Ireland: The Working Holiday quota has been significantly reduced from 10,500 in 2024 to 3,800 in 2025. While this might seem concerning at first glance, it reflects a practical adjustment. In 2024, only 5,746 invitations were issued, indicating a lower level of interest in this pool. The new quota aligns more closely with the current demand.

Australia: This year, Australians will continue to enjoy unlimited quotas.

South Korea: The Working Holiday decreased by 1,625 spots however the quota for the Young Professionals and the International Co-op program increased by 1,625 spots showing that the overall spots available for South Koreans remain the same as in 2024.

Taiwan: The Working Holiday decreased by 2,240 spots.

You can read more about this in our IEC Quota comparison.

Thinking About the 2026 IEC Season? Here’s What to Do

If you’re hoping to snag an invitation through IEC, the best thing to do is plan ahead. You can start by checking your eligibility for IEC — take our free Canadian Immigration Quiz to see if you’re eligible.

First, make sure you’re eligible for one of the three IEC programs: the Working Holiday program (the most popular option), Young Professionals, and International Co-op.

If you meet the eligibility for one of the programs, you’ll be able to create a new profile once the 2026 pools reopen and submit it to the pool for your country and program. Submitting your profile early ensures you’re considered in all rounds of invitations.

You can also begin preparing yourself for the work permit application you’ll have to submit if you receive an invitation.

The Ban on Flagpoling and How It Could Affect Your IEC Status

Effective December 23, flagpoling is no longer permitted for those in Canada as workers or students.

According to the IRCC, if you’re in Canada when you receive your POE letter of introduction, you must leave the country and re-enter to activate your work permit.

On 19 February, 2025, IRCC updated its guidance to note that “You may not be able to activate your work permit if you re-enter from the US or Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon.”

In other words, if you intend to travel to the US to activate your approved work permit, there is a high risk that such a request will be refused due to the confusion around the flagpoling issue and it’s impact on IEC workers.

• Learn more about these risks and less risky options for activating IEC your work permit without flagpoling.

How to move to Canada through IEC: VIDEO

Rachel walks us through how to come to Canada through IEC in 2025.

In order to come to Canada on an IEC work permit, such as the Working Holiday Visa, you need to get health insurance for the duration of your stay.

Every year, we hear stories of people who make major errors when it comes to insurance for their IEC adventure in Canada, leading to shorter-than-expect work permit durations and unnecessary medical bills. That’s why we released a video on all things health insurance. Check it out!

The 2025 IEC season

The 2025 International Experience Canada (IEC) season opened on December 16, 2024.

Eligible candidates are able to complete these steps:

1. Submit a profile: Submit a profile through your IRCC account in order to be considered for an invitation. If you submitted a profile in previous years, you can use the same account, but you have to create a new profile.
2. Receive an invitation: In order to apply for a work permit, first you have to be invited. Invitations are issued each week through a randomized lottery system. The earlier you’re in the pool, the more invitation rounds you’ll be considered for.
3. Submit a work permit application: If you receive an invitation, you then have 10 days to accept or decline the invitation. If you accept, you have 20 days from that moment to prepare and submit your application.

Rounds of invitations began shortly after the season opened. Now that the 2025 IEC season has come to an end, the final round of invitations took place on October 27, 2025.

Candidates who did not receive an invitation had their profiles removed from the pools when the season officially closed. You’ll be able to create a new profile once the 2026 IEC pools reopen.

Finding a job for the 2025 IEC season

Many IEC Working Holiday participants may want to start looking for jobs in Canada before they arrive. Thankfully, we have partnered with several Canadian employers who are looking to hire 2025 IEC participants.

Check out the Moving2Canada Jobs Board and join our IEC Talent Pool.

Young Guns Container Crew

If you’re looking for a physically demanding job with a great crew, we recommend taking a look at our partner, Young Guns Container Crew. They’re hiring labourers to help unload shipping containers in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, and Cornwall, Ontario (among others!). They love IECers and can offer you a job before you arrive. Apply here — or get more information by watching this video:

Further help with your Working Holiday Canada application

Please explore our many resources to help you plan your application. Research is crucial as you plan for success on your Working Holiday Canada permit.

Other IEC Working Holiday Canada Resources

IEC Health Insurance

• Health insurance is a mandatory requirement for IEC — compare prices for IEC health insurance options with a free quote comparison from BestQuote

Articles

• Read our FAQ guide for IEC permits
• Find out which documents you need for your IEC application
• Learn about 5 avoidable mistakes IEC applicants make
• Visit our full IEC portal for more articles
• Where to buy your health insurance for Canada (note: this is a mandatory IEC requirement).
• What are your alternatives when you can’t immigrate through IEC? 

Facebook

• Join our IEC Working Holiday group on Facebook
• Get updates on our Moving2Canada Facebook page

Employment tips

• For construction and engineering jobs, visit our Outpost Recruitment agency
• How to adapt to the resume format in Canada (or ‘CV’)