Express Entry Draw 317: 500 CEC Candidates Invited in an Express Entry Draw on October 9th

Key Takeaways for Express Entry Candidates

• Type of draw: Canadian Experience Class
• Invites issued: 500
• CRS score: 539
• Tie-breaking rule: February 20, 2024 at 02:57:40 UTC
• Prediction for the next draw: Category-based draw on October 10, 2024
• Learn more about the changes proposed for the 2025 Express Entry categories.
• Learn more about what we expect to see in Express Entry in the next six months.

Watch this reel for a quick breakdown

Our Analysis of This Express Entry Draw

Given the lack of Express Entry draws in September, we aren’t surprised that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held an Express Entry draw targeting CEC applicants after holding a PNP-targeted draw on Monday. What is surprising is the size of the draw. This was the smallest CEC draw of the year with only 500 invitations issued. Such a small draw has also meant that the CRS cut-off for this draw is higher than other draws, at 539.

Cut-off scores for CEC draws for 2024 to date: 

• October 9 – 500 invitations issued with a CRS cut-off of 539
• September 19 – 4,000 invitations issued with a CRS cut-off of 509
• August 27 – 3,300 invitations issued with a CRS cut-off of 507
• August 14 – 3,200 invitations issued with a CRS cut-off of 509
• July 31 – 5,000 invitations issued with a CRS cut-off of 510
• July 17 – 6,300 invitations issued with a CRS cut-off of 515
• May 31 – 3,000 invitations issued with a CRS cut-off of 522

Summary of This Year’s Express Entry Draws Targeting CEC Applicants

CEC program-specific draws made a comeback in May 2024 and have been a common occurrence since then. With over 25,300 invitations issued to date in CEC draws for 2024, CEC applicants are the most targeted segment in Express Entry Draws, with French language proficiency category-based draws coming a close second.

Here is how the distribution of draws looks for a total of 86,987 invitations issued to date for 2024.

How Many More CEC Draws Can We Expect for the Rest of 2024?

With up to 30,000 more invitations expected to be issued before the end of 2024, we can expect around 29% of these to go to CEC-eligible candidates. This would work out to 8,700 invitations over the next three months or so. This would bring the total of invitations issued in a CEC draw to around 34,000. 

An interesting comparison here is the number of CEC candidates invited last year. According to the Express Entry 2023 report, last year, just over 40,000 CEC applicants received an invitation across general all-program draws (no CEC program draws were held in 2023), which represented 33% of all invitations issued. 

Given IRCC’s continued efforts to transition more temporary residents to permanent status, we wouldn’t be surprised if we saw more CEC-only draws in the last three months of 2024, which could bump up the share of invitations going to CEC applicants.

For more information:

• Learn more about the latest Express Entry draws.
• Learn more about the state of the Express Entry pool.
• Learn when to expect the next Express Entry draw.

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