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By Stephanie Ford
Updated 1 hour ago
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This week’s in-depth coverage of the latest IEC news is made possible by the support of Outpost Recruitment.
This page is for International Experience Canada (IEC) applicants waiting for an invitation to apply or planning their next steps. On this page, you can track all key IEC updates in one place.
You can join our community to receive weekly updates covering invitation activity, key information about the IEC pool, and tips to make your season run smoothly.
Follow the latest IEC rounds of invitations for 2026 and see how each country is performing inside the Canada IEC pool.
This table breaks down weekly invitation numbers, total invites issued, current IEC pools size, quotas, and your odds of being selected in the next round.
Select a country below to track draw history and monitor your chances in real time.
This week’s draw invited 1,252 working holiday hopefuls from the UK, leaving only 292 applicants in the pool, who have an excellent chance of receiving an invite next week.
Even though 11,129 UK Working Holiday applicants have already received an invitation in 2026, there are still 1,815 spots available.
On April 2, 839 Australian nationals got IEC working holiday invitations.
This is a huge increase over last week’s numbers, which makes sense given the number of invites issued overall.
IRCC has now issued 4,792 invitations to Australians hoping for a working holiday visa, out of a quota of 5,670. With 2,439 spots remaining, eligible applicants still have an excellent chance of receiving an invite next week.
This week, 400 Irish working holiday makers received invitations. This is up from the 100 invitations on March 27.
Ireland has already exceeded its quota of 2,753, but still has 403 spots remaining. Still, IRCC says the chances of getting an invitation are excellent, so now is the time to apply if you’re considering coming to Canada for a working holiday.
New Zealanders got 203 Working Holiday invitations this week, April 2. That’s an improvement over the 50 invitations on March 27.
IRCC has issued 1,217 invitations to New Zealanders out of the 1,574 quota. Given there’s still a little room, IRCC estimates you have an excellent chance at getting an invitation next week.
Only 15 French Working Holiday applicants received an invitation this week. Although still small, this is large compared to the last few rounds.
This week’s draw brings the total number of invitations issued up to 6,378.
With just 808 spots still available and 14,322 applications in the pool, the odds of getting a working holiday invitation are considered very low.
988 invitations went to South Korean Working Holiday candidates this week, up from the 100 on March 27.
South Korea has the largest IEC quota among participating countries, at 10,239 invitations. So far, 7,381 invitations have been issued, and with 5,318 spots still available. IRCC estimates that candidates have an excellent chance of an invitation this year.
For the fifth week running, Japan has issued the highest number of IEC Working Holiday invitations. This week, 1,999 Japanese nationals were invited.
After such a large draw, Japan has now issued more invitations than the quota available. Still, IRCC estimates there is an excellent chance of getting an invitation if you are in the application pool.
German nationals got 348 working holiday invitations this week.
So far, 2,754 German nationals have received invitations out of a quota of 3,030, and with only 216 candidates in the pool who stand an excellent chance of receiving an invite next week.
IRCC invited 239 Italian working holiday hopefuls this week.
This is one of the largest draws for Italian nationals, bringing the total number of invitations issued to 1,984 against a quota of 1,850.
Still, applicants have an excellent chance of receiving an invite next week.
Date of the latest update: April 2nd, 2026
Invitations issued since last update: 7,108
Total IEC applicants invited so far: 60,417
IRCC’s latest IEC update, published on April 2, 2026, confirms that since the previous update on March 27th, 7,108 additional invitations were issued across all countries. This is the third-largest round of invitations issued this year, surprising, given that the number of invitations issued each month has gradually declined since the first round in January 2026, with last week’s round being the smallest so far.
The total is now 60,417 invitations issued since January 19.
The United Kingdom’s Working Holiday program remains the highest number of total invitations at 11,129 (out of a 9,330 quota) issued, and applicants still have an excellent chance of receiving an invitation next week.
IRCC has also now announced the chances of receiving an invitation in the next round for many countries.
At the moment, almost all IEC programs show “Excellent” chances of receiving an invitation. The exceptions are the following programs, which currently have very low chances:
Austria (Working Holiday), Chile (Working Holiday), Chile (Young Professionals), Costa Rica (Working Holiday), Costa Rica (Young Professionals), France (Working Holiday), Latvia (Working Holiday), Netherlands (Young Professionals), Netherlands (Working Holiday), Spain (Working Holiday), Taiwan (Working Holiday).
Date of the IEC Pools update: April 2nd, 2026
Total of candidates on the IEC Pools: 26,735
As of April 2, there were 26,735 candidates in the IEC pools, a significant decrease from last week, which is understandable given the number of invitations issued.
The programs with the highest number of candidates in the pool, as of April 2, 2026 are:
Remember: IEC is not a first-come, first-served program. Entering the pool early allows you to participate in more invitation rounds, increasing your chances of receiving an invitation. So, don’t let the number of people in the pool already put you off submitting your profile.
Here’s the data from the most recent IRCC update. To check your country’s odds for receiving an invitation, check out our IEC tracker.
Keen to see how the round sizes have been trending over time? Here are all the details:
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 2026 IEC participants.
Check out the Moving2Canada Jobs Board and join our IEC Talent Pool.
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:
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.
An IEC pool is a group of candidates who have submitted a profile for the International Experience Canada (IEC) program and are waiting to receive an invitation to apply for a work permit. Each country and category, such as Working Holiday or Young Professionals, has its own separate pool. During each IEC round of invitations, candidates are randomly selected from the pool until the quota for that round is filled.
Join 170,000+ adventurers and get insider tips, visa updates, and job resources to make the most of your International Experience Canada (IEC) adventure.
We partner with trusted brands like Outpost Recruitment, who share our commitment to supporting newcomers. This allows us to provide valuable resources and information to you and thousands of others – completely free.
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