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Stay up to date with the latest Working Holiday and IEC news, updates, and draw results from the International Experience Canada (IEC) program. Whether you're waiting for your invitation or planning your next steps

IEC Draw: 1,012 Invitations Issued The Week of August 22, 2025

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) issued 1,012 invitations to International Experience Canada candidates this week.

The total number of IEC invitations issued this year now sits at 92,073 on our calculations.

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

Everything You Need for Your IEC Adventure

We saw just over 1,000 invitations issued this week, with South Korea’s Working Holiday program once again receiving the most invitations at 228 this week. Australia’s working holiday program wasn’t far behind, at 206 invitations. 

The working holiday programs in Germany, Ireland, and Italy rounded out the top five, though none of those countries saw more than 85 invitations this week.  

There are still 11,599 spots left in the IEC pool for this season. So, there is still room for plenty of invitations this year. Though, the number of programs with very low odds of receiving an invitation is growing steadily week-by-week as we get towards the end of the season. We expect the season will close in late October. 

Reminder that the quota for the 2025 IEC season is 63,555. But the number of invitations issued each year is a little bit higher than the actual quota. IRCC knows that a proportion of candidates won’t accept the invitation, and a further number won’t use their POE in 2025 or at all. Currently, the number of invitations issued is 91,061.

Who Has Very Low Odds of Receiving An IEC Invitation in the week of August 22, 2025?

While the total number of candidates in the pool (34,185) is nearly three times the number of available spots (11,588), most programs still offer excellent or very good odds of receiving an invitation in the next round. That’s broadly good news for candidates currently in the pool.

The high overall numbers are skewed by a few significantly oversubscribed programs. For example, France’s Working Holiday pool alone has over 18,200 candidates, the second country with the highest number of candidates is Chile, which has over 8,600 candidates waiting for an invitation. And in the third place, Costa Rica’s Working Holiday program also has more than 2,100 candidates in the pool.

However, some programs have very low odds of receiving an invitation in next week’s round (with the bold program added this week):

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

All other programs currently have excellent odds for receiving an invitation next week.

Other News Impacting IEC Applicants This Week

A proposed amendment to Canada’s immigration regulations could mean that language testing requirements will be introduced for certain temporary work permit applicants under the International Mobility Program (IMP) – which includes International Experience Canada (IEC).

What It Could Mean for IEC Applicants

No immediate change yet, but this is one to watch. The IEC program falls under the IMP, so it could potentially be affected. The government has signalled that only “certain” programs will be subject to these new language rules. We believe there is a good chance that IEC might remain exempt from future language testing requirements, especially given its reciprocal nature.

 

Important Update
Until December 1, 2025, eligible in-Canada IEC applicants who have received a POE (Port of Entry) letter can now have their new IEC work permit mailed to a Canadian address.

To qualify, you must meet all of the following:

  • Were Canada with a valid IEC work permit when you submitted your application for another participation.
  • Have a valid Port of Entry (POE) Letter.
  • Have valid legal status in Canada.
  • Submit your mail request via webform before your POE expires.
If you do not meet these requirements, you have to leave Canada and re-enter to activate your new IEC work permit (but not via the U.S. or Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon).

Learn more

Quotas & invitations for the 2025 IEC season

Updates for 2025 IEC season- what we know so far

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.

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

PoolQuotaInvitations issued last weekSpots availableSpots filled last roundEligible candidates in poolCandidate ChangeChances of invite in next round
Andorra - WH25021000Excellent
Australia - WHunlimited206unlimitedn/a74-60Excellent
Australia - YPunlimited10unlimitedn/a2-1Excellent
Australia - ICunlimited0unlimitedn/a00Excellent
Austria - WH170000336Very low
Austria - YP701152Very low
Austria - IC300000Very low
Belgium - WH7500225130Very low
Chile - WH725100867551Very low
Chile - YP23110338-4Very low
Chile - IC202100Excellent
Costa Rica - WH80100212814Very low
Costa Rica - YP180001952Very low
Costa Rica - IC202000Excellent
Croatia - WH8533911-1Excellent
Croatia - YP1017100Excellent
Croatia - IC505000Excellent
Czech Republic - WH7001528496-4Excellent
Czech Republic - YP14521210-1Excellent
Czech Republic - IC505000Excellent
Denmark - WH350611834-2Excellent
Estonia - WH10533820-3Excellent
Estonia - YP1808000Excellent
Estonia - IC202000Excellent
Finland - WHUnlimited1unlimitedn/a32Excellent
Finland - YPUnlimited1unlimitedn/a0-1Excellent
Finland - ICUnlimited1unlimitedn/a0-1Excellent
France - WH661588118203195Very low
France - YP2080577082732-5Excellent
France - IC3590261370158-9Excellent
France - VIE945061917714Excellent
Germany - WH3490828915840-15Excellent
Germany - YP35087143-1Excellent
Germany - IC1600124100Excellent
Greece - WH135517240Excellent
Greece - YP624812-2Excellent
Greece - IC302000Excellent
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region - WH20077843-1Excellent
Iceland - WH1200106111Excellent
Ireland - WH38007314303045-10Excellent
Ireland - YP1505112220Excellent
Ireland - IC50038000Excellent
Italy - WH1915694023427-14Excellent
Italy - YP6041022-1Excellent
Italy - IC25010000Excellent
Japan - WH650000050546Very low
Korea, Republic - WH11570228236711596-58Excellent
Korea, Republic - YP400522131-3Excellent
Korea, Republic - IC3001200-1Excellent
Latvia, Republic - WH40100232Very low
Latvia, Republic - YP804000Excellent
Latvia, Republic - IC202000Excellent
Lithuania - WH175544341Excellent
Lithuania - YP20015000Excellent
Lithuania - IC505000Excellent
Luxembourg - WH80152100Excellent
Luxembourg - YP10010000Excellent
Luxembourg - IC1009100Excellent
Netherlands - WH515000219-3Very low
Netherlands - YP8500049-1Very low
New Zealand - WH25004311342315-13Excellent
Norway - WH13045010-5Excellent
Norway - YP153611-1Excellent
Norway - IC505000Excellent
Poland - WH4351114274-5Excellent
Poland - YP11056031-2Excellent
Poland - IC505000Excellent
Portugal - WH75018340128-6Excellent
Portugal - YP40131000Excellent
Portugal - IC1008000Excellent
San Marino - WH25025000Excellent
Slovakia - WH3153147320Excellent
Slovakia - YP3010000Excellent
Slovakia - IC505000Excellent
Slovenia - WH8016000-1Excellent
Slovenia - YP15011000Excellent
Slovenia - IC505000Excellent
Spain - WH89035234629Very low
Spain - YP1008741-5Excellent
Spain - IC500000Excellent
Spain - IV5050n/a0Excellent
Sweden - WH3501013474-1Excellent
Sweden - YP4031721-2Excellent
Sweden - IC1008000Excellent
Switzerland - YP21053322-2Excellent
Switzerland - IC40015011Excellent
Taiwan - WH940000165138Very low
Taiwan - YP5000042Very low
Taiwan - IC1006000Excellent
United Kingdom - WH96604425221223227Very low
United Kingdom - YP3206755819Very low
United Kingdom - IC20311020Excellent

Get the latest IEC news straight to your inbox! To receive alerts and updates about the 2025 IEC Working Holiday Canada season, make sure you sign up for the Moving2Canada newsletter.

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.

Haven’t entered the pool yet? Here’s what to do (ASAP)

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, the next step is to submit yourself to the pools. Submitting your profile as early as possible will guarantee that you’re considered for all invitation rounds. Invitations are issued randomly and will be sent starting January 13 (for select countries), so you want to be in the pools as early as possible.

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

For free personalized guidance, make sure to sign up for a Moving2Canada account. Your account gives you access to tons of resources, including checklists with step-by-step instructions for your immigration process, job openings from Canadian employers looking to hire IEC participants, and much more!

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.

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.

Invitation rounds typically begin in the weeks following the season opening.

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

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About the author

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Stephanie Ford

She/Her
Finance, Law and Immigration Writer
Stephanie is a content creator who writes on legal and personal finance topics, specializing in immigration and legal topics. She earned a Bachelor of Laws and a Diploma in Financial Planning in Australia. Stephanie is now a permanent resident of Canada and a full-time writer at Moving2Canada.
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