Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has held another Express Entry draw, inviting 1,000 Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidates to apply for permanent residence (PR) in Canada.
Key Highlights of the October 28, 2025 Express Entry Draw
- Immigration program: Canadian Experience Class (CEC)
- Number of Invitations to Apply (ITAs): 1,000
- Minimum CRS score: 533
- Tie-breaking rule: Profiles created before March 21, 2025, at 4:16 a.m. UTC
This marks the 11th CEC draw of 2025, maintaining a similar trend to previous months. The last CEC draw, held on October 1, 2025, also invited 1,000 candidates with a CRS cut-off of 534.
Every month IRCC conducts at least one CEC draw but in October we saw two CEC draws. The CRS cut off of this CEC draw is almost same of last three CEC draws conducted at 534.
The CEC draws had pause from September 2021 to May,2024 and since then we never saw CEC CRS cut off lower than 507.
What Is the Canadian Experience Class (CEC)?
The Canadian Experience Class is one of three main immigration streams under the Express Entry system. It targets skilled workers who already have Canadian work experience and wish to transition to permanent residence.
CEC is often considered the fastest route to PR for temporary residents working in Canada, such as international graduates and foreign workers.
IRCC’s 2025 Express Entry Trends
So far in 2025, IRCC has issued 74,485 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) across various Express Entry categories. The department continues to balance draws among key programs:
| Draw Type | Number of Draws in 2025 |
|---|---|
| Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) | 20 |
| Canadian Experience Class (CEC) | 11 |
| French-language proficiency | 6 |
| Healthcare and social services | 5 |
| Education | 2 |
| Trade occupations | 1 |
ITAs by Category (2025 Totals)
| Category | Total ITAs |
|---|---|
| French proficiency | 30,000 |
| Canadian Experience Class | 22,850 |
| Healthcare and social services | 9,792 |
| Provincial Nominee Program | 7,249 |
| Education | 3,500 |
| Trade | 1,250 |
Why This Draw Matters
This is the second CEC draw in October, indicating that IRCC continues to prioritize candidates with Canadian work experience. These individuals are generally well-integrated into the labor market and can quickly contribute to the Canadian economy. But International graduates in Canada whom highest education is lower than bachelors degree can’t compete at this CRS levels.
How to Improve Your CRS Score and Boost Your Express Entry Profile
If your CRS score is below recent cut-offs, here are a few proven strategies to improve your ranking:
- Gain additional Canadian work experience
- Retake your language test (IELTS, CELPIP, or TEF) for higher scores
- Get a provincial nomination (PNP) for an additional 600 CRS points
- Add your spouse’s credentials for potential extra points
- Pursue additional education or credential assessments
Next Express Entry CEC Draw Prediction
From analyzing the previous CEC draws we clearly see a trend of CEC draws over 500. All of the draws after the covid pause had significant higher CRS cut off scores. We predict that this will continue, as every day hundreds of new applicants add into CRS pool.
Canada has reduced the PR numbers meaning intense competition for PR leading to high CEC CRS cut offs.
If you are an international student in Canada you explore the Express Entry targeted draws , these draws have significantly lower competition than CEC draws. You can target Healthcare and Social services, trades and French language draws.
IRCC may soon remove cooks from trades occupations list, which may result in lower CRS cut off in trades category draws.
