Canada has invited 576 Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) candidates to apply for permanent residence in an Express Entry round held on September 14, 2026. The minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score required was 734.
This was the 442nd Express Entry round overall and the 54th of 2026. At 576 invitations, it is the largest PNP round since the 955 issued on June 22, and it lands two weeks after the August 31 PNP round, which set the year’s lowest PNP cut-off at 697.
Full Details of the September 14 Provincial Nominee Program Draw
| Draw detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Round type | Provincial Nominee Program |
| Round number | 442 |
| Date and time | September 14, 2026 at 10:26:01 UTC |
| Number of invitations issued | 576 |
| CRS score of lowest-ranked candidate invited | 734 |
| Tie-breaking rule | August 29, 2026 at 21:39:50 UTC |
The tie-breaking rule means that candidates with a CRS score of 734 who submitted their Express Entry profile before 21:39:50 UTC on August 29, 2026 received an invitation. Candidates with the same score who entered the pool after that moment did not.
Provincial Nominee Program Express Entry Rounds in 2026
| Date | Invitations | CRS cut-off |
|---|---|---|
| September 14, 2026 | 576 | 734 |
| August 31, 2026 | 562 | 697 |
| August 17, 2026 | 442 | 760 |
| August 4, 2026 | 507 | 768 |
| July 20, 2026 | 511 | 744 |
| July 6, 2026 | 534 | 708 |
| June 22, 2026 | 955 | 730 |
| May 25, 2026 | 334 | 805 |
| May 11, 2026 | 380 | 798 |
| April 27, 2026 | 473 | 795 |
| April 13, 2026 | 324 | 786 |
| March 30, 2026 | 356 | 802 |
| March 16, 2026 | 362 | 742 |
| March 2, 2026 | 264 | 710 |
| February 16, 2026 | 279 | 789 |
| February 3, 2026 | 423 | 749 |
| January 20, 2026 | 681 | 746 |
| January 5, 2026 | 574 | 711 |
Across those 18 rounds, IRCC has issued 8,537 invitations to Provincial Nominee Program candidates in 2026.
Express Entry in 2026 So Far
The September 14 round brings the 2026 running total to 128,732 invitations across 55 rounds. IRCC has now held two Express Entry rounds in as many days, following the Canadian Experience Class draw on September 15.
As of September 13, 2026, there were 226,793 candidates in the Express Entry pool.
Why PNP Cut-Offs Are So High
A provincial nomination is worth 600 additional CRS points. A candidate invited at 734 in this round therefore held a base CRS score of roughly 134 before the nomination was added. PNP cut-offs are not comparable to Canadian Experience Class or category-based cut-offs for that reason.
To be invited in a PNP round, a candidate must already hold a nomination from a province or territory under the Express Entry-aligned (“enhanced”) portion of that province’s Provincial Nominee Program, and must have accepted the nomination in their Express Entry profile. Quebec does not participate in the Provincial Nominee Program and selects its own skilled workers through the Programme de sélection des travailleurs qualifiés.
Full details of each round are published on the Government of Canada’s rounds of invitations page.
If you do not hold a provincial nomination, your route into an Express Entry round is a general or category-based draw, where cut-offs in 2026 have ranged from the 380s to the low 520s. Use our free CRS score calculator to work out your Comprehensive Ranking System score, see which draw types you are currently in range for, and identify which factors — language, education or Canadian work experience — would move you closest to an invitation.