On July 8, the  Express Entry draw for immigration to Canada selected 3,900 candidates by issuing an Invitation to Apply (ITA). The Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score cut-off threshold for this draw was 478 points

In this draw, candidates in the Federal Skills Worker Program (FSW) were invited. This comes at a time after some of the restrictions imposed since March 4, 2020, have been lifted. The COVID-19 travel restrictions caused IRCC to temporarily limit draws to candidates who were more likely to be inside Canada.

Since COVID-19 became a public health crisis in Canada, IRCC had been restricting draws to candidates from either Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) or Canadian Experience Class (CEC).

As expected, the CRS score cut-off was higher than before the restricted draws, at 478 points. Although, this is only a few points higher than it was prior to COVID-19, so FSW candidates still in the pool have reasons to be cautiously optimistic that the cut-off score may come down over upcoming draws.

It is unclear if IRCC will return to FSW draws from this point moving forward. It’s possible that some program-specific draws may still take place. As well, while the COVID-19 health crisis remains under control in Canada, the global situation remains unstable.