Key Highlights of Express Entry Draw 440
Conducted at 11:18:08 UTC, the round set a minimum CRS score of 198, with candidates ranked 229th or above in the pool receiving an invitation.
- Date and time: September 3, 2026, at 11:18:08 UTC
- Category: Physicians with Canadian Work Experience, 2026-Version 1
- Minimum CRS score: 198
- Invitations issued: 229
- Rank cut-off: 229 or above
- Tie-breaking date: Profiles submitted before 19:40:38 UTC on August 6, 2026, were prioritised among tied scores
A Category With a Distinct Rhythm of Its Own
This is only the third physicians-specific draw held in 2026, following an inaugural round on February 19 and a second on June 24, a gap of more than two months between rounds. Compared to its predecessors, which issued 391 and 271 invitations respectively, this round’s 229 ITAs is the most modest physicians draw of the year so far. The CRS cut-off, meanwhile, sits at 198, the second-lowest ever recorded for this category, trailing only the very first physicians round in February.
Why the Numbers Look Different From Other Categories
The Physicians with Canadian Work Experience category draws from an intentionally narrow pool: candidates need at least 12 months of full-time (or equivalent part-time) Canadian work experience in an eligible physician occupation within the past three years. Because eligibility is so specific, invitation counts and cut-offs in this category naturally behave differently from broader draws, and don’t necessarily follow the same trajectory round to round. Across all three rounds this year, IRCC has now issued 891 invitations to physicians under this category.
How This Compares to the Rest of Express Entry
The contrast with other 2026 draws is striking. Just two days before this round, the September 1 Canadian Experience Class draw required a CRS score of 521, well over 300 points higher than this physicians round’s cut-off of 198. That gap illustrates exactly how category-based selection functions: by isolating candidates who meet specific occupational or language criteria, IRCC can extend invitations at dramatically lower CRS thresholds than general or CEC-based rounds would ever allow.
What Comes Next
With physicians draws now spaced roughly two to three months apart, IRCC appears to be timing this category deliberately rather than running it on a fixed schedule. Industry watchers expect the next Express Entry round to shift back toward a Provincial Nominee Program draw, based on the current bi-weekly cluster pattern the system has followed for much of the year.
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