First Trades Express Entry Draw of 2026 Issues 3,000 ITAs at CRS 477

Canada held its first Express Entry draw targeting Trades Occupations in 2026 on April 2, issuing 3,000 invitations to apply (ITAs) at a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 477. The draw — the 20th Express Entry selection of the year — was the first conducted under updated work experience requirements for the Trades category that came into effect in February 2026, raising the minimum qualifying work experience from six months to one year.

Draw Details

The April 2 Trades Occupations draw carried the following specifications:

• Draw number: 20th of 2026
• Category: Trades Occupations
• ITAs issued: 3,000
• Minimum CRS score: 477
• Tie-breaking date: February 14, 2026 at 8:53 p.m. UTC

To receive an invitation in this round, candidates needed to hold an active Express Entry profile with an NOC code in the designated Trades Occupations list, have at least one year of qualifying work experience in a skilled trade, and have created their profile before February 14, 2026 at 8:53 p.m. UTC if their score was exactly 477.

Updated Work Experience Rules for Trades Category

The April 2 draw was specifically noted by CIC News as the first Trades Occupations selection conducted under the revised eligibility framework. Starting February 18, 2026, IRCC increased the minimum work experience threshold for the Trades category from six months to one year of relevant skilled trades experience.

The change aims to ensure that candidates selected through the Trades Occupations category have a substantive track record in their field, reducing the probability of applicants with marginal experience receiving ITAs. Candidates who had qualified under the six-month rule before February 18 but had not yet received an ITA needed to confirm they still met the updated one-year requirement.

Trades Occupations as a Priority Category

IRCC has designated Trades Occupations as one of its priority categories for both 2025 and 2026, reflecting persistent labour shortages in sectors including construction, manufacturing, industrial maintenance, and utilities. The trades category was introduced as part of the category-based selection framework in 2023 and covers positions in several NOC skill groups related to technical and skilled trades work.

Through the April 2 draw, Express Entry had issued approximately 58,830 total ITAs across all categories in 2026. The Canadian Experience Class (CEC) remained the highest-volume category with 34,250 ITAs, followed by French-language proficiency with 26,000 ITAs across five draws. The Trades draw added to the 4,641 ITAs issued across three specialized occupational category draws that included healthcare and other priority sectors.

Context: CRS Score and Competitiveness

The 477 CRS cutoff for the Trades draw is notably lower than the CEC cutoffs seen in the same period — the April 14 CEC draw required a minimum score of 515, a 38-point gap. This differential reflects the structure of category-based selection: trades candidates are drawn from a separate pool subset, and candidates who qualify for a trades category draw are not competing directly against CEC or general pool candidates for the same ITAs.

The tie-breaking date of February 14 — before the updated work experience rules took effect on February 18 — suggests that IRCC used a profile creation date just before the rule change as the cutoff, likely to capture candidates who had entered the pool under the old six-month requirement but whose applications IRCC had already validated under the transition.

Year-to-Date Express Entry Volume

By the end of April 2026, Canada had conducted 26 Express Entry draws and issued approximately 71,627 to 74,883 total ITAs across all programs and categories. The distribution of draws by category reflects IRCC's stated 2026 priorities:

• Canadian Experience Class: 9 draws, 34,250 ITAs
• French-Language Proficiency: 5 draws, 26,000 ITAs
• Provincial Nominee Program: 9 draws, 3,736 ITAs
• Specialized categories (Trades, Healthcare, others): 3 draws, 4,641 ITAs

Further Trades Occupations draws are expected throughout 2026, consistent with the department's stated intention to continue category-based selections across all designated priority sectors.

What This Means for You

The Trades Occupations draw is most directly relevant to candidates who hold qualifications in skilled trade occupations and are building or have already submitted an Express Entry profile. The one-year work experience requirement, in effect since February 18, 2026, is now the minimum standard for this category.

For candidates pursuing the French-language pathway, the trades draw is a useful point of comparison: the 477 CRS cutoff is higher than the 393–419 range seen in French-language draws this year, illustrating that the French-language category continues to offer one of the most accessible CRS thresholds in the category-based selection system. A candidate who qualifies for both the Trades category and the French-language category gains additional optionality within the pool.

To understand how French language proficiency can strengthen your overall CRS score and open category-based draw eligibility, see the complete guide to Express Entry for French speakers and the breakdown of CRS points for French and bilingual candidates.

FrenchSprint helps candidates preparing for the TEF Canada and TCF Canada to achieve the NCLC 7 scores required for French-language category eligibility and bilingual CRS bonuses.