Express Entry Draw Results 2026: What Iranian Applicants Need to Know

IRCC runs Express Entry draws approximately every two weeks, publishing the results on their website shortly after each round. For Iranian applicants, tracking draw results is essential — but interpreting them correctly is more important than just watching the cutoff number.

How Draws Work

When you submit an Express Entry profile, you enter a pool of eligible candidates. IRCC selects candidates from this pool through draws, issuing Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to candidates above a certain CRS score threshold. Not all draws invite everyone above the cutoff equally — IRCC can run general draws, category-based draws, or provincial-aligned draws, each with different eligibility criteria.

Since 2023, category-based selection has been a central feature of the system. Instead of every draw going to the highest CRS scores regardless of occupation, IRCC can target specific categories: STEM occupations, healthcare workers, French-language proficiency, trades, agriculture, and others. Category draws often have lower CRS cutoffs than general draws because they pull from a more specific slice of the pool.

2024–2025 Draw Summary Relevant to Iranian Applicants

The Express Entry Year-End Report 2024 reported that Iranian software designers and developers were among the top five occupations invited in the entire system. STEM category draws issued over 16,600 ITAs in 2024. Healthcare category draws issued over 8,200 ITAs.

General pool draws in 2025–2026 have seen cutoffs ranging from roughly 490 to 540. Category-based STEM draws have run lower, often in the 430–480 range depending on the pool size at the time of the draw.

For Iranian applicants, the category draw system is a structural advantage. The occupational profile of most Iranian Express Entry candidates — software engineers, civil engineers, data scientists, medical researchers — aligns almost entirely with the STEM category. If you hold a NOC TEER 1 or 2 occupation in STEM, you are eligible for these draws.

Which NOC Codes Qualify for STEM Category Draws

IRCC has defined STEM occupations for category-based draws. The most relevant for Iranian applicants include:

• Software engineers and designers (NOC 21231)
• Software developers and programmers (NOC 21232)
• Computer systems developers and analysts (NOC 21223)
• Electrical and electronics engineers (NOC 21310)
• Civil engineers (NOC 21300)
• Mechanical engineers (NOC 21301)
• Chemical engineers (NOC 21302)
• Industrial and manufacturing engineers (NOC 21321)
• Mathematicians, statisticians, and actuaries (NOC 21210)
• Data scientists (NOC 21211)
• Information systems specialists (NOC 21222)
• Physicians (NOC 31102) — healthcare category

Your NOC code in your Express Entry profile must match your actual work experience to be eligible for the relevant category draw. Incorrect NOC code selection is a common and costly mistake.

The Tie-Breaker Rule

When IRCC runs a draw, if multiple candidates have the same CRS score right at the cutoff, a "tie-breaker" time stamp is used — typically the date and time a candidate submitted their profile. Candidates who submitted their profile earlier, with the same CRS score, receive ITAs first. This is why there is value in submitting your profile as soon as you have all required inputs ready rather than waiting for a higher score.

What Happens After You Receive an ITA

You have 60 days to submit a complete permanent residency application. For Iranian applicants, 60 days is not a lot of time given the volume of documents involved. Start preparing your document package before you receive an ITA, not after.

The documents that take the longest to obtain:

• Iranian police clearance certificate (Su-ye Pishineh): 4–8 weeks through the Mikhak portal and consulate process
• WES ECA: if not already complete, 8–12 weeks
• Proof of funds documentation: time-sensitive given the need to move funds through third-country exchange houses

Documents you should have ready before your profile even enters the pool:

• WES reference number confirmed
• Language test results within the last two years (IELTS, CELPIP, PTE)
• Employment reference letters (or SSO records as backup)
• Military service documentation (for male applicants)
• Translations of all core identity documents

How Iranian Security Screening Interacts With Draw Timing

Receiving an ITA does not mean you will have PR within six months. For Iranian nationals, the security screening process routinely extends to 12–24 months after the full application is submitted. The draw result and ITA are only the entry point; the security clearance phase is where Iranian applications spend most of their time.

This has a practical implication for planning: submit your language test, complete your WES evaluation, and prepare your document package as early as possible. The longer the wait for an ITA, the more likely some documents will expire (the medical exam, for example, is valid only 12 months). Many Iranian applicants end up repeating their medical exam while waiting for security clearance to complete.

Monitoring Draw Results

IRCC publishes draw results on the Express Entry section of Canada.ca after each round. The results include the date, total number of ITAs issued, CRS score cutoff, and (for category draws) the category name. Third-party tracking sites aggregate draw history into searchable tables, which is useful for analyzing trends.

For Iranian applicants watching category draws: the STEM and healthcare categories are the ones most worth monitoring. If your CRS score is in the 430–480 range and you hold a STEM occupation, a category draw is your most realistic near-term path to an ITA without provincial nomination.

For a full breakdown of CRS scoring for Iranian credentials — including how WES evaluates your degree, what language score to target, and how the SSO record functions as employment proof — the Iran → Canada Express Entry Guide covers the complete profile-building process.

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