On August 3, 2023, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held the first occupation-specific Express Entry draw and issued 1,500 Invitations to Apply (ITA) to candidates working in one of the skilled trades occupations. In round #261, the cut-off score was 388 points. The tie-breaking rule for this round was June 7, 2023, at 07:03:08 UTC. As of August 1, 2023, there were 211,529 profiles registered in the Express Entry pool. This year, Canada issued 73,448 ITAs through the Express Entry draws.
