The third Express Entry draw of the week regarding category based selection took place on the 29 th of October, 2025 by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
The Express Entry draw includes a specific target population today, that is, the candidates who know French, and 6,000 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) with the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) cut-off score of 416 points were issued.
Applicants whose CRS is equal to or above 416 were invited, with a tie-breaking rule on applications received on or before September 8, 2025, at 15:27:09 UTC.
Key Highlights Of The October 29 Express Entry Draw
Category: French language proficiency (Version 1)
Invitations issued: 6,000
Minimum CRS score for lowest-ranked candidate: 416
Tie-breaking timestamp: September 8, 2025, 15:27:09 UTC
Rank needed: 6,000 or above in the pool
In total there have been 81,485 ITAs issued in Canada in 2025 of which 36,000 were done in the French-language category.
Comparatively, IRCC has issued 98,903 and 110,266 ITAs in 2024 and 2023 respectively.
Most obviously, the CRS cut-off of 416 in this round is significantly lower than that of numerous other rounds of invitations based on categories.
This does not only indicate the category-specificity of the draw but also creates an opportunity of instances where French-proficient applicants could be less overall CRS-scored.
Summary Of All The Express Entry Draws This Week
#
Date
Round type
Invitations issued
CRS cut-off
374
Oct 27, 2025
Provincial Nominee Program
302
761
375
Oct 28, 2025
Canadian Experience Class
1,000
533
376
Oct 29, 2025
French-language proficiency (Version 1)
6,000
416
CRS threshold cooling down in French-language draws
The CRS cut-off of the French-language proficiency category has been on the steady decline in August 2025, hence this stream becomes more open to candidates who can qualify.
Some key data:
Date
Invitations issued
CRS cut-off
Oct 29, 2025
6,000
416
Oct 6, 2025
4,500
432
Sept 4, 2025
4,500
446
Aug 8, 2025
2,500
481
Mar 21, 2025
7,500
379
Mar 6, 2025
4,500
410
Feb 19, 2025
6,500
428
The trend is evident: following a peak of 481 in August the cut-off has consistently been taken down to 446 in September, to 416 currently.
This signifies strategic pull by IRCC, to bring in more candidates with French proficiency- but with slightly lax CRS requirements than other streams.
This third week of the draw – will be a turning point in the life of the French speaking skilled workers who will want to call Canada their home.
The bar in this category is less tough than one may think with 6,000 ITAs and a cut-off of only 416.
This becomes a significant opportunity to Canadian permanent residency to those who have good results in the French test and have an Express Entry profile in the pool.
To the candidates yet to prepare, the current tendency of reducing CRS levels indicates that a timely preparation and profile optimization may pay off later in the draws.
Provided that you or a friend who meets French-language proficiency requirement have a CRS of around or more 416 (or is in the process of raising it to that level) then now is the time to have your profile ready and your documents updated.
Latest Express Entry Draw on October 29 Invites 6,000 Candidates for Canadian PR
The third Express Entry draw of the week regarding category based selection took place on the 29 th of October, 2025 by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
The Express Entry draw includes a specific target population today, that is, the candidates who know French, and 6,000 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) with the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) cut-off score of 416 points were issued.
Applicants whose CRS is equal to or above 416 were invited, with a tie-breaking rule on applications received on or before September 8, 2025, at 15:27:09 UTC.
Key Highlights Of The October 29 Express Entry Draw
In total there have been 81,485 ITAs issued in Canada in 2025 of which 36,000 were done in the French-language category.
Comparatively, IRCC has issued 98,903 and 110,266 ITAs in 2024 and 2023 respectively.
Most obviously, the CRS cut-off of 416 in this round is significantly lower than that of numerous other rounds of invitations based on categories.
This does not only indicate the category-specificity of the draw but also creates an opportunity of instances where French-proficient applicants could be less overall CRS-scored.
Summary Of All The Express Entry Draws This Week
CRS threshold cooling down in French-language draws
The CRS cut-off of the French-language proficiency category has been on the steady decline in August 2025, hence this stream becomes more open to candidates who can qualify.
Some key data:
The trend is evident: following a peak of 481 in August the cut-off has consistently been taken down to 446 in September, to 416 currently.
This signifies strategic pull by IRCC, to bring in more candidates with French proficiency- but with slightly lax CRS requirements than other streams.
This third week of the draw – will be a turning point in the life of the French speaking skilled workers who will want to call Canada their home.
The bar in this category is less tough than one may think with 6,000 ITAs and a cut-off of only 416.
This becomes a significant opportunity to Canadian permanent residency to those who have good results in the French test and have an Express Entry profile in the pool.
To the candidates yet to prepare, the current tendency of reducing CRS levels indicates that a timely preparation and profile optimization may pay off later in the draws.
Provided that you or a friend who meets French-language proficiency requirement have a CRS of around or more 416 (or is in the process of raising it to that level) then now is the time to have your profile ready and your documents updated.
Author: Shubham
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