On September 4, 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held this year's third Express Entry draw targeting healthcare and social services occupations, issuing 3,500 invitations to apply (ITAs) for permanent residence with a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 475 — unchanged from the previous healthcare round on June 25 and above the 467 recorded in the category's first round of the year on February 20. The category has now issued 11,500 invitations in 2026. The round was also IRCC's 53rd Express Entry draw of the year, pushing the 2026 total past 126,000 invitations, of which the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and the French-language proficiency category together account for more than 80 percent — a distribution that reflects Ottawa's current preference for candidates already in Canada while still steering capacity toward shortage occupations. Since IRCC refreshed its category framework on February 19, 2026 and raised the minimum work-experience requirement for renewed categories from six months to one year, healthcare cut-offs have trended higher overall, leaving eligible health and social services workers to reassess both their scores and their timing.

Nova Scotia announced on its immigration website on August 6, 2026 that it will begin charging application fees under the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) on September 1, 2026, setting a flat CAD $1,000 fee for all three work streams and $2,000 for the entrepreneur streams, where until now the province charged nothing at all for a provincial nomination application; the fee applies only to candidates selected from the Expression of Interest (EOI) pool for assessment on or after September 1, leaving anyone who received a selection notice on or before August 31 unaffected, and work stream candidates must pay within seven calendar days of being selected while entrepreneur candidates get either 90 or 180 days depending on the pathway, with any EOI that misses the deadline closed and never assessed; the province's stated reason is that demand for nominations keeps outrunning the annual allocation Ottawa gives it — provincial open data shows the 2026 NSNP allocation at just 2,344 places, down more than 30 percent from 3,570 in 2024, while 7,942 unprocessed NSNP expressions of interest were still sitting in the pool at the end of the second quarter of 2026, roughly 3.4 times the entire year's allocation; submitting an EOI remains free, and the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP) still carries no provincial application fee.

On July 16, 2026, the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island (PEI) issued invitations to apply to 195 candidates through its Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) — the largest single round the province has held this year. The invitations went out under the Labour Impact category and PEI Express Entry, with priority given to international graduates of the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), Holland College and Collège de l'Île, the province's three post-secondary institutions. With this round, PEI has now issued 853 invitations in 2026, continuing its established approach of monthly draws focused on workers already employed in local in-demand industries. Against a backdrop of steep federal cuts to provincial nomination allocations — and with PEI still yet to publish its total allocation for the year — the province's steady, transparent draw cadence has drawn particular attention from applicants.

On June 2, 2026, the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP) held its 12th selection round of the year, issuing no fewer than 357 invitations to apply (ITAs) across its Skills Immigration (SI) and Entrepreneur Immigration (EI) categories. The SI draw accounted for 342 invitations targeting early childhood educators, healthcare and veterinary professionals, and construction trades workers under the province's Care and Build priorities announced on April 23, with minimum scores falling by 4 to 10 points across all four categories compared with the May 6 draw. On the entrepreneur side, the EI Base Stream issued 15 invitations—the largest single Base Stream round of 2026. As of June 2, British Columbia has issued 2,485 ITAs through the SI category and no fewer than 64 through the EI category this year.

On May 21, 2026, Prince Edward Island completed its fifth provincial nomination draw of the year, issuing 114 invitations through the Prince Edward Island Provincial Nominee Program (PEI PNP) to candidates currently working in the province's in-demand occupations and high-economic-impact sectors, with priority once again given to international student graduates of three local institutions — the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), Holland College and Collège de l'Île; the round continued the province's 2026 pattern of using only two pathways, Labour Impact and PEI Express Entry, under selection criteria that have stayed unchanged across all five draws, bringing total invitations for the year to 477; as the only Canadian province or territory to publish its annual draw schedule in advance, PEI held this round in line with its anticipated invitation-to-apply schedule, and the province has signalled that, should the schedule hold, the next two draws are expected on June 18 and July 16, 2026, though it stresses those dates are for general information only and are not guaranteed.

Nova Scotia has launched a new initiative called "Critical Vacancies" and begun sending Notices of Interest (NOIs) to candidates in the federal Express Entry pool, with the aim of connecting qualified foreign skilled workers to local employers who have been unable to fill roles domestically. For now the initiative covers only two sectors with long-standing labour shortages — construction and healthcare — and while the province has uploaded dedicated forms for six construction occupations, it has not yet named any specific healthcare occupations. Candidates need only hold an active Express Entry profile to receive an NOI, with no requirement for Canadian or Nova Scotia work experience. Crucially, an NOI is neither an invitation to apply (ITA) for provincial nomination under the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) nor an endorsement under the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP); it functions instead as a bridge between job seekers and employers, though candidates who land a job offer through this channel are typically better positioned for a subsequent federal or provincial immigration pathway — and some may even receive an ITA directly in their Express Entry account. The move aligns with the provincial nomination priorities Nova Scotia announced in April 2026, and is the latest step in an immigration system the province has been steadily reshaping since late 2025.

Prince Edward Island's Office of Immigration held its fourth provincial nominee draw of 2026 on April 16, issuing 127 invitations — the largest single round of the year so far. The draw was conducted through the Labour Impact and PEI Express Entry pathways, the only two streams the province has used this year, and focused on candidates currently working in Prince Edward Island (PEI) in priority occupations and sectors deemed to have high economic impact. International graduates from three local post-secondary institutions — the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), Holland College and Collège de l'Île — were given further priority. With this round, PEI has now issued a total of 363 invitations under the Prince Edward Island Provincial Nominee Program (PEI PNP) in 2026. The draw took place on the exact date listed in the province's publicly released invitation schedule. Candidates who receive an invitation now have 30 calendar days — down from the previous 60-day window — to file a complete application for provincial nomination.

Under the targeted selection policies of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the healthcare sector has solidified its position as a premier pathway for foreign workers and international students seeking Permanent Residence (PR). Recent policy analysis indicates that not all medical careers require lengthy university education; six specific occupations, requiring only two years or less of college training, are currently being prioritized by the government. Through category-based Express Entry draws, eligible candidates in these fields are receiving invitations to apply with Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores significantly lower than those in general streams.

The Government of Prince Edward Island posted its anticipated Invitation to Apply (ITA) schedule for 2026 on its official immigration webpage on January 7, 2026. The schedule outlines 12 planned Expression of Interest (EOI) draws over the year, generally expected to occur monthly around mid-month. While the public schedule provides applicants with a clearer sense of timing—something rarely offered by other provinces—PEI emphasized that the dates are for general information only and do not guarantee that draws will take place exactly as listed.

The Prince Edward Island Provincial Nominee Program (PEI PNP) recently broke from its established schedule to conduct its second unexpected draw of the year. This latest round not only deviated from the standard timeline but also marked a significant shift in selection criteria. Moving away from the recent trend of exclusively targeting local graduates and individuals already employed within the province, this draw opened eligibility to candidates with weaker ties to the island, provided they could demonstrate a positive economic impact. Industry analysis suggests this strategic move is likely aimed at ensuring the province fully utilizes its 2025 federal nomination allocation before the year ends.