IRCC invites 6,000 Express Entry candidates with the second-lowest CRS cut-off in 2025
Canada has taken another significant step toward meeting its ambitious 2025 immigration targets. In the latest Express Entry draw held on November 28, 2025, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) issued 6,000 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to candidates with strong proficiency in French.
The draw, one of the year’s largest, signals Canada’s continued commitment to boosting its skilled workforce while supporting Francophone communities across the country. This round also featured a notably low CRS cut-off score of 408, giving many previously borderline candidates a realistic chance at receiving an invitation.
Details of the November 28 Express Entry Draw #382
Draw Date: November 28, 2025
Draw Type: French-language proficiency
Number of ITAs Issued: 6,000
Minimum CRS Score: 408
Eligibility Cut-off (Profile Submission): May 26, 2025, 12:28 p.m. UTC
Total ITAs Issued in 2025 (so far): 94,476
Purpose Behind This Draw
The French-language Express Entry draw aims to boost bilingual talent and strengthen Francophone communities outside Quebec, supporting minority-language populations and maintaining national linguistic balance.
By prioritising qualified French-speaking candidates, IRCC aims to address labour shortages while also ensuring that Francophone workers can contribute to the vitality of smaller French-speaking communities.
Lowering the CRS threshold also aligns with Canada’s broader plan: expand the talent pool, accelerate skilled immigration, and fill urgent labour gaps across the country, all while selecting candidates who can integrate quickly and contribute economically.
With this round, the total number of ITAs issued in 2025 has crossed 94,000, highlighting a year marked by aggressive selection and wide-reaching category-based draws.
Impact on Immigration Aspirants and the Canadian Workforce
This draw is particularly promising for thousands of candidates worldwide who possess strong French abilities but haven’t been able to secure high CRS scores. The low cut-off makes the pathway more accessible.
On a national level, Canada continues to struggle with demographic pressures, including an ageing population and workforce shortages in both urban and rural regions.
Bringing in French-speaking skilled workers helps diversify the labour pool and supports industries that increasingly require bilingual communication, such as healthcare, customer service, public administration, and social support sectors.
Additional Key Policy Context: Removal of Job-Offer CRS Points & Category-Based Draw Shift
A major policy change that took effect earlier in 2025 removed the extra CRS points previously awarded for arranged employment backed by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).
Before this change, candidates with senior-level job offers could receive up to 200 additional CRS points, a boost that often guaranteed an ITA. With those points eliminated, many candidates’ CRS scores dropped significantly.
This shift made language ability, education, and work experience far more influential in ranking, directly contributing to IRCC’s heavy reliance on category-based draws.
Since job-offer bonuses are no longer available, IRCC has leaned heavily toward targeted categories that fill specific national needs, such as:
French-language proficiency
STEM occupations
Healthcare roles
Transport occupations
Agriculture and agri-food
The November 28 French-language draw fits squarely into this new model, prioritising real labour-market needs over the previous points-heavy system that favoured job-offer holders.