Express Entry Draw #444: 250 Senior Manager Invitations, CRS 389 — September 16, 2026
Express Entry Draw #444 at a glance
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held Express Entry draw #444 on September 16, 2026. The round invited 250 candidates in the Senior Managers with Canadian Work Experience category at a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 389. The tie-break was September 1, 2026 at 23:05:13 UTC. IRCC’s official draw data lists the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Canadian Experience Class and Federal Skilled Trades Program for this category-based round.
Who this category targets
IRCC says candidates in the Senior Managers with Canadian Work Experience category must have accumulated at least 12 months of full-time work experience, or an equivalent amount of part-time experience, within the past three years in Canada and in one eligible senior-manager occupation. The current eligible NOC 2021 codes are 00012, 00013, 00014 and 00015, all TEER 0. Candidates must also meet all requirements in the Ministerial Instructions for the round.
How this compares with earlier senior-manager draws
This is the third Senior Managers with Canadian Work Experience round in 2026. The March 5 round invited 250 candidates at CRS 429; the July 10 round invited 500 at CRS 392; and the September 16 round invited 250 at CRS 389. On a like-for-like basis, the category’s cut-off has therefore moved down by 40 points since March and by 3 points since July. These CRS levels should not be compared directly with CEC, PNP, French-language or other occupation-based rounds because each round selects from a different eligible pool.
What to watch next
IRCC has recently alternated program-specific and category-based selection, but there is no fixed public draw schedule. Another CEC or category-based round would fit the recent mix, but this is only a pattern-based observation and not a prediction. Candidates should focus on their own eligibility and CRS rather than assuming the next round will follow a particular sequence.
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