IRCC announced its 2026 Express Entry categories on 18 February 2026. The health care and social services category is retained and dentists remain eligible under NOC 31110, with dental hygienists and therapists under NOC 32111. The significant change is the minimum work experience for category eligibility, which rose from six months to 12 months of full-time or equivalent part-time experience in a single eligible occupation, gained in Canada or abroad within the previous three years.
New categories were added for physicians, senior managers and researchers with Canadian experience, transport occupations and skilled military recruits; there is no dentist-specific category. The most recent health care round as of mid-August 2026 was draw #422 on 25 June 2026: 4,000 invitations at a CRS cut-off of 475, up from CRS 467 in the 20 February 2026 round.
