Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) released a list of 186 occupations that will qualify for additional Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points beginning 3 November 2026.

The occupations are split into three wage‑based tiers; candidates in the highest tier can receive up to 100 extra points for a qualifying job offer, while work‑experience points top out at 70.

Eligibility requires the occupation’s median wage to be at least 1.3 times the Canadian average, based on Job Bank, Labour Force Survey and Census data from 2023‑2025.

Only one type of bonus can be applied – the higher of work‑experience points or job‑offer points – and the two cannot be combined.

From 3 November, a Labour Market Impact Assessment will no longer be required for a qualifying job offer to generate CRS points, easing the process for applicants and Canadian employers.

IRCC will automatically recalculate CRS scores for all candidates already in the Express Entry pool; no profile withdrawal or resubmission is needed.

Applicants seeking job‑offer points must ensure the offer details are entered in their profile before the 3 November deadline, as the system will not detect missing entries automatically.

Invitation rounds will pause briefly on 3 November for the recalculation, with draws expected to resume within roughly two weeks.

Kenyan professionals in healthcare, engineering and technology feature prominently in the top two tiers; physicians, surgeons and nurse practitioners are in the highest tier, while registered nurses, dentists and software engineers fall in the middle tier.

A Kenyan registered nurse with at least 12 months of qualifying Canadian experience (NOC 31301) would gain an extra 40 CRS points, while a software developer (NOC 21232) receives the same, and a physician (NOC 31102) could earn the top‑tier 70 points for work experience.

Candidates should verify that their National Occupational Classification (NOC) code, Canadian work‑experience duration and wage tier are correctly reflected in their Express Entry profile.