Express Entry round #394 took place on February 6, 2026. IRCC invited 8,500 candidates in the French-language proficiency category, with the cut-off landing at 400 CRS points.
The numbers
| Date | February 6, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Round number | #394 |
| Round type | French-language proficiency |
| IRCC label | French-Language proficiency 2026-Version 2 |
| Invitations to apply (ITAs) | 8,500 |
| CRS cut-off | 400 |
| Change vs. previous round of the same type | +1 point |
| Days since the previous round of the same type | 51 days |
How it compares
The cut-off rose 1 point against round #388 (December 17, 2025), which closed at 399. It was a larger round by 2,500 invitations — the previous one issued 6,000. The gap was 51 days; the last 7 rounds in this category have averaged 30 days apart.
It sits inside the usual range for these rounds: the last 7 rounds in this category span 399 to 481 points, averaging 426. By volume it is the biggest of the set, which runs from 2,500 to 8,500 invitations. Widening out to the last 10 Express Entry rounds of every kind, cut-offs ran from 399 to 749.
What this round selects
Category-based rounds do not draw from the whole pool. IRCC picks one category and invites only the profiles inside it that meet the category’s own requirements, on top of qualifying for a federal program. This category is not occupation-based: it selects profiles that show the minimum French level IRCC requires across all four abilities of the official test.
What it means for your profile
This round reached every profile that was in the pool and inside the French-language proficiency category on February 6, 2026 and scored 400 CRS or higher. Profiles below the line are not removed: they stay in the pool for twelve months and are counted again in each subsequent round they qualify for. This page does not forecast where the next cut-off will land. Each round depends on how many profiles are in the pool at the time and on the instructions in force that day, so a past cut-off is a record, not a target.
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- All Express Entry draws — the live history with charts and filters, updated as each new round is published.
Source: the rounds of invitations IRCC publishes, read automatically through our data service. GerCanada is a private consultancy and is not part of the Government of Canada.