On August 4, 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) opened the month of Express Entry activity with a Provincial Nominee Program round. It was Round #431, IRCC’s 43rd Express Entry round of 2026 and the 15th PNP-specific round of the year. The draw issued 507 Invitations to Apply to candidates with an active provincial nomination linked to their Express Entry profile, at a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 768.
August 4, 2026 draw — the official details
- Round number: #431
- Round type: Provincial Nominee Program
- Invitations issued: 507
- CRS score of the lowest-ranked candidate invited: 768
- Date and time of the round: August 4, 2026 at 10:39:04 UTC
- Tie-breaking rule: Express Entry profile submitted by May 15, 2026 at 15:58:19 UTC
The tie-breaking rule matters. When multiple candidates share the same CRS score at the cutoff line, IRCC invites only those who submitted their Express Entry profile at or before the tie-breaking timestamp. Candidates who created their profile after May 15, 2026 at 15:58:19 UTC and sat at exactly CRS 768 would not have received an invitation in this round. Source: Ministerial instructions respecting invitations to apply — canada.ca.
Why the CRS cutoff was 768
A CRS score of 768 looks impossibly high compared with the July 21 Canadian Experience Class round’s 516 or the July 22 French-language round’s 399. It is not. Every candidate who receives a provincial nomination gets an automatic 600-point boost added to their Express Entry profile. A candidate whose underlying human-capital score was 168 would show a total of 768 after the nomination points were applied. PNP-specific rounds always look like this — the cutoffs reflect the provincial-nomination premium, not the underlying skills of the invited candidates.
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Where the August 4 draw sits in 2026
The August 4 round continues the cluster-opening pattern IRCC has used consistently since March: begin the month or the cluster with a PNP-only round, then follow with Canadian Experience Class, category-based, and (in some months) Federal Skilled Worker or Skilled Trades rounds. The prior PNP round on July 20 issued 511 ITAs at CRS 744, meaning the August 4 cutoff of 768 rose by 24 points against a comparable volume (507 versus 511). This is consistent with a pool where provincial nominees continue to accumulate faster than IRCC is drawing them.
Comparing 2026 PNP round mechanics across recent months: Round #423 on July 6 issued 534 ITAs at CRS 708, Round #427 on July 20 issued 511 ITAs at CRS 744, and Round #431 on August 4 issued 507 ITAs at CRS 768. Volumes are stable in the low 500s; cutoffs are drifting upward. The practical takeaway for provincial nominees is that the nomination itself carries them past every PNP cutoff (the 600-point boost guarantees at least 600 CRS), and their remaining human-capital score simply determines how early in the cluster they are invited.
What happens after an August 4 ITA
Candidates who received an ITA on August 4 have 60 calendar days from the date of the invitation to submit a complete permanent residence application. IRCC’s published service standard for processing Express Entry PNP applications is six months from the date the complete application is received. During processing, applicants who are inside Canada on a valid work or study permit may remain on that status; those who let temporary status lapse must apply for restoration within 90 days of the loss of status.
The 60-day clock is strict. IRCC does not routinely grant extensions. Applicants should collect police certificates, language test results (if the test results submitted with the profile are close to expiry), Educational Credential Assessments (still valid within five years), and updated Schedule A forms during the invitation window rather than after it opens.
What we are watching for the rest of August 2026
Following IRCC’s 2026 pattern, the August cluster is likely to include a Canadian Experience Class round in the second or third week, potentially a French-language proficiency round, and depending on 2026 Immigration Levels Plan pacing, a category-based round for one of the six 2026 target categories (Healthcare and social services, Education, French-language, Skilled Trades, STEM, or Agriculture and agri-food). No dates have been published in advance. IRCC posts rounds only after they have occurred, and the only authoritative source is the canada.ca rounds-of-invitations page.
What to do now
If you received an ITA in the August 4 PNP round, you have a 60-day permanent residence application window that closes on October 3, 2026. To have Dimple Verma, RCIC-IRB R708308, prepare the complete Express Entry PNP application, upload supporting documents, and submit within the deadline, Book a Consultation or reach the office at immigration@vgis.ca. If you are in the Express Entry pool but did not receive an ITA on August 4, review your profile to ensure your nomination is properly linked and your language, education, and work experience details are current before the next round.
Official sources
- Ministerial instructions respecting invitations to apply — canada.ca
- Rounds of invitations — Express Entry (canada.ca)
- How Express Entry works — canada.ca
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