What Changed in Canada Express Entry in February 2026?
On February 18, 2026, IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) announced five new category-based selection streams under Express Entry. The new categories allow Canada to run targeted draws at lower CRS score thresholds for specific occupations, bypassing the general pool. Senior managers and researchers were among the highest-profile additions, signaling Canada's intent to compete directly for leadership and innovation talent globally.
A Quick Glossary
Express Entry is Canada's points-based permanent residence system for skilled workers. Candidates create a profile, receive a CRS score, and wait to be invited to apply.
CRS (Comprehensive Ranking System) is the scoring model Express Entry uses to rank candidates. Points are awarded for age, education, language proficiency, work experience, and other factors.
IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) is the federal department that manages Canadian immigration.
ITA (Invitation to Apply) is the formal invitation IRCC issues to Express Entry candidates selected in a draw. Receiving an ITA means you can submit a full permanent residence application within 60 days.
NOC (National Occupational Classification) is Canada's system for classifying jobs. Candidates must identify their NOC code, and it must match their actual duties.
CEC (Canadian Experience Class) is one of the three federal programs under Express Entry. It is specifically for workers who have already gained skilled work experience in Canada.
Category-based selection is a mechanism that allows IRCC to run draws targeting specific occupations or groups, inviting candidates at lower CRS scores than the general pool. It was introduced in 2023 and has expanded significantly for 2026.
TEER is the skill level classification in Canada's NOC system. Express Entry covers TEER 0 (management), 1 (professional), 2 (technical), and 3 (skilled trades).
PNP (Provincial Nominee Program) allows individual Canadian provinces to nominate candidates for permanent residence, often in occupations or industries aligned with regional economic priorities. PNP nominations add 600 points to a candidate's CRS score, effectively guaranteeing an ITA.
Executive Summary
- What happened: On February 18, 2026, Canada announced five new Express Entry categories: physicians, researchers, senior managers, transport occupations, and skilled military recruits. Agriculture was removed. Three of the five new categories (physicians, researchers, and senior managers) require 12 months of Canadian work experience. Transport occupations do not have a Canadian experience requirement.
- Why it matters for US HR teams: Canada is actively targeting the same senior leadership and research talent that US tech companies employ. For employees frustrated by H-1B uncertainty or stuck in a 10+ year green card backlog, Canada now offers a more direct path to permanent residence.
- The catch: The senior manager and researcher categories specifically require 12 months of Canadian work experience. Most US-based employees will not qualify on day one. The STEM category, which accepts foreign work experience, including US-based employment, remains an option and may see targeted draws in 2026.
- The bigger picture: Canada is no longer just a backup option. For companies managing US immigration volatility, it is increasingly a parallel strategy - a way to retain talent, reduce dependency on a single immigration system, and build optionality into your global workforce planning.
- HR's role: Know which employees have Canadian work history, identify STEM-eligible employees, evaluate whether temporary Canadian transfers make strategic sense, and understand the processing and relocation realities before raising Canada as an option with employees.
The Five New 2026 Categories
Canada announced the following additions to category-based selection in February 2026:
Agriculture and agri-food, which was included in the 2025 list, was removed.
The categories most relevant to US tech company workforces are researchers and senior managers. Transport is primarily aimed at a different labor market. The STEM category, introduced in prior years, accepts foreign work experience and remains the most accessible pathway for US-based tech employees.
Who Qualifies: Senior Managers
The senior managers category covers executives in business services, healthcare, education, trade, broadcasting, construction, and transportation. The eligible NOC codes are:
- NOC 00012 – Senior managers, financial, communications, and other business services
- NOC 00013 – Senior managers, health, education, social, and community services
- NOC 00014 – Senior managers, trade, broadcasting, and other services
- NOC 00015 – Senior managers, construction, transportation, production, and utilities
To qualify, the candidate must have at least 12 months of Canadian work experience in one of these roles within the past three years. Foreign experience in the same roles does not count toward eligibility for this category.
One notable design feature: senior executives typically score poorly in the general Express Entry pool because they earn zero age points (older applicants receive no age credit). Category-based selection removes that disadvantage by letting senior managers compete only against other senior managers, not the broader pool.
Who Qualifies: Researchers
The researchers' category targets scientists, academic researchers, and industrial research professionals in STEM-aligned fields. IRCC requires 12 months of Canadian work experience for this category, within the past three years.
The full list of eligible NOC codes for researchers is published on the IRCC category-based selection page at canada.ca. Your immigration counsel can confirm whether a specific employee's role and duties qualify.
The first draws for the senior manager and researcher categories are expected in March 2026. IRCC does not announce draw dates in advance, and draw schedules are discretionary.
What This Means for US-Based Employees
Most employees currently working in the US will not immediately qualify for the senior manager or researcher categories because Canadian work experience is required. This includes employees on H-1B visas or in the EB-2 or EB-3 green card backlog.
The STEM category is a more accessible near-term pathway. STEM draws allow candidates with foreign work experience, meaning US employment history counts. Eligible STEM occupations include:
- Software engineers and designers (NOC 21231)
- Software developers and programmers (NOC 21232)
- Data scientists (NOC 21211)
- Cybersecurity specialists (NOC 21220)
- Computer and information systems managers (NOC 20012)
- Web developers and programmers (NOC 21234)
IRCC has historically run targeted STEM draws and may continue to do so in 2026, though draw frequency and CRS cut-offs remain at IRCC's discretion and are not guaranteed. Because the minimum experience threshold for all category draws increased from 6 to 12 months in 2026, the eligible pool for some categories may be smaller, which could influence cut-off scores, but this is not certain.
It is also worth noting that Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) may offer parallel pathways for researchers and senior managers, particularly in provinces with strong tech or life sciences sectors. A PNP nomination adds 600 points to a CRS score, effectively guaranteeing an ITA. Your Canadian immigration counsel can assess which provincial streams are active and relevant for specific employee profiles.
The Global Mobility Question: Is Canada Worth Considering?
The more useful framing for HR is not "Can this employee get Canadian PR?" It is "How does Canada fit into how we manage immigration risk across our workforce?"
US tech companies have spent years building immigration programs around a single system: H-1B, PERM, EB-2, EB-3. That system has become slower, more expensive, and more unpredictable. Canada's February 2026 update is part of a broader signal that Canada is actively competing for the same talent.
For HR, that creates a real strategic option. The scenarios where Canada makes sense as a parallel track include:
- An employee on their third or fourth H-1B renewal with a green card priority date years away, who is actively weighing leaving
- A senior technical leader or researcher who wants residency certainty and has expressed openness to relocating
- An employee already based in your Canadian office who qualifies under one of the new categories and does not yet have a path to permanent status
- A high-priority hire where offering a Canada-based role from day one creates faster permanent residence optionality than the US system can deliver
The Transfer Question: Building Canadian Experience Deliberately
For employees who do not yet have Canadian experience, but where the company wants to create a pathway, a structured temporary transfer to a Canadian office is a real option.
However, a temporary transfer must reflect genuine business need and operational accountability. IRCC and the Canada Revenue Agency review work location consistency, payroll records, and tax filings. A transfer must involve:
- Real reporting relationships and decision-making authority in Canada
- Canadian payroll and tax compliance
- A legitimate business rationale documented before the transfer begins
A transfer structured purely to manufacture immigration eligibility does not meet this standard and creates compliance risk on both sides of the border. Any transfer program should be designed with Canadian employment, tax, and immigration counsel from the start.
Processing Time Reality
Express Entry is faster than the US green card process, but it is not immediate. HR teams should set accurate expectations with employees:
- After receiving an ITA, candidates have 60 days to submit a complete permanent residence application
- Standard IRCC processing time is approximately 6 to 8 months after submission
- Employees already inside Canada on a work permit can typically maintain work authorization through the process
- Employees outside Canada who receive PR approval will need to complete a landing to activate permanent resident status
The full timeline from ITA to activated PR status is typically 7 to 10 months under normal conditions. This is significantly faster than most US green card timelines, but it is not the same as receiving PR immediately upon invitation.
The Remote Work Complication
One scenario HR needs to think through carefully: an employee who becomes a Canadian permanent resident but wants to continue working remotely for a US entity from Canada.
Canadian PR status does not automatically create a right to work for a US employer from Canada without payroll and tax implications. Permanent relocation may trigger:
- Canadian federal and provincial income tax obligations
- Potential requirement to establish a Canadian payroll or employer of record arrangement
- Employment law differences including notice requirements, benefits standards, and termination rules
This is not a reason to avoid Canada as a pathway. It is a reason to involve legal and finance teams before the conversation with the employee goes too far.
What HR Should Do Now
- Audit employees on long-term temporary US visas or in the EB-2/EB-3 backlog who have expressed frustration with the pace of their US green card process.
- Identify employees with prior Canadian work experience who may already qualify for one of the new categories — check HRIS records and onboarding documentation.
- Flag STEM-eligible employees whose US work history may qualify them for an Express Entry STEM draw without requiring Canadian experience.
- Brief your global mobility counsel on the February 18 changes and ask for a population analysis specific to your workforce.
- If you have a Canadian subsidiary, ask counsel whether a structured transfer program makes sense and what the compliance framework would need to look like.
- Do not raise Canada as an option with employees until you have a clear sense of which pathway applies to them. A general "Canada might work" conversation without specifics creates more anxiety than it resolves.
Compliance Rules vs. Strategic Best Practices
Strict compliance requirements:
- Employees transferred to Canada for the purpose of building immigration eligibility must have genuine employment arrangements. IRCC and the CRA review payroll records, tax filings, and work location history. A transfer must reflect real business need and operational accountability.
- Express Entry profiles must accurately represent the candidate's NOC code and work experience. Misrepresentation is grounds for permanent inadmissibility to Canada.
- Canadian permanent residents who work remotely for US entities may trigger payroll, tax, and employment law obligations in Canada that require legal structuring before the arrangement begins.
Strategic best practices:
- Do not wait for employees to raise Canada. If you have employees in multi-year US backlogs, proactively include global mobility pathways in your retention conversations.
- Track prior Canadian work experience in your HRIS. This data is increasingly relevant as new category draws open.
- Platforms like WayLit can help HR teams identify which employees in their sponsored population may benefit from global mobility pathways, reducing the research burden on HR while giving employees accurate, timely guidance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my employee's US work experience count toward the new senior manager or researcher categories?
No. These two categories specifically require Canadian work experience. An employee who has spent their entire career in the US does not qualify, regardless of their seniority or credentials. The STEM category is different and accepts foreign work experience, including US employment history.
Can our company transfer an employee to Canada to build eligibility?
In principle, yes, if you have a legitimate Canadian operation and the transfer involves real employment in Canada. The transfer must reflect genuine business need, real payroll in Canada, and documented operational responsibility. It cannot be a paper arrangement designed solely to create immigration eligibility. Involve Canadian immigration, tax, and employment counsel before structuring any transfer program.
What CRS score does my employee need for a senior manager or researcher draw?
IRCC does not publish target CRS scores in advance. In category-based draws, candidates compete only against others in the same category, which has historically produced lower cut-offs than general pool draws. Cut-off scores for the senior manager and researcher categories will depend on the size of the eligible pool when draws begin. Your Canadian immigration counsel can advise on likely ranges based on current pool data.
How is this different from the H-1B or green card process?
Express Entry is Canada's system, entirely separate from US immigration. Pursuing Canadian PR does not affect an employee's US visa or green card case in any way, and some employees pursue both simultaneously. If an employee permanently relocates to Canada, they would typically need to resign from their US role or transition to a compliant cross-border employment arrangement, which requires HR, legal, and finance planning.
What about Provincial Nominee Programs?
Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) offer a parallel pathway to Express Entry. Provinces nominate candidates based on regional economic priorities, often targeting specific industries or occupations. A PNP nomination adds 600 points to a CRS score, effectively guaranteeing an ITA. For senior managers and researchers, certain provincial streams may be active and worth exploring. Your Canadian immigration counsel can identify which provincial streams are currently open and relevant.
Key Takeaway
Canada's February 2026 Express Entry update is one of the most significant expansions of category-based selection since the system launched. For US tech company HR teams, the most immediate opportunity is in the STEM category, which remains open to candidates with non-Canadian experience. The senior manager and researcher categories require 12 months of Canadian work experience, but they are worth tracking for employees in your Canadian offices or those open to a structured transfer.
The more important shift is strategic. US tech companies that have managed immigration purely as a compliance exercise are increasingly exposed to a system that is slow, unpredictable, and operating under growing policy pressure. Canada offers a parallel track. The companies that build global mobility infrastructure now - workforce data, Canadian counsel relationships, transfer frameworks - will have more options when individual employees reach a breaking point.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or immigration advice. Express Entry rules and draw thresholds change frequently. Consult with a qualified Canadian immigration lawyer or licensed immigration consultant for guidance on specific employee situations.
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