Being Eligible for a Category With No 2026 Draws Is Not the Increasingly Same as Having a Chance
“My occupation is literally on the list, so I must have a real shot” is a sentence worth pausing on before repeating it to yourself. Being eligible for a category with no 2026 draws is a real, documented status — and it is not the same thing as having an actual chance at an invitation this year.
The two categories this applies to
STEM occupations and education occupations both remain on IRCC’s live category-based selection page, with current, published eligibility criteria, as of the most recent check in this research. Both are genuinely listed. Neither has produced a single round in 2026 as of 23 July.
STEM’s last invitation round in April 2024 — and nothing since
STEM held three rounds total, all clustered in 2023 and 2024: 5 July 2023 (500 ITAs, CRS 486), 8 December 2023 (5,900 ITAs, CRS 481), and 11 April 2024 (4,500 ITAs, CRS 491). Since that April 2024 round, nothing — no STEM round anywhere in 2025, and none through the middle of 2026 either. Two and a half years of silence sits behind a category that’s still technically live.
Education category dormant Express Entry — a shorter, more recent pause
Education’s pattern looks slightly different. It launched later, in 2025, and actually drew twice that year: 1 May 2025 (1,000 ITAs, CRS 479) and 17 September 2025 (2,500 ITAs, CRS 462). Then, like STEM, it went quiet — no round at all in 2026 to date, despite remaining on the current list.
What “category eligible but not drawn” actually means in practice
It means your occupation genuinely qualifies you to enter the pool under that category’s rules, and genuinely does not mean IRCC is currently inviting anyone through it. Eligibility is a paperwork status. An actual invitation requires a round to exist, and neither category has produced one this year.
Could either one draw again?
Nothing rules it out — education went quiet for months in early 2026 after two active rounds in 2025, and could resume the same way. STEM’s own history shows the same pattern can run much longer, with well over two years now separating its last round from the present. But nothing in the published record promises a return for either category, and treating “eligible” as “about to be invited” has no basis in what’s actually happened with either one since their last rounds.
What to actually plan around
Staying eligible for a category that isn’t currently drawing costs you nothing, but it shouldn’t sit at the centre of your plan. If STEM or education is the only category your occupation fits, build your strategy on the categories that are actually running — French-language proficiency, healthcare and social services, and trades have all drawn repeatedly through 2026 — rather than a category sitting dormant on paper. A licensed RCIC can help you weigh whether waiting on a quiet category or pursuing an active one makes more sense for your timeline.
Which categories have actually drawn each year, not just which ones appear on the list, is exactly what Cape2Canada’s Express Entry Explained guide tracks.