Express Entry for Chefs and Cooks: Eligibility and 2026 Draws

Most restaurants bring a Japanese cook to Canada on a temporary work permit. The question that follows, usually within a year, is how that cook can stay. Express Entry is the federal system for skilled economic immigration, and chefs and cooks do qualify for it. Qualifying and being invited are different things, though. This guide explains both, using IRCC's rules and the draw results published up to mid-September 2026. For the provincial route, see provincial nominee pathways for chefs.

1. How Express Entry works, briefly

Express Entry is not a program in itself. It manages applications for three federal programs: the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FST) and the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSW). Candidates who meet one of them create a profile, receive a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score and wait in a pool. IRCC runs rounds of invitations, each with a minimum score. Only invited candidates can apply for permanent residence.

Quebec runs its own selection system, and the CEC requires the candidate to plan to live outside Quebec. A restaurant in Montréal needs a different plan; see our Montréal guide.

2. Which programs chefs and cooks qualify for

Chefs are NOC 62200 (TEER 2). Cooks are NOC 63200 (TEER 3). Both count as skilled work for Express Entry purposes.

For a Japanese cook already working in Canada, the CEC is usually the program that fits: the language minimum is modest and a year of Canadian work gets them in. For a cook still in Japan with years of experience, the FST looks attractive on paper because of its low language bar, but see the next section.

3. What the 2026 draws actually selected

Being eligible only puts a candidate in the pool. IRCC's published rounds from 20 January to 16 September 2026 show where invitations went:

Two things stand out. First, in that period there was no round for the Federal Skilled Trades program on its own, and no general round open to all programs. Second, the trades category that did run on 2 April covers construction and mechanical trades (and retail and wholesale butchers, NOC 63201), but not chefs or cooks. IRCC's category page lists no category that includes NOC 62200 or 63200. So, in practice, the FST's eligibility for chefs and cooks does not turn into invitations unless a future round targets it.

4. The score problem, and what no longer helps

CEC rounds between January and September 2026 needed between 507 and 523 points. That is a high bar for a cook in their thirties with intermediate English. Points come mainly from age, education, official language ability and Canadian work experience. A few figures from IRCC's criteria, for a candidate without a spouse:

• Canadian work experience: 40 points for 1 year, 53 for 2 years, 64 for 3 years, up to 80 for 5 years or more.
• Age: the maximum, 110 points, applies at ages 20 to 29, and it falls after that.
• Provincial nomination: 600 additional points, which is why PNP rounds show cut-offs of 700 and more.

Language scores usually move the needle most. Candidates who improve from CLB 5 to CLB 7 or higher gain substantially across several CRS factors, which is why language test preparation is often the best investment a cook can make.

5. A realistic path for a cook on a work permit

1. Year one: the cook works full-time for you on an employer-specific permit (usually LMIA-based; see LMIA step by step). Authorized full-time work on a working holiday permit also counts as Canadian experience if the job is TEER 0 to 3.
2. After 12 months: the cook meets the CEC's 1-year requirement and can create a profile, with an approved language test.
3. If the score is near the recent CEC cut-offs, keep working and wait for a round. Each additional year of Canadian experience adds points, and so does a better language result.
4. If the score is well below, a provincial nomination is the realistic lever. Several provinces run streams that include cooks, some tied to Express Entry and some not. Our PNP guide compares Alberta, BC and Ontario.
5. Keep status continuous. The permit must not lapse while the cook waits. If a new LMIA and permit are needed, start early.

6. What the employer can do

• Describe the job accurately. The duties should match NOC 62200 or 63200. If a cook is really working as a chef, the job title, duties and pay should reflect it.
• Keep hours full-time. The CEC counts 30 hours a week as full-time (1,560 hours in a year). Short or irregular hours can push eligibility back.
• Provide proper reference letters on request: title, duties, hours, pay and dates. Candidates need these to prove experience.
• Support language testing. Time off for the test, or paying for a course, costs little against the cost of losing a trained cook.
• Do not promise an outcome. Draws change every month. Make no commitments about permanent residence in the offer.

For the bigger retention picture, see retaining Japanese chefs. For national rules on temporary hiring, see hiring a Japanese chef in Canada.

General information gathered from official sources in September 2026, not legal or immigration advice. Express Entry categories, rounds and scores change frequently. Candidates should check IRCC's pages and consider advice from a licensed immigration consultant or lawyer.