Updated July 2026. The Rural Community Immigration Pilot (RCIP) offers permanent residence to skilled workers willing to work and settle in one of 14 designated rural Canadian communities — no Express Entry profile and no CRS score required.
What RCIP Replaced
RCIP launched on January 30, 2025, replacing the former Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP), which stopped accepting new applications in August 2024.
The 14 Participating Communities
Across six provinces:
- Ontario: North Bay, Sudbury, Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie, Thunder Bay
- Manitoba: Steinbach, Altona/Rhineland, Brandon
- Saskatchewan: Moose Jaw
- Alberta: Claresholm
- British Columbia: West Kootenay, North Okanagan Shuswap, Peace Liard
- Nova Scotia: Pictou County
How It Works
Each community runs its own local economic development organization, which sets its own priority sectors and maintains its own list of designated employers and open jobs. To qualify, you generally need:
- A genuine, full-time job offer from a designated employer in one of the 14 communities
- Relevant work experience matching the TEER level of the job offer (typically at least 1 year / 1,560 hours in the past 3 years)
- A wage offer meeting the community’s minimum — for 2026, many communities require at least $21.00/hour or the Job Bank minimum wage for the occupation, whichever is higher
Track Record So Far
In its first year of operation, RCIP helped over 1,000 newcomers gain permanent residence across the 14 participating communities.
Changing Employers or Losing Your Job Under the RCIP
Official rule: the RCIP is built on a job offer from an employer designated by the community, and a community recommendation tied to that job. Designated employers must report in writing if a candidate quits, is dismissed or is laid off, and a recommendation can be reviewed or withdrawn if the job offer is no longer genuine or available.
Interpretation: before you become a permanent resident, changing employers usually means finding a new job offer from another designated employer in the same community, getting a new recommendation, and applying for a new work permit. Your PR application depends on a valid recommendation, so tell the community and IRCC about changes promptly. After you become a PR, a job change no longer affects your status.
Practical suggestion: ask the community’s RCIP office early — some keep lists of designated employers who are hiring. For your work permit options, see changing employers on a closed work permit and laid off on a closed permit. If an employer is mistreating you, see open work permits for vulnerable workers.
Community-Specific Guides
Priority sectors and requirements vary by community and are updated regularly — see our dedicated guides for Ontario’s five RCIP communities and British Columbia’s RCIP communities.
For the official community list and eligibility, see Canada.ca’s Rural Community Immigration Pilot page.
