Rural Community Immigration Pilot
RCIP: your rural route to permanent residence
The Rural Community Immigration Pilot offers permanent residence to skilled workers willing to settle in one of 14 smaller communities across six provinces. It's employer-driven, a job offer from a designated employer, not a competitive points draw, is what unlocks it, and there's no Express Entry profile or CRS score required.
How RCIP works
- 1
Meet federal criteria
Work experience, language for your job's TEER, education, and settlement funds, the same rules for all 14 communities.
- 2
Get a designated job offer
Secure a full-time, permanent offer from an employer the community has designated in a priority occupation.
- 3
Community recommendation
The employer sends your file to the community; it confirms the job is genuine and priority, then recommends you to IRCC.
- 4
Apply for PR
With a recommendation you apply to IRCC for permanent residence, and can often bridge with a work permit meanwhile.
Where
The 14 RCIP communities
Each community sets its own designated-employer list and priority occupations. Open a community to see its profile, official site and a tailored eligibility check.
ONOntario5 communities
North Bay
Nipissing & Parry Sound districts
A gateway city between southern and northern Ontario on the shore of Lake Nipissing, North Bay anchors a wide RCIP boundary covering the Nipissing and Parry Sound districts.
View communitySudbury
Greater Sudbury
The largest city in northern Ontario and a global mining-technology hub, Greater Sudbury was among the highest-volume RCIP communities in the pilot's first year.
View communityTimmins
Cochrane District
A northeastern Ontario mining city with deep gold-mining roots, Timmins pairs strong resource-sector demand with a bilingual community.
View communitySault Ste. Marie
Algoma District
A welcoming border city of roughly 78,000 on the St. Marys River, Sault Ste. Marie was named an RCIP community in early 2025 as the successor to its RNIP participation.
View communityThunder Bay
Thunder Bay District
A Great Lakes port city and the regional hub of northwestern Ontario, Thunder Bay issued some of the highest community-recommendation volumes in the pilot's first year.
View community
MBManitoba3 communities
Steinbach
Eastman region
One of Manitoba's fastest-growing small cities, Steinbach sits in the province's southeast and brings a booming manufacturing and agricultural base to the pilot.
View communityAltona / Rhineland
Southern Manitoba (Pembina Valley)
The neighbouring communities of Altona and the Municipality of Rhineland form a tight-knit agricultural region in Manitoba's Pembina Valley near the U.S. border.
View communityBrandon
Westman region
Manitoba's second-largest city, Brandon brings proven immigration experience from the earlier RNIP program to a smoother RCIP process.
View community
SKSaskatchewan1 community
BCBritish Columbia3 communities
West Kootenay
West Kootenay (Nelson, Trail, Castlegar area)
A mountainous region of small cities in southeastern B.C., including Nelson, Trail and Castlegar, the West Kootenay combines industry with a renowned outdoor lifestyle.
View communityNorth Okanagan Shuswap
North Okanagan & Columbia-Shuswap (Vernon, Salmon Arm)
Covering the Regional District of the North Okanagan and Shuswap areas around Vernon and Salmon Arm, this scenic B.C. region blends agriculture, tourism and a growing tech presence.
View communityPeace Liard
Northeastern B.C. (Fort St. John area)
A remote northeastern B.C. region centred on the Peace River and Liard areas around Fort St. John, offering opportunities tied to Canada's resource economy.
View community
Free tool
RCIP eligibility checker
Six checks against IRCC's published federal requirements, the same rules for all 14 communities, plus a readiness score for the factors communities weigh when they have more candidates than allocations.
RCIP has no CRS-style federal points grid and communities do not publish Express Entry-style cut-off scores; recommendation depends on a genuine, priority job offer and your fit with the community. Priority-occupation lists, designated employers and intake windows change frequently, always confirm current details on the community's official site (linked on each community page) and with a licensed representative. This page is general information, not immigration advice.