Rural Community Immigration Pilot: everything you need to know as Canada goes permanent

Canada is making its Rural Community Immigration Pilot permanent, turning the two-year experiment that lets small towns pick their own skilled workers into a lasting route to permanent residence. Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab announced the change on Nov. 9 in Pictou County, Nova Scotia, saying "a one-size-fits-all approach to immigration doesn't work for rural Canada," Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) said.

The pilot closes on Jan. 1, 2027, and the new Rural Community Immigration Program takes over in the same 14 communities. This guide explains what the Rural Community Immigration Pilot is, what changes, who can apply, the language and settlement-fund rules, and how to apply step by step.

What is the Rural Community Immigration Pilot?

The Rural Community Immigration Pilot (RCIP) is a community-led path to permanent residence that IRCC launched in January 2025. It replaced the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP), which ran from 2019 to 2024.

Instead of competing in a national draw such as Express Entry, a candidate needs two things from one small community: a job offer from an employer the community has approved, and a recommendation from the community's economic development organization. IRCC then makes the final decision on permanent residence.

Each community decides which sectors and jobs it needs most, vets local employers and supports newcomers as they settle. The aim is to fill jobs that local workers can't, and to keep newcomers in towns facing an aging and shrinking workforce. People aged 65 and older make up 23.2% of Canada's rural population, compared with 18.2% in urban centres, the government said in the regulations.

What changes now that the pilot is permanent?

• A permanent class in law. Regulations registered on Oct. 22, 2026, created a new "rural community immigration class" in Canada's immigration regulations, so the program no longer depends on a temporary pilot.
• Pilot closes Jan. 1, 2027. Communities have until Dec. 31, 2026, to finalize recommendations under the pilot. From Jan. 1, 2027, they can begin issuing recommendations under the permanent program.
• Pilot recommendations still count. A pilot recommendation dated Dec. 31, 2026, or earlier remains usable until it expires. Pilot recommendations are valid for six months, so the pilot's rules stay in force until June 30, 2027, for those candidates. IRCC will keep processing applications it has already received.
• 5,500 admission spaces. The government's latest immigration levels plan sets aside 5,500 admission spaces for the permanent program.
• Stronger checks on employers. Communities can refuse or revoke an employer's designation, for example when an employer breaks worker-protection laws.
• More communities later. The program starts with the 14 pilot communities; others will be able to join through an expression-of-interest process.

Which 14 communities are in the program?

These communities are expected to continue under the permanent program, according to IRCC:

Each community publishes its own priority sectors, occupations and list of designated employers on its economic development organization's website. Quebec runs its own immigration selection and is not part of the program.

Who can apply for the Rural Community Immigration Program?

Under the new regulations, a candidate must:

1. Hold a community recommendation. A valid certificate of recommendation from the community's economic development organization. A certificate is valid for one year under the permanent program.
2. Have a qualifying job offer. Full-time, non-seasonal and for a continuous, indefinite period, from a designated employer, with at least 75% of working hours in the community. The wage must be at or above the range Canada's Job Bank lists for the occupation, and the job can't require a language other than English or French.
3. Have one year of work experience. At least one year of full-time work, or the part-time equivalent (1,560 hours under the pilot), in the three years before applying.
4. Pass an approved English or French test. Results must be less than two years old and meet the minimum in all four skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking.
5. Meet the education rule. A Canadian credential, or a foreign credential at least equal to a Canadian secondary school diploma, with an educational credential assessment less than five years old.
6. Show settlement funds, unless already working in Canada with a valid work permit.
7. Intend to live in the community that recommended them, and hold valid temporary resident status if already in Canada.

Which work experience counts?

The experience must be paid work for an employer, not volunteer work or self-employment (licensed doctors are the exception). It must match the skill level of the job offer under Canada's National Occupational Classification (NOC) TEER system:

International graduates: no work experience needed

Graduates of a public college or university in the community can skip the work experience requirement if they:

• studied full time with valid temporary resident status for the whole program;
• got their credential within 18 months before applying;
• lived in the community for at least 16 of the last 24 months of a program of two years or more, or for the whole program for a master's or doctoral degree shorter than two years.

Programs that were mostly English or French language training or mostly distance learning don't qualify. Graduates still need a job offer and a community recommendation.

Language requirements

The minister sets the minimum language scores. Under the pilot, they depended on the job offer:

Check IRCC's program page for the thresholds that apply to applications under the permanent program before booking a test.

Settlement funds

The regulations set the funds at half of Statistics Canada's low-income cut-off for rural areas. Under the pilot, the minimums were:

Family members include a spouse or partner and dependent children, even if they aren't moving. Applicants already working in Canada on a valid work permit don't need to show funds. To see what these amounts are worth in rupees, check today's Canadian dollar rate on our dollar rate page.

How to apply: step by step

1. Pick a community and check its priorities. Read the economic development organization's website for its priority sectors, occupations and designated employers.
2. Get a job offer from a designated employer. Only designated employers in the community's priority sectors can make a qualifying offer.
3. Apply to the community for a recommendation. The economic development organization assesses you against its own criteria and the federal rules.
4. Gather your documents. Language test results, an educational credential assessment if you studied abroad, proof of work experience and proof of funds.
5. Apply to IRCC for permanent residence online, before the recommendation expires. IRCC checks eligibility, medical results, police certificates and security, and makes the final decision.
6. Optional: apply for a work permit. Under the pilot, eligible candidates could get a work permit to start the job while their permanent residence application is processed.

What employers must do

An employer must be designated by the community before it can hire through the program. Under the regulations, it generally needs to have operated continuously for at least two years under the same ownership in the community, unless the community expects it to contribute substantially to the local economy. A representative must complete intercultural competency and onboarding training, and the employer must commit to helping newcomers settle. Businesses that break worker-protection laws can be refused or lose their designation.

How well has rural immigration worked so far?

• The earlier RNIP admitted more than 12,500 skilled workers and their families between 2019 and 2024, through more than 2,800 businesses.
• In a preliminary survey, 87% of RNIP respondents had stayed in, and planned to keep living in, their community.
• From January 2025 to August 2026, RCIP communities designated more than 1,950 employers, which issued more than 4,700 job offers and community recommendations. Newcomers filled shortages in health care, education, and sales and services.
• Most newcomers under both pilots were aged 22 to 31. The top source countries were India, the Philippines and Nigeria.

Will more communities be added?

Yes, but the government hasn't said when. New communities will be chosen through an expression-of-interest process. IRCC says communities outside Quebec can apply if they have a population under 200,000 and score 0.20 or higher on Statistics Canada's Index of Remoteness, and must show labour needs and the capacity to settle newcomers.

What it means for applicants from Pakistan

The program is open to people of any nationality, including Pakistanis abroad and Pakistanis already in Canada on work or study permits. It suits people with a realistic job offer in one of the 14 communities, especially in health care, education, trades and services, and international graduates of colleges in those towns.

A job offer is the hardest part, and it is also where scams happen. Only employers designated by the community can make a qualifying offer, and every community lists them publicly. Treat anyone selling a "guaranteed" rural job offer or recommendation for a fee as a fraud, and check every offer against the community's own website. For other routes to Canada, see our report on Canada's rule changes for high-earning foreign workers, and for daily salah times in Canadian cities, see prayer times in Canada.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Rural Community Immigration Pilot still open?

The pilot closes on Jan. 1, 2027. Candidates holding a pilot recommendation dated Dec. 31, 2026, or earlier can still apply for permanent residence before it expires. From Jan. 1, 2027, communities issue recommendations under the permanent Rural Community Immigration Program.

Do I need a job offer for the Rural Community Immigration Program?

Yes. Every candidate needs a full-time, non-seasonal, indefinite job offer from an employer designated by the community, plus the community's recommendation. International graduates from a local public college or university are exempt only from the work experience requirement.

How much money do I need for the rural immigration program?

Under the pilot, a single applicant needed $10,507 Canadian and a family of four $19,524. Applicants already working in Canada with a valid work permit don't need to show funds.

What IELTS or CELPIP score do I need?

Under the pilot, the minimum was Canadian Language Benchmark 6 for TEER 0 and 1 jobs, 5 for TEER 2 and 3 jobs, and 4 for TEER 4 and 5 jobs, in all four skills. Test scores are converted to these benchmarks; check IRCC's page for the levels under the permanent program.

Can my family come with me?

Yes. A spouse or partner and dependent children can be included in the permanent residence application, and the settlement funds must cover them.

Which communities take part in the Rural Community Immigration Program?

Pictou County in Nova Scotia; North Bay, Sudbury, Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie and Thunder Bay in Ontario; Steinbach, Altona/Rhineland and Brandon in Manitoba; Moose Jaw in Saskatchewan; Claresholm in Alberta; and West Kootenay, North Okanagan Shuswap and Peace Liard in British Columbia.

Is the Rural Community Immigration Program the same as the Francophone pilot?

No. The Francophone Community Immigration Pilot, launched at the same time in January 2025, is a separate program for French-speaking workers in Francophone minority communities outside Quebec.

Sources: IRCC news release, Nov. 9, 2026; IRCC backgrounder, "Overview of the Rural Community Immigration Program"; IRCC Rural Community Immigration Pilot pages ("Who can apply", proof of funds, updated Nov. 9, 2026) and program delivery instructions; Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (Rural Community Immigration), SOR/2026-217, Canada Gazette, Part II, Nov. 4, 2026.