Changes to Canada Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) 2023

The Canada Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) has been extended to August 2024 when the pilot comes to an end; and the boundaries for seven of the 11 participating communities have been expanded.

Maps of the new boundaries are available here.

At a press conference in Timmins on August 26 2022, The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship in Canada announced some important changes to the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) beginning in the fall of 2022.

The Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot is a community-driven program.

It is designed to spread the benefits of economic immigration to smaller communities by creating a path to permanent residence for skilled foreign workers who want to work and live in one of the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot participating communities.

The 11 RNIP communities are:

• North Bay (Ont.),
• Sudbury (Ont.),
• Timmins, (Ont.),
• Sault Ste. Marie (Ont.),
• Thunder Bay (Ont.),
• Brandon (Man.),
• Altona/Rhineland (Man.),
• Moose Jaw (Sask.),
• Claresholm (Alta.),
• West Kootenay (BC) and
• Vernon (BC)

There are 4 steps to applying for permanent residence under this Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot program:

1. Check that you meet both
   1. IRCC eligibility requirements and
   2. the community-specific requirements.
2. Find an eligible job with an employer in one of the participating communities.
3. Once you have a job offer, submit your application for recommendation to the community.
4. If a community recommends you, apply for permanent residence.

Each community will also have its own

• additional eligibility requirements
• job search process
• community recommendation application process

This information will be available on each participating community’s website:

Upcoming changes to the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot :

• expansion of geographic boundaries of the following participating communities: North Bay (Ont.), Sudbury (Ont.), Timmins (Ont.), Thunder Bay (Ont.), Moose Jaw (Sask.), West Kootenay (BC) and Vernon (BC) such that more employers are able to participate
• expansion of the range of job offers available to candidates in the health care and trades sector
• expansion of the RNIP program to August 2024 when the pilot comes to an end allowing communities to participate for a longer period
• helping community partners provide greater support to candidates and employers
• reducing the amount of settlement funds participants are required to have
• strengthening program integrity

According to Fraser’s personal position, RNIP is working and it could potentially become a permanent source of newcomers to rural and northern communities.

Fraser said that the key markers the Canadian government looks for when making a program permanent is if it’s working and whether or not it be expanded or shifted to make sure the needs of local communities are met.

There is already interest in Northern Ontario to have the RNIP as a permanent program.

In Timmins, early childhood educators are one of the top occupations that people are applying for.

The Bucket Shop in Timmins has seen successful in hiring newcomers.   Jamieson Pouw, the business optimization lead of The Bucket Shop said they’ve brought in six qualified workers from outside of Canada so far.  so far. Eight more people will be arriving in the coming months.

While the Bucket Shop used an independent company to source the workers, he said RNIP has given Timmins a high profile.

Even with the sourcing workers from outside of Canada, he said The Bucket Shop has a shortfall of about 20 welders right now.

For the mining sector overall, he said the shortfall is about 3,000 workers.

“When you look at the mining forecast for growth and if we scale our growth to the mining sector, we’ll have a shortage of 20, 40 and 60 people if we don’t address it immediately,” he said.

The Bucket Shop is a Timmins, Ontario based bucket repair and manufacturing facility that produces their own TBS HiPER brand line of cast lip and heel assemblies.

The Bucket Shop are always looking for talented trades people. Whether you are entry level or an experienced trades person, The Bucket Shop may have a spot for you on their team.

They are currently seeking field welders, millwrights and pipe welders. Competitive wages offered. Some camp and in town work required. Send resume to Hannah Morin or use the form on this page.

As of June 30, 2022, 1,130 newcomers had arrived in RNIP communities, helping address labour shortages in key sectors, such as health care, hospitality and food services, retail, manufacturing and transportation.

IRCC estimates that an average of 125 newcomers and their family members could be welcomed into each of the participating communities, every year.

There is a maximum of 2,750 principal applicants, plus family members, whose applications can be accepted for processing under RNIP, in any given year.