Akaar Immigration Solutions

Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot

The Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) is community-driven, which means participating communities take the lead in attracting new immigrants and matching them with local job vacancies, promoting a welcoming community, and connecting newcomers to established members of the community and local settlement services. 

Participatingcommunities :

  • North Bay, Ontario
  • Sudbury, Ontario
  • Timmins, Ontario
  • Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
  • Thunder Bay, Ontario
  • Brandon, Manitoba
  • Altona/Rhineland, Manitoba
  • Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan
  • Claresholm, Alberta
  • Vernon, British Columbia
  • West Kootenay (Trail, Castlegar, Rossland, Nelson), British Columbia

 

Eligibility Requirements

In order to be considered for the RNIP, potential candidates must meet the following federal criteria as well as requirements established by the participating community where they are hoping to settle.

The federal criteria are:

  • Have a recommendation from one of the designated communities
  • Have one year of continuous work experience in the past three years (a minimum of 1,560 hours)
    OR
  • Have graduated from a publicly funded post-secondary institution in the recommending community
  • Have a genuine job offer to work in one of the designated communities
  • Meet the language threshold for the NOC skill type/level of the job being offered
  • Have sufficient funds to settle and support themselves and their family in the community
  • Have an intention to live in the community

Recommendations are made by a designated community economic development organization.

Work Experience

Eligible candidates must have:

  • a minimum of 1,560 hours (one year) of paid work experience in the past three years;
    • the work experience must be in one occupation but can be with different employers
    • the work experience can be obtained in Canada or outside Canada
    • the work experience can be accumulated during the 3 years preceding the application, regardless of breaks in employment
    • Self-employed work experience is not eligible

Candidates must have performed the majority of the main duties and all the essential duties listed in the National Occupational Classification (NOC) for their profession as well as the activities listed in the lead statement.

Please note that international students may be exempt from the work experience criteria if they are recent graduates: 

  • from a full-time post-secondary program of a least 2 years, or
  • from a full-time master’s program or higher.

Education

Candidates must have:

  • A Canadian high school diploma or the foreign equivalent;
    • Diplomas obtained outside Canada must have their equivalency confirmed by an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) report from a designated organization.
    • The ECA report must be less than five years old at the time of application

Individuals who have graduated from a post-secondary program in the community that is recommending them are exempt from the work experience requirement if they graduated with:

  • a degree, diploma, certificate or trade or apprenticeship from a post-secondary program of 2 years or more and:
    1. were a full-time student for the entirety of the 2+ years
    2. obtained the credential within 18 months before the application for permanent residence
    3. were in the community for at least 16 months of the last 24 months of study

OR

  • a master’s degree or a PhD and:
    1. were a full-time student for the entirety of the degree
    2. obtained the credential within 18 months before the application for permanent residence
    3. were in the community for the entirety of the degree

Individuals who cannot apply as international students include those who:

  • studied at distance for more than half the program
  • studied English or French for more than half the program
  • received a scholarship or fellowship that requires they return to their home country to apply their studies

Job Offer

Potential candidates must have a genuine, full-time, permanent, job offer in one of the participating communities. The wage must meet the minimum wage listed for that NOC in the Canada Job Bank and the candidates’ previous experience must demonstrate that they can perform the duties of the job offered.

Additionally, the job offer must be of the same skill level or one skill level above or below the NOC that best applies to the candidate’s work experience. Candidates whose NOC is rated skill level D, however, must have a job offer in the same occupation.

Language Requirements

The minimum language requirement is based on the NOC skill type or level that applies to the candidate’s job offer.

The minimum requirements for each NOC skill type/level are as follows. “CLB” stands for Canadian Language Benchmark.

  • NOC 0 and A: Minimum language score of a CLB 6 is required
  • NOC B: Minimum language score of a CLB 5 is required
  • NOC C and D: Minimum language score of a CLB 4 is required