Welcome. Biindigen. Bienvenue.

A welcoming community of 78,000, Sault Ste. Marie provides a mix of urban and natural amenities that offer an affordable, active lifestyle in the heart of the Great Lakes. This pilot is designed to support economic development in our community and strengthen our local business's capacity to develop and retain a skilled workforce. This pilot is being managed by the Sault Ste. Marie Economic Development Corporation.  Thank you for your interest in the Rural Community Immigration Pilot (RCIP) in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.

The Rural Community Immigration Pilot offers a pathway to permanent residence (PR) to skilled workers who want to work and settle in our rural community. On January 31, 2025, the City announced its selection as one of 14 communities across Canada to participate in the new Rural Community Immigration Pilot (RCIP), a program that replaces the former Rural Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP). This initiative will help strengthen the local workforce by providing businesses with greater capacity to recruit and retain skilled talent.

Canada launches Rural and Francophone Community Immigration pilots - Canada.ca

Boundary Map for Sault Ste. Marie

With the on going changes in immigration, the feedback from the survey conducted in 2025 and the continued limitations on the amount of allocations and sectors we are able to support community wide. Taking into account the  retention rate and high turnover in the Sales and Services Sector shared with us by IRCC and the caps for some of the NOCs. Here are the sectors chosen for the city of Sault Ste. Marie for 2026.

Priority Sectors have been updated for 2026.

Click here

Health

Education, Law and Social Community and Government Services

Business and Finance

Trade, Transport and Equipment Operators

Manufacturing and Utilities

Natural and Applied Sciences

*Recruitment and Labor Market Efforts* 

Has the candidate been working for the company for at least 6 months?

☐ Yes
☐ No

If not, the city will be asking for proof from the employer. The role needs to be posted on a local job board (Welcometossm, Sault Career Center, or Soo Today) and Job Bank for 10 weeks. Please check the recommendation application form as a guideline to assist you.

Employers

• Employers who have either employed or are hiring a Temporary Foreign Worker from the priority NOC list and are an employer under the six priority sectors can participate in the pilot.
• Employers can find the information on our website https://welcometossm.com/rcip-employers/
• If an employer is looking to be designated, download and complete the designation form SSM- EN - RCIP Employer Designation Application Form.

 

Training Links for employers only (Updated link April 28 @12noon)

• EN: https://share.articulate.com/Mp0IMa3NIkGp_qBfWMCAV
• FR: https://share.articulate.com/S-bBIaDmHGQo7iPWNs1ZH

Building Welcoming Workplaces Training (Intercultural Competency Training) /Créer un environnement de travail accueillant

• English: ARAISA | Building Welcoming Workplaces
• Français: ARAISA | Créer un environnement de travail accueillant

This is an employer-led program; only designated employers can send in a recommendation application. Once designated, the employer will be listed on our website and given access to send in applications through our web portal.

PLEASE NOTE: It will take six to eight weeks for processing after our office receives a complete applicant recommendation application.