Step 1: Get a full-time offer from a designated employer

RCIP pathway · Step 1 of 5 · Updated 2026-08-06· Compiled from CEDC's official pages and FAQ

In one line: get a full-time offer from a company on the designated-employer list. Nothing else in this pilot starts without it.

Everything downstream depends on this step. But not any job counts — all five conditions have to hold at once:

• Full-time: at least 30 hours a week.
• Non-seasonal, with no fixed end date (indeterminate): summer jobs and fixed-term contracts don't qualify.
• The role is on this year's priority occupation list: 25 NOC codes across six sectors for 2026. Look up what a given NOC scores in the points calculator.
• Genuine: CEDC verifies the offer and may interview both you and the employer.
• The employer is on the CEDC designated list: 407 are usable in 2026 — search them below.

Check the quotas first

• Retail salesperson (NOC 64100): all 24 spots for 2026 were used up in June, and the occupation is closed to new applications.
• Security guard (64410) is capped at 24 for 2026; cooks and bakers are capped at 1 per employer; administrative roles at 1–2 depending on headcount.
• If you have been with the employer for less than 6 months, they must also show they tried to recruit a Canadian citizen or permanent resident first.

Employer not on the list? Designation is free — send them this

The list isn't closed. Any qualifying local business can apply, and designation is a one-time step— after that they can recommend candidate after candidate. If you already work somewhere that isn't designated (or have an offer in hand), hand your boss the following:

• Business eligibility: operating for at least 2 years under the same management inside the Thunder Bay CMA, at least 75% of the work done locally, in one of the six priority sectors, with a full-time permanent position to fill, and in good standing under Ontario's employment-standards and health-and-safety law.
• The process: email [email protected] (name, title, business, contact details) → CEDC confirms eligibility → complete the two free training modules (onboarding + intercultural competence) → submit the designation application → receive a Confirmation of Designation and get listed publicly.
• No fee at any point: designation costs nothing — which is exactly why anyone selling “a designation” or “an offer” is running a scam.

Compiled by the lakebbs editorial team from CEDC's official pages and the RCIP FAQ (as of July 2026). Informational navigation only, not immigration legal advice; policy changes frequently, so verify with the official sources before you act.