TR to PR 2026: Canada's Permanent Residence Pathway for 33,000 Workers

If you have not applied yet, what do you do?

This is the point most coverage gets wrong: the initiative is not an open door for new applicants. No portal exists to rush, and no documents need to be raced in. If you do not already have a PR application in one of the qualifying programs, your route in is to qualify for and apply to the underlying program first. The right program depends on where you live and work, your occupation, and whether you already hold a qualifying job offer.

• Working in a smaller community with a qualifying job offer? Look at the Provincial Nominee Program, the Rural Community Immigration Pilot, or the Atlantic Immigration Program.
• In caregiving or agri-food work? The caregiver pilots and the Agri-Food Pilot are the doors that feed this initiative.
• Strong profile but living in a big city? Express Entry is likely your faster path. Check your Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score with our CRS calculator first.

A Go Far Global RCIC can tell you which underlying program fits your situation and timeline.

How do you apply for this pathway in 2026?

You do not apply to the initiative directly, because it has no separate application or fee. You apply to one of the underlying programs, and IRCC then accelerates your file if it qualifies. In practice, the steps are: confirm you meet the eligibility of a feeder program (a PNP stream, the Rural Community Immigration Pilot, the Atlantic Immigration Program, a caregiver pilot, or, for files accepted before May 14, 2025, the Agri-Food Pilot); secure the required job offer or nomination; submit a complete permanent-residence application with language results, work-experience proof, and education credentials; then keep your temporary status valid while IRCC processes the file. If you already submitted through one of these programs, there is nothing extra to file.

What are the requirements and documents for this pathway?

No separate document checklist exists for the initiative. Your documents are the ones the underlying program requires. Across the feeder programs, applicants generally need a valid passport, a qualifying job offer or provincial nomination, language-test results (IELTS or CELPIP), proof of qualifying Canadian or related work experience, an education credential or an Educational Credential Assessment for foreign education, and proof of settlement funds. Keep certified translations ready for any non-English or non-French documents. Because each program sets its own thresholds, the exact requirements depend on which stream you apply through, so confirm the checklist for your specific program before you file.

Why are the big cities excluded from this initiative?

Because eligibility runs through programs built for smaller communities, workers in the Census Metropolitan Areas do not benefit from this initiative. IRCC describes the initiative as focused on "filling labour gaps, strengthening key sectors of the economy and supporting the economic vitality of Canada's smaller communities." Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and the other major metros fall outside that scope. See the full breakdown of the excluded cities.

The most-affected excluded metros include Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Hamilton, Ottawa-Gatineau, Montreal, Laval, Quebec City, Halifax, Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, Surrey, Burnaby, and Victoria. If you live in one of these cities, the initiative will not accelerate anything for you. Your realistic routes are a PNP stream tied to a smaller community, or Express Entry.

How is this pathway different from the 2021 program?

Most of the confusion comes from comparing 2026 to 2021. They are very different. The 2021 program opened on a single day, May 6, 2021, as a true public intake of 90,000 spots across healthcare, essential workers, and international graduates, first-come first-served. The portal crashed under the rush, and the streams filled within hours. The 2026 In-Canada Workers Initiative is the opposite: it moves existing applications faster instead of opening a new line.

• No public portal and no first-come race. IRCC processes existing applications.
• No new application and no new fee. You already applied through your original program.
• Smaller and steadier: up to 33,000 over two years, drawn from inventory, versus 90,000 in a day.
• Community-based, not graduate-based: it runs through PNP, AIP, and the rural, francophone, caregiver, and agri-food pilots, with no international-graduate stream.

If you read elsewhere that you must "prepare documents for the May 2026 portal," that advice describes the 2021 model. It is not what IRCC implemented in 2026.

How does this pathway fit with Express Entry and PNP?

Since the initiative only accelerates existing applications, your real decision is which permanent-residence program to be in. If your Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score is competitive, Express Entry may still be faster, regardless of where you live. If you are rooted in a smaller community, a PNP or pilot application is what puts you in line for accelerated processing. The table below shows how the two routes compare.

If your CRS score is competitive, Express Entry may still be faster. If you are rooted in a smaller community, a PNP or pilot application is what puts you in line for prioritized processing.

When does the TR to PR pathway open, and what is the processing time?

There is no "opening date" to wait for, because the initiative is not a new intake that opens or closes. IRCC began accelerating eligible files in spring 2026 and is working through them across 2026 and 2027. About 3,600 of the roughly 20,000 grants planned for 2026 had been issued by early May 2026, with the rest expected through the year and the balance of the 33,000 in 2027. IRCC has not published a separate service standard for the initiative; it processes eligible files under their original program's stream, with the point being to move them ahead of the standard queue. See IRCC processing times by program for current standard timelines. If your work permit is approaching expiry while your PR application is in progress, ask a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) about a Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP) to keep your status valid.

Is there a TR to PR update you should act on right now?

The most useful update is that nothing about the program requires you to act if you already have a qualifying application in progress. The mechanics have not changed since spring 2026: no portal, no new fee, no document race. The two things worth doing now are confirming that your existing PR application sits in a feeder program (PNP, AIP, RCIP, FCIP, a caregiver pilot, or the Agri-Food Pilot before its May 14, 2025 cutoff), and keeping your temporary status valid while IRCC processes the file. If you do not yet have an application in, the actionable step is to qualify for and apply to a feeder program, since that is the only way into the accelerated queue.

How does Go Far Global help with this pathway?

Go Far Global's RCIC-licensed consultants help temporary workers get into and through the programs that feed this accelerated pathway. We confirm whether your case qualifies, build the strongest application, and protect your status while IRCC processes the file. Only an RCIC in good standing with the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC), a lawyer in good standing with a provincial law society, or a Quebec notary may give full paid immigration advice in Canada, so make sure your representative is authorized before you pay anyone.

• Eligibility check. We confirm whether your existing PR application qualifies for prioritization, or which underlying program fits if you have not applied.
• Application strategy. For workers in smaller communities, we build the strongest provincial or pilot application to get you in line.
• Document audit. Full review against IRCC standards, including certified translations.
• Status maintenance. BOWP and renewals so your status holds during processing.
• Procedural fairness response. If IRCC issues a fairness letter or refusal, we draft and file the response on time.

Book a free consultation to map your route.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an application portal for this pathway? No. IRCC did not open a new public portal. The program accelerates permanent-residence applications that eligible workers already submitted through programs like the PNP, the Atlantic Immigration Program, the rural and francophone community pilots, the caregiver pilots, and the Agri-Food Pilot. If you qualify, you file nothing new.

Do I need to apply or submit documents for the program? Only if you have not yet applied to a qualifying program. The measure itself requires no action, because IRCC processes eligible applications from its existing inventory. If you have not applied for PR at all, your step is to qualify for and apply to an underlying program such as a PNP stream, a community pilot, a caregiver pilot, or the Agri-Food Pilot.

How many people will get permanent residence this way? Up to 33,000 over 2026 and 2027, with a 2026 target of about 20,000. IRCC reported roughly 3,600 grants by early May 2026.

Who is eligible? Workers who already have a PR application in progress through PNP, AIP, RCIP, FCIP, a caregiver pilot, or the Agri-Food Pilot, and who are living and working in a smaller Canadian community outside a Census Metropolitan Area.

Are Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver excluded? Yes. The measure runs through programs built for smaller communities, so workers in the Census Metropolitan Areas do not benefit. See the excluded-cities breakdown.

Is the pathway coming back or opening again in 2026? It is already active as the In-Canada Workers measure, but not as the 2021-style public portal many people are waiting for. IRCC is accelerating existing applications now, and no date has been announced for a new open intake.

I work in a big city. What are my options? The measure will not accelerate anything for you. Look at Express Entry if your CRS score is competitive, or a PNP stream tied to a smaller community.

Is this the same as the 2021 program? No. The 2021 program was a one-day public portal for 90,000 applicants. The 2026 measure is an internal acceleration of existing applications, with no portal and no first-come race.

My work permit is expiring. Can I still benefit? If you have an eligible PR application in progress, ask an RCIC about a Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP) to maintain your status while IRCC processes your file.

Sources

• Understanding the one-time In-Canada Workers Initiative (IRCC)
• Supplementary Information for the 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan (IRCC)
• Open work permits under the temporary resident to permanent resident pathway (IRCC)
• Provincial Nominee Program (IRCC)
• Atlantic Immigration Program (IRCC)
• Rural and Francophone Community immigration pilots (IRCC)
• Bridging open work permit for permanent residence applicants (IRCC)

Updated June 9, 2026 by Rami Mamar, RCIC with Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) practice rights (License #R515110). Reviewed against IRCC's May 2026 In-Canada Workers Initiative guidance and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). For case-specific advice, book a consultation.