Newcomer Resources
Everything you need to settle in, in plain language.
Short, friendly guides for the questions every newcomer to Northern Ontario asks. Each one ends with a link to the official source so you can take the next step.
Start here
The first six things to take care of
- Apply for OHIP Get your Ontario health card.
- Get a SIN Your Social Insurance Number.
- Find housing Renting and buying in Northern Ontario.
- Register kids in school Public schools, ESL, and registration.
- Open a bank account Banking basics for newcomers.
- Find a family doctor Walk-ins, family practice, and Health Care Connect.
Browse by need
Where do you want to start?
- Get Settled Apply for OHIP Plain-language guide to getting your Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) card as a newcomer to Northern Ontario. What to bring, where to apply, and what to do while you wait.
- Get Settled Get a SIN How to register or apply for a Social Insurance Number (SIN) in Canada. Free online, in person, or by mail — what to bring and where to go in Northern Ontario.
- Get Settled Find housing How to find an apartment in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, and Northern Ontario. Your rights as a tenant, average rents, and what landlords can (and can't) ask.
- Get Settled Flights and arriving at Northern airports Connect from Toronto or Montreal to Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay, and Timmins. What to pack for CBSA, customs, and the YYZ–YTZ trap.
- Get Settled US land border: Duluth and Sault Michigan
- Get Settled Multicultural groceries, halal food & markets African, Caribbean, South Asian, and halal groceries in Thunder Bay, plus food boxes, campus food banks, and international aisles in Northern Ontario.
- Get Settled Open a bank account Banking basics for newcomers to Canada. Your legal rights, what ID you need, the Big 5 newcomer programs, building credit, and sending money home.
- Get Settled Find a family doctor Find a family doctor accepting new patients near you in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay, or Timmins. Health Care Connect for 2026.
- Get Settled Free settlement services Find free settlement help in Thunder Bay, Kenora, Sudbury and across Northern Ontario. Document help, language classes, employment counsellors, and ride-along support.
- Get Settled Mental health support Free confidential help for newcomers in Northern Ontario: crisis lines, walk-in counselling, and support for loneliness, homesickness, and stigma.
- Get Settled Affordable phone & internet Internet from $10/month and cheap phone plans for low-income households in Northern Ontario, including maximum CCB families and seniors on maximum GIS.
- Get Settled Get an Ontario driver's licence How to get an Ontario driver's licence as a newcomer: immigration-status rules, foreign-licence exchange, G1/G2/G graduated licensing, road tests, and driving schools in Northern Ontario.
- Get Settled Free tax help (CVITP) Plain-language guide to filing your taxes for free through Canada's CVITP, the benefits newcomers most often miss (CCB, GST/HST credit, Ontario Trillium Benefit), and how to find a clinic in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins, or North Bay.
- Get Settled Money management & building credit How to build Canadian credit from zero, budget in CAD, get free non-profit debt help, and avoid scams targeting newcomers in Northern Ontario.
- Get Settled Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) What the Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) provides for Government-Assisted Refugees in Northern Ontario: income support, start-up costs, orientation, and life-skills training. Local providers and next steps.
- Get Settled Free legal help Legal Aid Ontario, free community legal clinics, Pro Bono hotline, refugee law support — and how to spot fake 'ghost' immigration consultants.
- Get Settled Domestic violence support Free shelters, multilingual crisis lines, and immigration protection for newcomers experiencing domestic violence in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, and across Northern Ontario.
- Get Settled Document translation & certification When you need a certified translation, where to find an ATIO-certified translator in Northern Ontario, and the free and low-cost options newcomers actually use for IRCC, schools, and courts.
- Get Working Free employment services Free job-search help for newcomers in Northern Ontario. Employment Ontario services, Better Jobs Ontario funding (up to $28,000), Job Bank, Canadian-style resumes, wage subsidies, and where to walk in for help.
- Get Working Workers' rights in Ontario Your rights at work in Ontario: minimum wage, overtime, holidays, vacation, termination, health and safety, discrimination — and where to get free help if you're being mistreated.
- Get Working Get your credentials recognised Step-by-step guide for newcomers in Northern Ontario: how to get foreign degrees evaluated, professional licences recognised, and how to fund retraining with Windmill Microlending.
- Get Working Start a business Step-by-step guide for newcomer entrepreneurs in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, and Northern Ontario. BDC newcomer loans, Futurpreneur, Windmill Microlending, and NOHFC funding.
- Get Working Adult education & GED equivalency Free pathways for newcomer adults in Northern Ontario: Get SET (formerly LBS) literacy and numeracy, OSSD as a mature student, the CAEC test (replaces GED), and college ACE programs at Confederation, Cambrian, Sault, Northern, and Canadore.
- Get Working Rural Community Immigration Pilot (RCIP) RCIP is a community-recommended permanent residency pathway for newcomers with a job offer in rural Northern Ontario. Learn eligibility, the 5-step process, and the 5 Ontario communities.
- Get Working Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) Guide to the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) for Northern Ontario. How OINP nomination leads to Ontario PR — streams, eligibility, fees, and provincial nominee tips for permanent residency.
- Raise a Family Register kids in school Register kids for school free in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay, and Timmins. Year-round in 2026, with documents and SWIS help.
- Raise a Family Settlement Workers in Schools (SWIS) Free, confidential IRCC-funded settlement workers based inside Northern Ontario schools — helping newcomer parents and students with registration, ESL placement, and referrals.
- Raise a Family ESL programs for kids Plain-language guide to English Language Learner (ELL) support — ESL, ELD, SWIS workers, what to ask at registration — for newcomer families across Northern Ontario.
- Raise a Family Licensed childcare How to find licensed childcare in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay and Timmins. CWELCC reduced fees, income-tested subsidies, waitlists, and EarlyON drop-ins explained for newcomer parents.
- Raise a Family Apply for the Canada Child Benefit Step-by-step guide to applying for the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) as a newcomer parent in Northern Ontario. Forms RC66 and RC66SCH, the 18-month rule, Ontario Child Benefit, and pitfalls to avoid.
- Raise a Family Programs for newcomer youth Mentorship, micro-grants, after-school clubs, and youth programs newcomer kids and teens (ages 5–30) can access in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, and across Northern Ontario.
- Find Community Services en français Services en français — settlement help, French schools, healthcare, and the Francophone Community Immigration Pilot for newcomers in Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Timmins, and across Northern Ontario.
- Find Community Newcomer mentorship & Canada Connects Free programs that pair newcomers with established Canadians for language practice, cultural orientation, and professional networking — NOMC's Canada Connects, TBMA, SMFAA, and TRIEC.
- Find Community Anti-racism resources Where to report hate incidents, find advocacy and counselling, and access free educational toolkits from CRRF, OHRC, and the Ontario Anti-Racism Directorate.
- Find Community Volunteering near you Where to find volunteer opportunities in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay, and Timmins. Build Canadian experience, get references, expand your network. Volunteer Canada, Charity Village, 211, settlement orgs, CVITP.
- Find Community Sports & recreation How to find free and low-cost sports, gyms, kids' programs, and outdoor recreation in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay, and Timmins. Jumpstart, KidSport, YMCA, and city subsidies explained.
- Find Community Surviving your first Northern Ontario winter Plain-language survival guide for newcomers facing their first Northern Ontario winter. Layering, frostbite, hypothermia, winter driving, heating bills, mental health, and where to get free winter coats.
- Find Community Settling in a smaller Northern Ontario town Newcomer guide to settling in rural Northern Ontario — Kenora, Dryden, Sioux Lookout, Hearst, Marathon and other smaller towns. Settlement services, schools, housing, and PR pathways.
- Find Community Festivals & community events in Northern Ontario A year-round map of Northern Ontario festivals — winter carnivals, summer waterfront concerts, harvest fairs, pow wows, and multicultural events from Thunder Bay to North Bay.
- Find Community Free things to do in Thunder Bay Free things to do in Thunder Bay this weekend (2026): Boulevard Lake, Hillcrest Park, and library passes. Seasonal free swims — confirm hours.
- Find Community Free things to do in Sudbury Free things to do in Sudbury this weekend (2026): Bell Park, Ramsey Lake, trails, and the library Discover Pass. Confirm swim times before you go.
- Find Community Free things to do in Sault Ste. Marie Free things to do in Sault Ste. Marie this weekend (2026): Hub Trail, Bellevue Park, Whitefish Island, and a free library card. Confirm dates.
- Find Community Free things to do in North Bay Free things to do in North Bay this weekend (2026): Lake Nipissing, Laurier Woods, Duchesnay Falls, and a free library card. Confirm hours.
- Find Community Free things to do in Timmins Free things to do in Timmins this weekend (2026): Hollinger Park, Gillies Lake, Riverside Park, and free library programs. Confirm event times.
- Find Community Free things to do in Kenora Free things to do in Kenora this weekend (2026): Lake of the Woods, Tunnel Island trails, and a free library card. Summer ferry — confirm dates.
- Find Community Cultural & faith communities in the North Coming soon
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