Rural Canada Non-Profits

Detailed information for 2023

The Rural Canada Non-Profits (RCNP) database provides statistical information on non-profit organizations (NPOs) in rural and small town Canada.

Data release - March 13, 2026

• Description
• Data sources and methodology
• Data accuracy

Description

The RCNP database contains operating location-level information on NPOs in rural and small town Canada, including counts, total revenue and total employment.

The RCNP database's statistical unit is the location, which refers to the lowest level of the Business Register (BR) statistical hierarchy. The location, as a statistical unit, is defined as a production unit at a single geographical location at which or from which economic activity is conducted and for which, at a minimum, employment data are available. For more information, please see : https://www23.statcan.gc.ca/imdb/p3Var.pl?Function=Unit&Id=100241.

Data are available by geography (Canada, province or territory, and census subdivision), location type (rural and small town area or functional urban area) and International Classification of Non-Profit Organizations (ICNPO). The ICNPO is derived from the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).

The data are sourced from Statistics Canada's Business Register (BR), a central repository of information on businesses operating in Canada. The BR serves as the principal frame for many Statistics Canada economic statistical programs. It provides consistent and standardized data at multiple levels (enterprise, company, establishment and location) for each reference year.

Reference period: calendar year

Subjects

• Business ownership
• Business performance and ownership
• Rural Canada
• Society and community

Data sources and methodology

Target population

The target population of the RCNP database includes all businesses engaged in non-profit activities in Canada, as identified through administrative data. It covers NPOs that are active for all or part of the reference year and report revenue or employment during that period.

Instrument design

This methodology type does not apply to this statistical program.

Sampling

This methodology type does not apply to this statistical program.

Data sources

Data are collected from other Statistics Canada surveys and/or other sources.

The RCNP database is constructed through the extraction, filtering and consolidation of records from Statistics Canada's BR. For each reference year, data are processed to align with the BR using geographic and industry classification variables. Only organizations identified as active NPOs are included.

Processing steps include the assignment of geographic identifiers, the harmonization of ICNPO activity based on NAICS, the application of location type classifications, the removal of duplicate records, and data cleaning to ensure consistency and quality.

Error detection

Systematic validation procedures are applied to assess data completeness, format integrity and classification accuracy.

Location indicators distinguishing rural and small town areas from functional urban areas are derived from standardized geographic references and verified to ensure alignment with defined classification categories.

Imputation

This methodology type does not apply to this statistical program.

Estimation

This methodology type does not apply to this statistical program.

Quality evaluation

The RCNP database is evaluated for completeness, consistency and alignment with conceptual frameworks.

Efforts are made to ensure the data align conceptually with their intended use. Any anomalies or inconsistencies identified during processing are verified against source data records and, when necessary, adjusted to maintain consistency with the framework of Statistics Canada's BR.

Disclosure control

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information it collects that could identify any person, business or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Various confidentiality rules are applied to all data that are released or published to prevent the publication or disclosure of any information deemed confidential. If necessary, data are suppressed to prevent direct or residual disclosure of identifiable data.

The RCNP database uses the following disclosure control methods:
• Random rounding adjusts count values by randomly rounding either up or down to the nearest multiple of 3.
• A zero count ("0") indicates a rounded value of 1 to 3 (inclusive).
• Due to the random nature of rounding, the sum of individual values may not equal aggregate totals.

Revisions and seasonal adjustment

This methodology type does not apply to this statistical program.

Data accuracy

The RCNP database is sourced from Statistics Canada's BR. For detailed information on data accuracy and quality assurance measures, refer to the Integrated Metadatabase entry for the BR.