NOC 21202: Urban and land use planners

Urban and land use planners develop plans and recommend policies for managing land use, physical facilities and associated services for urban and rural areas and remote regions. They are employed by all levels of government, land developers, engineering and other consulting companies, or may work as private consultants.

Express Entry eligibility

• Skilled work (TEER 0 to 3): yes, TEER 1.
• Canadian Experience Class: counts as skilled Canadian work (1 year in the last 3 years).
• Federal Skilled Worker Program: counts as skilled work (1 year of continuous work in the last 10 years).
• Federal Skilled Trades Program: not one of the eligible trades.
• High-wage occupation (from November 3, 2026): yes, 1.5× tier.

TEER 1: Occupations that usually need a university degree. Every program has other requirements too, such as language test results and, for FSW, a points test.

Category-based draws

NOC 21202 is not on any of IRCC’s occupation category lists. You can still be invited in general, Canadian Experience Class or other program draws.

Category lists checked on canada.ca on 2026-10-17. IRCC category-based selection

CRS points for work in NOC 21202

With 12+ months of Canadian work here, from November 3, 2026, by years of skilled Canadian work:

See Canadian work points and the median-wage rule.

Main duties

This group performs some or all of the following duties:

• Compile and analyze data on demographic, economic, legal, political, cultural, sociological, physical and other factors affecting land use
• Confer with municipal, provincial and federal authorities, civic leaders, social scientists, lawyers, land developers, the public and special interest groups to formulate and develop land use or community plans
• Prepare and recommend land development concepts and plans for zoning, subdivisions, transportation, public utilities, community facilities, parks, agricultural and other land uses
• Prepare plans for environmental protection, such as wildlife preserves, national and provincial parks, and protection of watersheds
• Present plans to civic, rural and regional authorities and hold public meetings to present plans, proposals or planning studies to the general public and special interest groups
• Review and evaluate proposals for land use and development plans and prepare recommendations
• Process application for land development permits and administer land use plans and zoning by-laws
• Formulate long-range objectives and policies relative to future land use and the protection of the environment
• Supervise and coordinate work of urban planning technicians and technologists.

For Express Entry your duties must match the lead statement and most of the main duties above.

Example job titles

• community and urban planner
• environmental planner
• land use planner
• municipal planner
• park planner
• planner
• recreation planner
• regional planner
• urban planner

Employment requirements

• A bachelor's degree in urban and regional planning, geography, architecture, engineering or a related discipline is required.
• A master's degree in one of these disciplines may be required.
• Membership in the Canadian Institute of Planners is usually required.
• Urban and land use planners are regulated in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Alberta, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, and membership in a provincial planning institute may be required in other provinces.
• Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification is offered by the Canada Green Building Council and may be required by some employers.

Similar jobs with a different code

• 21200Architects
• 20011Architecture and science managers
• 20010Engineering managers
• 21203Land surveyors