New report shows more nurses registered in Ontario in 2026

TORONTO, Aug. 27, 2026 /CNW/ -- The College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO), the regulator for nurses in Ontario, today released its Nursing Statistics Report 2026, showing continued growth in Ontario's nursing supply. A total of 197,020 nurses renewed their registration in 2026, representing a net gain of 6,124 nurses, or 3.2% increase from the previous year. 

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The report also examines changes in the types of nurses (RN, RPN, NP) within Ontario's nursing supply, how many nurses are coming to Ontario from elsewhere in Canada, nurses holding concurrent registration in multiple provinces or territories, and where nurses report working.

The latest trends in nursing

Ontario graduates remain the main source of growth. 
The increase in nurses registered in Ontario came mostly from graduates of Ontario nursing programs. In 2025, over 62% of new nurses in Ontario were Ontario graduates.

New Internationally educated nurse (IEN) registrations reached an all-time high between 2022-2024. The latest figures, however, may indicate that new IEN registrations are returning to previous historical levels.   

The rate of nurses leaving the profession has not significantly changed in recent years. The rate of nurses who do not renew their registration, or who enter the Non-Practising Class, has been steady for several years.

More Canadian nurses are coming to Ontario. 
A total of 1,886 nurses from elsewhere in Canada registered in Ontario in 2025, more than a four-fold increase since 2021. The report attributes this increase to recent labour mobility legislation that makes it easier for Canadian nurses to register in Ontario.

The number of nurses employed is up. 
The number of nurses employed in nursing in Ontario increased by 3.3%.

The report also shows that a growing proportion of some new nurses (nurses renewing for the first time, who have been registered for one year or less) report that they are looking for work within nursing. This is particularly true for RNs and IENs.  

• For new RNs, the proportion increased from 17% in 2025 to 22.5% in 2026.  
• For new IENs: 22% in 2025, increasing to 31.4% in 2026.  
• For the second year in a row, a smaller portion of new nurses are reporting full-time positions: down 8.3% for new RNs and down 5.8% for new RPNs in 2026. 

Where nurses report working is evolving. 
Hospitals accounted for 41.9% of all RPN positions in 2026, up from 39.7% in 2021. Over the same period, the proportion of RPN positions in long-term care decreased from 33.3% to 30.3%.  

Among first-year internationally educated RNs, the share of positions in long-term care rose substantially from 29.6% in 2021 to 46.3% in 2026. The share of positions in hospitals declined from 53.1% to 30.4%. 

Data you can trust
The data in this report comes from the information nurses provide when they first register with CNO and every year during Annual Membership Renewal, making CNO the most comprehensive source of province-wide nursing registration and employment statistics.

Anyone, including nurses and members of the public, can access this information through our self-serve dashboard. We share this information with the broader health system to support health human resource planning, decision-making and research.

"This data enables our system partners, including the government and nurses' employers, to make data-informed decisions about the health care system," says Niels Thakkar, Manager of Analytics & Research at CNO. "Our findings can inform meaningful and sustainable improvements in the health care system and ultimately support safe nursing care for patients."    

Read the Nursing Statistics Report 2026 at cno.org.

About the College of Nurses of Ontario
CNO's purpose is to protect the public by promoting safe nursing practice. We do this by setting the requirements for becoming a nurse in Ontario; informing nurses of their accountabilities and what the public can expect from nurses; responding to concerns about nurses' conduct, competence and health; and ensuring nurses engage in continuous quality improvement throughout their careers. CNO fosters a safe and trustworthy health care environment for all. As Ontario's nursing regulator and the authoritative source of province-wide nursing data, CNO provides oversight and insights that support public protection and understanding of the nursing profession. To learn more, visit cno.org.

SOURCE College of Nurses of Ontario

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