In 1970 two different kinds of continued fractions for \(p\)-adic numbers were given by Schneider (for the first one) and by Ruban (for the second one). The author has been interested in the Ruban continued fractions denoted by R.C.F. A finite R.C.F. always represents a rational number. But examples show a lot of rational numbers which do not admit a finite R.C.F. Here the author just characterizes these infinite R.C.F. that represent a rational number: they are periodic, of period 1, and after a certain rank all the terms are in the shape \(1/(p-1)p^{-1}+(p-1)+\cdot \cdot \cdot\). (The author first recalls that Schneider continued fractions which represent the rational numbers were characterized by P. Bundschuh in Elem. Math. 32, 36–40 (1977; Zbl 0344.10017).