BUSINESS IMMIGRATION TO CANADA
Canada's Business Immigration Program was formed to promote economic development of the country by attracting successful business people who have the ability and resources to invest or establish businesses in Canada. The federal, provincial and territorial governments encourage prospective business immigrants to invest in Canada. Over the years, thousands of foreign business people have found Canada to be an excellent place to invest capital and to apply their particular business know-how to Canadian ventures. Business immigrants, who represent nearly 10% of total immigrants, include investors, entrepreneurs and self-employed immigrants. Selection criteria vary for each category.
The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act provides the the foreign national may be selected to come to Canada as a permanent resident as a member of Business Class. Selection of immigrants under this category is made on the basis of the applicant's business experience, net worth, performance of the applicant's business within 5 years prior to making an application and immigrant's ability to successfully establish business inj Canada upon arrival.
Canada offers three classes of business immigrants:
1. Investors;
2. Entrepreneurs;
3. Self-employed persons;
Once the person has chosen under which category he is applying and submitted his or her application, the class of the application can not be changed.
INVESTORS
The Investor Class applicant must have a new worth of at least Can. $ 800,000.00. They are required to make an investment of $ 400,000, paid to the Received general of Canada. The investment is subsequently allocated to participating provinces and territories of Canada. These governments use the funds for job creation and economic development. The full amount of the investment ( without interest) is repaid to the investor after five years. The exact date of the repayment depends on when the amount of $ 400,000.00 is received by the Citizenship and Immigration of Canada. The return of the investment is fully guaranteed by participating provinces and territories.
Under the Canada-Quebec Accord, the Province of Quebec operates its own immigrant investor program. All investors of Quebec must intend to live in Quebec and must be selected by Quebec. In common with the Federal program, investors in Quebec program must invest
$ 400,000.00 and have a net worth of $ 800,000.00.
There are no conditions imposed on Canadian Permanent Resident Visa of the applicants, who received the right of residency under Investor's category.
ENTREPRENEURS
Entrepreneurs must have business experience. They must have managed a qualifying business and controlled a percentage of equity of a qualifying business for at least two years in the period beginning five years before the date of the application.
The entrepreneur class of immigrants must have a net worth of at least Can $ 300,000.00. Additionally, they must have an intention and the ability to:
1. Control a percentage of equity of a qualifying Canadian business equal to or greater than 33 1/5;
2. Provide active and ongoing management of the qualifying Canadian business;
3. Create at least one full-time job equivalent for one or more Canadian citizens of permanent residents other than the entrepreneur applicant
and their family members;
At the time of arrival in Canada as permanent residents' of this country, entrepreneurs are required to sign a declaration stating that they intend and will be able to meet the conditions of their permanent residence. In case such conditions are not met during the period 2 years after they have become permanent residents of Canada, the immigrant's visa of the entrepreneur and his family members might be canceled.
Features of the Entrepreneur Program
- a minimum net worth requirement of $ 300,000;
- a requirement that within three years of becoming a permanent resident, the entrepreneur must have controlled and have actively managed a qualifying Canadian business for a period of at least one year, and that the business must have created employment opportunities for at least one Canadian citizen or permanent resident, other then the immigrant's family member;
- all family members are admitted under the same condition as the principal applicant; the conditions aee removed once the entrepreneur satisfies the conditions;
Under the Canada-Quebec Accord, the province of Quebec operates its own immigrant entrepreneur program. All entrepreneurs in the Quebec program must intend to live in Quebec and must be selected by Quebec. In common with the federal program, entrepreneurs in the Quebec province must have a net worth of $ 300,00,
SELF-EMPLOYED
The group of Self-employed immigrants has been created for those foreign nationals who have the intention and the ability to be self-employed in Canada and make a significant contribution to specified economic activities in Canada. Usually, a self-employed person, selected by the federal program, is a person who has been engaged in cultural activities, athletic or has an experience in managing a farm and is prepared to purchase a farm and provide it's management.
Self-employed people must have relevant experience, for which the points are awarded for the period within the five-years immediately preceding the date of the application.
Feature of the Self-Employed person program: no immigrant conditions are imposed on this class of business immigrants