Business Visas & Immigration to Canada

The Business Immigration Category has been designed to attract experienced business persons to Canada. In particular, successful candidates are people who can invest in, start businesses in Canada and generate revenues and employment for Canadians. The Canada's Business Immigration Program also seeks to develop new commercial opportunities and to improve access to growing foreign markets by "importing" people who are familiar with those markets and their special requirements and customs. Foreign individuals with business/managerial experience and relatively high net-worth may apply for Canadian permanent resident status under one of the following three sub-categories.

These years, the government target is to welcome between 9,500 to 10,500 business migrants. In order to foster development of an strong and prosperous economic environment, the Canadian government seeks business persons with sufficient business experience and the necessary assets, because Canada has a robust economy and is resource rich with a strong and skilled labor force. Of course, an additional advantage to conducting business in Canada is the relative proximity of the United States, which is the largest trading partner of Canada and whose population are huge consumers of goods and services produced in and emanating from Canada.

The Business Migration Program is divided into four main categories:

Investor: A foreign individual who has managerial experience and who chooses to make a secured passive investment and has a net worth of at least CAD$800,000. A successful senior who have the intention and ability to invest in Canada for a term of 5 years.
This category is ideal for those who want to immigrate to Canada but who do not wish to be obligated to engage in any type of business/employment activity upon their arrival. The ever-increasing popularity of the Immigrant Investor Program among new immigrants to Canada is self-evident.

Entrepreneur: A foreign individual who is willing and able to establish, invest in or acquire a business in Canada which generates revenues and employment.
Entrepreneurs must demonstrate business experience and a minimum net worth of 300,000 CAD. An Entrepreneur's net worth need not have been created by his/her own endeavors but, rather, must have been legally obtained (i.e. inheritance, gift, etc.). Assets of an Entrepreneur's spouse/common-law partner/same-sex partner are also included when assessing net worth.
Unlike Investors, the only way in which an Entrepreneur can demonstrate business experience is through management and control of a qualifying business of sufficient size.

Self-Employed: Aimed at persons with relevant experience in world-class athletics or cultural activities or with farm management experience, who have the intention and ability to become self-employed in Canada.
Only immigrants who have been self-employed in cultural activities or in athletics, or have farm management experience are eligible within the class. Other business immigrants with more generic business abilities will be required either to meet the Entrepreneur or Investor definitions, to qualify as skilled workers, or to be selected as provincial nominees.