According to the most recent data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the Start-Up Visa (SUV) program welcomes foreign nationals who are beginning enterprises in Canada in more numbers than before the COVID-19 pandemic started.
465 new permanent residents entered Canada through the SUV in the first nine months of this year, putting the program on track to welcome 620 entrepreneurs by the end of the year based on the current trends.
Compared to the 385 immigrants who entered Canada through the SUV in 2021, a record-breaking year for immigration to Canada, it would be 235 more new permanent residents or more than 61%.
Additionally, it would represent 105 additional permanent residents, or 20.4%, more than the 515 company owners who used the SUV to establish operations in Canada in 2019, the final full year before the pandemic.
The SUV experiences significant percentage variations from month to month due to its low number of arrivals, but over the past eight years, its popularity has been steadily rising.
There were only 55 new permanent residents in Canada in 2015 thanks to the SUV. More than 11 times as many people are anticipated to be permitted to open businesses here this year.
However, not all provinces utilize this corporate immigration program to the same extent. The SUV is not used at all in two provinces, Quebec and Saskatchewan, as well as in any of the three territories.
No immigrant businessperson has launched a company in any of the four Atlantic Canadian provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, or New Brunswick so far this year.
All SUV immigrants to Canada this year have come from four provinces.
This year, only four Canadian provinces have benefited from the SUV program’s gravy train, boosting their economy and adding jobs as a result of immigrant entrepreneurs moving to Canada and obtaining permanent residency.
The province of Ontario in central Canada is on track to get 287 new permanent citizens through the SUV this year based on the present pattern. That is an increase of 162 new permanent residents, or 129.6%, over the 125 firms that were established through the program last year.
In the Prairies, Manitoba is experiencing lower numbers, which is understandable given its smaller population but is also demonstrating a large increase in its usage of the SUV to draw in immigrant business owners. Through the initiative, the province is on schedule to receive 40 new permanent residents this year.
That represents a 100% increase, or 20 new permanent residents, over the 20 people who moved to the province via the SUV the previous year.
Next door, Alberta is probably going to complete the year with a little decrease in the annual number of new permanent residents through the SUV, down five new permanent residents, or 20%, from last year’s tally, with only 20.
British Columbia is expected to end the year with nearly as many new permanent residents through the SUV as Ontario on the west coast.
On the basis of the present pattern, British Columbia should receive 274 new permanent residents through the SUV by the end of the year. That would increase the number of permanent residents in the province by 74, or 37%, compared to the 200 who arrived through that program the previous year.
Compared to federal worker programs like the Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) and Federal Skilled Trade (FST), provincial nominee programs (PNP), or regional economic development programs like the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP) or Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP), the SUV program produces significantly fewer new permanent residents overall.
Candidates can initially enter Canada with a work permit by using the SUV
The monthly variations in the number of new permanent residents under the SUV can appear inflated when analyzed in percentage terms because of these smaller numbers.
In January of this year, the SUV only received 35 new permanent inhabitants. In February, it reached 40, and then in March, it reached 60.
Then, in April, there were just 20 new arrivals per month by the SUV. The figures improved the next month, reaching 60 in May and then 70 in June.
The SUV made it possible for Canada to accept 45 immigrant business owners in July. That monthly figure increased to 55 in August before falling back to 45 in September.
Before their application for permanent residence is finalized, candidates applying under the SUV program may first enter Canada on a work permit funded by their designated Canadian investor.
The IRCC now projects a 31-month processing time for SUV applications for permanent residency in Canada.
Three categories of private-sector investors are taken into account by the SUV:
angel investors, venture capital funds, and business incubators.
Venture Capital Funds with Designated Status Must Invest $200,000
The eligible business must receive confirmation that at least $200,000 has been invested by a certified venture capital fund. Candidates may also be accepted with at least two $200,000 commitments from certain venture capital funds.
The qualified business must receive at least $75,000 from a designated angel investor group. Candidates may also be accepted with two or more $75,000 investments from angel investor groups.
The applicant must be accepted into the program of a designated business incubator. The responsibility for creating a workable business plan that satisfies the due diligence specifications of these government-approved designated organizations rests with the immigrant investor.
In Canada’s start-up ecosystem, investing and business development are typically done with the assistance of business consultants under the supervision of knowledgeable corporate business immigration lawyers who can make sure a start business’s concept complies with all industry-required terms and conditions.
The following criteria, which are mandated by the government, must be met by candidates for the SUV:
a company that qualifies;
a letter of support and commitment from a recognized organization;
enough readily available, transportable, and unencumbered settlement cash to cover settlement costs;
a level 5 on the Canadian Language Benchmark in either English or French. To achieve the due diligence standards required by designated entities, higher levels of English are sometimes necessary.
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