Immigration Blog about US & Canadian Immigration matters.

What is the Business Class?

Business class is the third stream of permanent residence immigration under the economic class. Business class consists of three categories of people:

• Entrepreneurs

If an individual is interested in opening up a business in Canada, there are ways to do so. People might have successful businesses overseas and wish to expand. Others just maybe want to start fresh in a new country or have a good idea for that specific location. Canada has a program called a Start- up Visa. This visa targets the type of entrepreneur who can build a business that has the ability to compete on a global scale and creates new jobs. Many people are drawn to Canada due to its strong economy, low taxes and business costs, excellence in research and innovation, and top quality of life.

Eligibility:

• Before an individual applies for the Start-up Visa, he/she must gain the support of a designated Canadian organization.
• The applicant must also obtain a Letter of Support (this is proof of their support) from this organization.
• The individual must meet the language requirements in order to be approved. The individual must be able to communicate in either French or English and will be tested on four general areas: speaking, reading, writing, and listening. In each category the minimum requirement level is a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 5.
• The language test must be completed abroad
• If you do not meet language requirements, you will be refused.
• If the language assessment is not included, then your application will not be processed.
• The applicant must have sufficient funds.
• The government will not provide financial support to immigrants coming with a Start-up Visa.
• Your funds must be sufficient enough to support yourself and your dependants upon arrival to Canada. The amount of money you need will depend on the number of dependants you have. It can be anywhere from $11,931 to $31,574

• Minimum investment:
• You must secure a minimum investment of $200,000 if the investment comes from a designated Canadian venture capital fund.
• You must secure a minimum investment of $75,000 if the investment comes from a designated Canadian angel investor group.

If those requirements are met, your application would then be reviewed on CIC’s standard admissibility criteria, including health, criminality and security.