Investors and Business Persons

Canada provides a rich entrepreneurial environment and welcomes anyone who wants to come to the country to establish a business or invest in the economy. The objective of the Business Visa is to attract businesspersons with sufficient experience and assets to contribute to Canada's strong and prosperous economy.

This visa encourages investors, entrepreneurs and self-employed persons to choose Canada as a place to invest, or start a business. Canada's business visas are beneficial for both newcomers and the Canadian economy. Newcomers can prosper in Canada's competitive business environment, and Canada gains employment opportunities for its workers.

You will have several important privileges as a Business Visa holder, including the right to invest and manage your business as you see fit, access to the North American business market, and health benefits for your family members.

Business Immigration
Canada provides a rich entrepreneurial environment and welcomes anyone who wants to come to the country to establish a business or invest in the economy. The objective of the Business Visa is to attract businesspersons with sufficient experience and assets to contribute to Canada's strong and prosperous economy.

This visa encourages investors, entrepreneurs and self-employed persons to choose Canada as a place to invest, or start a business. Canada's business visas are beneficial for both newcomers and the Canadian economy. Newcomers can prosper in Canada's competitive business environment, and Canada gains employment opportunities for its workers. You will have several important privileges as a Business Visa holder, including the right to invest and manage your business as you see fit, access to the North American business market, and health benefits for your family members.

There are 4 classes of Business Immigration. Business immigrants are people who can invest in, or start businesses in Canada. and are expected to support the development of a strong and prosperous Canadian economy. The business immigration programs seek to attract people experienced in business to Canada. Business immigrants are selected based on their ability to become economically established in Canada.

Business Classes:

• Investor Class
• Entrepreneurial Class
• Self Employed Class
• Provincial Nominee Class

There are defined Business Immigration Centers from where the application can be made by the applicants. BLISS can help you file your application under one of the categories.

Fill out the FREE ASSESSMENT to check your eligibility


Investor Class
As an investor, you must make a prescribed investment of CDN $400,000. This investment is placed with the Receiver General of Canada. (a secured Canadian Government fund). Participating provinces then use your investment to create jobs and help their economies grow. Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will return your investment to you, without interest, in approximately five years after you become a permanent resident.

If you do not have liquid funds, you can also finance your investment. To finance such funds you need to pay about CAN $130,000 towards interest payment, upfront to the financial institution for financing. Canada Immigration office has agreements with a number of financial institutions, all of which are members of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), to facilitate the financing of your investment.

"Investor" means a foreign national who:

has business experience;
has a legally obtained net worth of at least $800,000; and
indicates in writing to an officer that they intend to make or have made an investment.

Entrepreneurial Class
The Entrepreneur Program seeks to attract experienced persons that will own and actively manage businesses in Canada that will contribute to the economy and create jobs. Entrepreneurs must demonstrate business experience, a minimum net worth of CDN $300,000 and are subject to conditions upon arrival in Canada. However, under some provincial nominee programs, the net worth and eligibility criteria is much relaxed.

When you immigrate to Canada as an entrepreneur, you must have the intention and the ability to control a percentage of equity of a qualifying Canadian business. You must provide active and ongoing management of the qualifying Canadian business. Your business must create at least one new full-time job for a Canadian citizen or permanent resident. You must meet these requirements within three years of becoming a permanent resident.

"Entrepreneur" means a foreign national who:

Has business experience;
Has a legally obtained minimum net worth; and
Provides a written statement to an officer that he / she will be

Before your immigrant visa is issued, your are required signing a statement that you intend and will be able to meet the conditions of permanent residence.

Investors and entrepreneurs must first meet their respective definitions and then obtain a minimum number of points as per the required assessment:

Qualifiers	Points
Business experience	35
Age	10
Education	25
English/French fluency	24
Business exploration trip to Canada within five years of application	6
Participation in joint federal-provincial business immigration initiative	6

Self-Employed Class (Farmers, Artists and Athletes)
Self-employed persons must have the intention and ability to create their own employment. They are expected to contribute to the cultural or athletic life of Canada. They may create their own employment by purchasing and managing a farm in Canada. Under this class farmers, artists and athletes who have played at international level can be considered. There is no amount of investment, which is envisaged, but the applicant must have sufficient funds to be self-employed and settle in Canada on the basis of their skills and business experience.

As a self-employed person, you must have relevant experience in cultural activities, athletics or farm management. You must also have the intention and ability to establish a business that will, at a minimum, create employment for yourself. You must make a significant contribution to cultural activities or athletics or purchase and manage a farm in Canada.

No immigration conditions are imposed on this class. You must have enough money to support yourself and your family members after you arrive in Canada.

Provincial Nominee Business Class
These are applicants who have a specific skills or business which is in high demand for a particular Province and are nominated because of their specific skill under a Provincial Nomination agreement between the Province and the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. Our company can assess you to make your application under the Provincial Business programmes where the net worth must be more than $250,000 or more to be eligible under one of the provincial business immigration programmes.

The processing times under the provincial programmes are much faster as compared to the Federal Business Immigration.

Individual Provinces are responsible for issuing nomination certificates. If you are successful in convincing a Province that you have a skill or business which is in high demand for that particular Province, the Province will issue you a certificate, provided that you meet all other statutory and admissibility requirements of Citizenship and Immigration Canada and that you can become economically established. You will then be issued an Immigrant Visa for entry into Canada.

The requirements and procedures for the Provincial Nominee Programs differ from Province to Province depending upon the needs and experience.

BLISS will automatically assess you for the Provincial Nominee Program whether you apply under the skilled worker category or the business category.

Some the provinces are:

• Manitoba
• New Brunswick
• Saskatchewan
• British Columbia
• Nova Scotia
• Prince and Edward Island

Bliss can help file your case under the most suitable provincial business immigration programmes depending on your situation and net worth capacity.

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