Investor Visa

The country has a long tradition of immigration and an elaborate system to evaluate and admit new residents. Citizenship is available after three years of residence (and 183 days minimum physical presence during each of the three calendar years). The Canadian passport is one of the best travel documents in the world.

You can establish residence by applying for Canadian permanent residence in one the following categories:

• Investors
• Entrepreneurs
• Self-employed persons
• Skilled workers and professionals

Start-up Visa Program Requirements
Business requirements	Once a designated organization commits to your business:
	all applicants (up to 5 people can apply as owners) must each hold at least 10% of the voting rights attached to all outstanding shares of the business; and
	together with the designated organization, they must hold more than 50% of the voting rights attached to all outstanding shares of the business.
	Once you receive permanent residence, you must make sure that:
	you play an active role in the ongoing management of your business while living in Canada;
	the essential operations of the business must partly take place in Canada; and
	your business is incorporated in Canada.
Letter of support	You must get a letter of support from a designated organization that proves they are willing to invest in and support your start-up. These organizations include:
	Venture Capital Firms ($200,000 investment);
	Angel Investor Groups ($75,000 investment); and
	Business Incubators.
Language requirements	You must score a minimum of Canadian Language Benchmark level 5 in speaking, reading, listening, and writing in either English or French.
Settlement money	Because the Canadian government doesn’t give financial support to this “investor” visa, you will have to be able to prove that you have enough money to settle you and your family in Canada.

Overview of the Canada Investor Immigration Program

The immigrant investor programs were created by the Canadian government to attract wealthy businesspeople and their capital to Canada. Investors and their immediate family can gain permanent residence in Canada by satisfying the following five government selection criteria:

1. You must demonstrate relevant business experience, as defined under the regulations. In essence, you must have previously managed or operated a qualified business for at least two out of five years preceding your application.
2. You and your spouse must have legally obtained a personal net worth of a minimum of CAD 2 million.
3. Your entire family must complete and pass Canada’s medical and security evaluations.
4. You must invest CAD 1.2 million for a period of five years at no interest (0%) under one of the two available immigrant investor programs. The investment is government-guaranteed and will be repaid in full at the end of the investment period.
5. You will also be assessed on age, language, education, experience, and time spent in Quebec on a points-based system.

Advantages of Canadian residence-by-investment

• One of the highest standards of living in the world
• Affordable, high quality education
• Multicultural, tolerant, and vibrant cities
• Excellent place to do business, with access to the entire North American market
• Eligibility to apply for citizenship following three years of the five-year residence period

Procedures and time frame of the Canada Investor Immigration Program

In order to be considered for the residence programs, an application must be submitted to the relevant government office. At this point, a file reference number is issued, allowing applicants to check the status of their applications. Once approval has been given, if you are from a nonvisa exempt country, you will be required to submit your passport to the local Canadian embassy or consulate, and the permanent resident visa will be issued. 

Once you arrive in Canada with the visa, you are granted permanent residence. Application processing times differ depending on which category they fall under and where the application was submitted. The Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada website gives a breakdown of estimated processing times. Note that in order to maintain permanent resident status, physical presence for two out of five years in Canada is required.