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Everyone knows about the Canadian Federal Startup Visa Program, but have you ever considered the Provincial Startup Visa program? Although it’s not exactly called the Provincial Startup Visa program, it is packaged and disguised in a way that resembles the Federal stream. In general, the SUV Federal offers a 50/50 chance of approval and gives too much power to the IRCC officers to decide on your application. There is a much brighter future with the “Provincial Startup programs.”
The Provincial Startup Visa business program has a similar process as the Federal Startup Visa program but with a few exceptions and additional steps within the provincial program. As you may know, provincial nominee programs always have additional steps such as nomination & eligibility before it’s sent to the Federal stage for PR and work permit processing by the IRCC.
This is one of our favorite Canadian business immigration programs for 2023 for eligible applicants who don’t mind residing in the province of Alberta.
If you are trying to make up your mind about applying to Canada or UK through the Startup Visa Program, look no further. That’s our specialty here at INGWE Canada. We will guide and support you throughout the endorsement letter or Letter of Support process and the entire immigration process including work visas and permanent residencies. Get a FREE email assessment, click here.
Let’s first review the advantages and disadvantages of this SUV PNP.
1: Low investment amount of $50,000 or higher depending on the location in the province.
2: No minimum net worth requirement (although minimum investment IS required).
3: It allows you to have a Canadian partner (PR or citizen).
4: High PR approval rate compared to the Federal SUV program (since this is a relatively new program and not many applications have been submitted) and it will provide you a Letter of Support for your work permit from the province, under the T13 LMIA exempt program. This also means it has a high work permit approval rate, higher than the Federal SUV program.
The main advantage is that under the SUV program you have to wait for 2.5 years to know if you are refused or approved for a PR. Under the provincial program you will know immediately if your work permit is approved paving the way to run the business for 12 months after which nomination for PR by the province is issued. It's very rare for IRCC to veto this nomination for PR, they only typically intervene to refuse work permits, not PRs.
5: Processing times are much better for work permits and PR compared to the Federal SUV program.
6: If you already have a business inside this province (Alberta) and meet the minimum eligibility criteria (for example under an open or closed work permit in a different program) you can switch over and apply under this SUV Provincial program, and do not need to continue to run the business for 12 months inside the province if you have already done so prior to application (but you do need to continue the business while your PR is under process by the IRCC post-nomination).
7: Less discretion of the IRCC officers when reviewing your work permit and PR applications.
8: The last advantage is that you could technically shift to this program if you are stuck under the Federal SUV program, by obtaining a Letter of Support from the 2 incubators in the province (if you are not already part of their accelerator program) and applying under the Provincial program.
If you’re interested in applying for the Canada Startup Visa, at INGWE we will guide and support you throughout the endorsement letter or Letter of Support process and the entire immigration process, including work visas and Canada PR. Get a FREE email assessment with one of our Business Immigration consultants. Fill out the form, click here.
1: Education requirements are mandatory under the provincial SUV, but not under the Federal SUV program.
2: If you graduated more than 10 years ago from your latest degree, you would not be eligible.
3: Need minimum 6 months work experience as manager, owner, or working with an accelerator or incubator. Unlike the Federal SUV program which officially does not require work experience (but keep in mind IRCC will refuse you if you cannot prove that you can perform the position you have in the SUV such as COO, CEO, CTO and so forth).
4: Cannot apply as a group, but rather as one applicant but with Canadian partners.
5: Minimum investment criteria is required, although it is not documented in the Federal SUV program, it is expected by IRCC.
6: Run the business after arrival with a work permit for 12 months and then be nominated for PR (it’s a direct PR stream, but the PR application will only happen after running the business for 12 months inside the province and being nominated by the PNP office).
7: Geographic restriction to reside & run the business inside the specific province unlike the Federal SUV program which has no geographic restrictions for you setting up and residing in Canada (except for Quebec).
8: A net worth audit may be required to be completed by a designated third party CPA firm. Although this is not 100% mandatory, the PNP office may request you to complete this step after you have been invited to apply.
Here are the steps to go through for this SUV Provincial Nominee Program:
1: Due diligence by the designated organization in Alberta based on your business plan.
2: Letter of Support (Letter of Recommendation).
3: Apply EOI to AAIP with the Letter of Support/Recommendation from the designated organization (Refer to this link to start your AAIP expression of interest: - Hint: You need to answer ‘yes’ to all questions except for the city center/location of the business startup).
4: Receive an invitation to apply from the province.
5: Submit your documents and conduct the interview & net worth audit that must be performed by a third party designated CPA firm.
6: Sign the Business Performance Agreement with the PNP office after approval of your application.
7: Letter of Support for your work permit issued under T13 allowing you to apply to the IRCC to receive the authorization to enter Canada and start working on your Startup business (if you are not already inside Canada).
8: Complete the post-landing report and post 12-month report to be nominated for the PR application.
9: Receive the final Provincial Nomination certificate under this program to apply for your PR application from inside Canada.
1: Designated Organization Fees (Varied based on each incubator, can range from $18,000 to $40,000 paid directly to the organization).
2: Provincial Nominee Application Processing Fee of $3,500 (non-refundable).
3: If you are requested to complete a net worth audit, a fee of $4,500 or higher may be charged by a designated CPA firm (***Hint: declare the minimum investment amount required to gain eligibility and points as there is no minimum net worth requirement beyond these amounts. This will keep your net worth audit simple and perhaps the PNP office will not request you to complete it).
4: IRCC processing fees for work permit(s) and PR applications of the main applicant and dependents (refer to this link for updated fees)
At INGWE we are EXPERTS in the Canada and UK Startup Visa. We will guide and support you throughout the endorsement letter or Letter of Support process and the entire immigration process including work visas and permanent residencies. Get a FREE email assessment with us, fill out our form, click here.
These are the mandatory requirements:
* At least 6 months of work experience in management, owning a business or working with incubators or accelerators on your business).
* Any post-secondary degree (a 2-year diploma is also accepted).
* The post-secondary degree should have been completed no more than 10 years from the application to the EOI.
* Business Plan for your Startup.
* Pitch Deck for your Startup.
* Letter of Support from a designated organization under the SUV Provincial Nominee Program.
* Language proficiency exam score of CLB 5 (refer to the equivalent chart in English or French using this link).
* The Startup business should be somehow connected to the industries of technology, aerospace, financial services, energy, agriculture, tourism, life sciences, or pharmaceuticals.
* Your ownership should be minimum 34% of the business if it’s planned to be established in the major cities in Alberta such as Calgary or Edmonton, or minimum 51% ownership if it’s planned to be established and run in the rural regions of Alberta. If you do not own 100% of your Startup, the rest of the shareholders can only be Canadian PR or citizens (not foreigners).
* Minimum investment in the business of $100,000 for the regional centres such as Calgary or Edmonton, or $50,000 for rural areas. The investment must be either from the applicant, or their spouse or common-law partner, or from a Canadian financial institution, venture capital or angel investor.
* In addition to the minimum investment funds, the required minimum settlement funds as per the IRCC is also mandatory, click here to find out more.
* The amount of settlement funds required in Table 1 below is based on the number of family members (including main applicant), and the population size of the community where the applicant intends to establish the Startup business. The amount stated in the chart are the funds needed for at least the next 6 months to settle and support the main applicant and their family (eligible dependents) while establishing the Startup business venture in Alberta.
Table 1. Settlement funds requirement for Foreign Graduate Entrepreneur Stream in Canadian dollars.
The next step is to calculate your provincial points before entering the Startup Provincial Nominee Pool which is a maximum of 200 points. Here are the criteria for the provincial points matrix:
A: Language proficiency: Minimum 10 points for CLB 5 up to max 30 points for CLB 8 or higher in either French or English.
B: Education: Minimum 5 points for a Bachelor’s degree or a 2-year college diploma up to a maximum of 15 points for a PhD. You can claim additional bonus points if you are a graduate within the last 5 years, graduated from science , technology, engineering or Mathematics subjects (which we call STEM subjects) or even business subjects.
C: Business management or ownership experience: Minimum 5 points for the bare minimum of 6 months experience up to a maximum of 20 points for over 2 years experience. Bonus points can be claimed if you were the owner of the business during this period for which you are claiming work experience(15 points).
D: Business Plan: Your business plan will be graded from a total maximum score of 40. You can expect to receive 30 points or more for a well written business plan (Refer to the business plan guidelines of the province, click here). It should not be more than 10 pages and must cover the following topics:
* Business overview.
* Company and ownership structure
* Management structure.
* Operations.
* Staffing.
* Investment.
* Market analysis and risk management.
* Governing laws, regulations, and licensing.
***We recommend working with the incubator inside the province to hire a business plan writer to increase your chances of approval and have proper research completed.
E: Investment amount: Proving the ability to invest the minimum funds of either $50,000 or $100,000 depending on the proposed location of the business – having funds available prior to coming to Canada. This amount should be invested during the first 12 months of starting the business inside the province with a work permit. You can claim 5 points for bare minimum investment up to a maximum of 25 points for either $150,000 or $200,000 depending on your destination region in the province.
F: Additional investment: Bonus points for additional proposed investment after starting the business in the province. Anywhere from 5 to 20 bonus points which is not a mandatory requirement.
G: Job creation: This is not a mandatory requirement but can gain bonus points if your proposed business proposes to create Canadian jobs for at least 6 months in the province. Bonus points of 5 points for 1 job up to a maximum of 15 points for 3 or more Canadian jobs.
If you’re thinking about immigrating whether permanently or temporarily, through Skilled Immigration, LMIA exempt work permits, Free Trade Agreements work permits, Study Visas, Investment, or Family sponsorship - you’re at the right place!
At INGWE, we are experts in Business Immigration. If you’re interested in immigrating with your family through business, you’re at the right place. Get a FREE email assessment with us, and we will support you throughout the process. Fill out our form, click here.
We can guarantee only 1 main point; you will know what to expect, the entire process is clearly laid out for you, and all the risks identified including costs. Our legal agreements are based on milestone payments which are linked directly to your application progression. We do not take 100% advance payment for your Canadian immigration application. There will be no surprises in terms of expenses or costs, just results!
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