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Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (SOR/2002-227)

Regulations are current to 2024-03-06 and last amended on 2024-02-29. Previous Versions

PART 6Economic Classes (continued)

DIVISION 2Business Immigrants

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

  •  (1) The definitions in this subsection apply in this Division.

    agent

    agent[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    allocation period

    allocation period[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    approved fund

    approved fund[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    business experience

    business experience[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    debt obligation

    debt obligation[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    entrepreneur

    entrepreneur[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    entrepreneur selected by a province

    entrepreneur selected by a province[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    former Regulations

    former Regulations has the same meaning as in subsection 316(1). (ancient règlement)

    full-time job equivalent

    full-time job equivalent[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    fund

    fund[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    investment

    investment[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    investor

    investor[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    investor selected by a province

    investor selected by a province[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    language skill area

    language skill area means speaking, oral comprehension, reading or writing. (habileté langagière)

    minimum net worth

    minimum net worth[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    net assets

    net assets[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    net income

    net income[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    net worth

    net worth[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    percentage of equity

    percentage of equity[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    provincial allocation

    provincial allocation[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    qualifying business

    qualifying business[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    qualifying Canadian business

    qualifying Canadian business[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    relevant experience

    relevant experience, in respect of

    • (a) a self-employed person, other than a self-employed person selected by a province, means a minimum of two years of experience, during the period beginning five years before the date of application for a permanent resident visa and ending on the day a determination is made in respect of the application, consisting of

      • (i) in respect of cultural activities,

        • (A) two one-year periods of experience in self-employment in cultural activities,

        • (B) two one-year periods of experience in participation at a world class level in cultural activities, or

        • (C) a combination of a one-year period of experience described in clause (A) and a one-year period of experience described in clause (B),

      • (ii) in respect of athletics,

        • (A) two one-year periods of experience in self-employment in athletics,

        • (B) two one-year periods of experience in participation at a world class level in athletics, or

        • (C) a combination of a one-year period of experience described in clause (A) and a one-year period of experience described in clause (B), and

      • (iii) in respect of the purchase and management of a farm, two one-year periods of experience in the management of a farm; and

    • (b) a self-employed person selected by a province, has the meaning provided by the laws of the province. (expérience utile)

    self-employed person

    self-employed person means a foreign national who has relevant experience and has the intention and ability to be self-employed in Canada and to make a significant contribution to specified economic activities in Canada. (travailleur autonome)

    self-employed person selected by a province

    self-employed person selected by a province[Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

    specified economic activities

    specified economic activities, in respect of

    • (a) a self-employed person, other than a self-employed person selected by a province, means cultural activities, athletics or the purchase and management of a farm; and

    • (b) a self-employed person selected by a province, has the meaning provided by the laws of the province. (activités économiques déterminées)

  • (2) and (3) [Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 4]

  • SOR/2003-383, s. 4
  • SOR/2004-167, s. 31
  • SOR/2010-218, s. 1
  • SOR/2011-124, s. 1
  • SOR/2012-274, s. 15
  • SOR/2016-316, s. 4

General

Marginal note:Artificial transactions

 For the purposes of this Division, an applicant in the self-employed persons class or an applicant in the start-up business class is not considered to have met the applicable requirements of this Division if the fulfillment of those requirements is based on one or more transactions that were entered into primarily for the purpose of acquiring a status or privilege under the Act rather than

  • (a) in the case of an applicant in the self-employed class, for the purpose of self-employment; and

  • (b) in the case of an applicant in the start-up business class, for the purpose of engaging in the business activity for which a commitment referred to in paragraph 98.01(2)(a) was intended.

  • SOR/2016-316, s. 5
  • SOR/2018-72, s. 2

Marginal note:Permanent resident status

 A foreign national who is an accompanying family member of a person who makes an application as a member of the Quebec investor class, the Quebec entrepreneur class, the start-up business class, the self-employed persons class or the Quebec self-employed persons class shall become a permanent resident if, following an examination, it is established that

  • (a) the person who made the application has become a permanent resident; and

  • (b) the foreign national is not inadmissible.

  • SOR/2018-72, s. 2

Quebec Investor Class

Marginal note:Class

  •  (1) For the purposes of subsection 12(2) of the Act, the Quebec investor class is prescribed as a class of persons who may become permanent residents on the basis of their ability to become economically established in Canada.

  • Marginal note:Member of class

    (2) A foreign national is a member of the Quebec investor class if they

    • (a) intend to reside in Quebec; and

    • (b) are named in a Certificat de sélection du Québec issued by Quebec.

  • SOR/2016-316, s. 5

 [Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 5]

 [Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 5]

 [Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 5]

 [Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 5]

 [Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 5]

 [Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 5]

Quebec Entrepreneur Class

Marginal note:Class

  •  (1) For the purposes of subsection 12(2) of the Act, the Quebec entrepreneur class is prescribed as a class of persons who may become permanent residents on the basis of their ability to become economically established in Canada.

  • Marginal note:Member of class

    (2) A foreign national is a member of the Quebec entrepreneur class if they

    • (a) intend to reside in Quebec; and

    • (b) are named in a Certificat de sélection du Québec issued by Quebec.

  • SOR/2016-316, s. 6

 [Repealed, SOR/2016-316, s. 6]

Start-up Business Class

Marginal note:Class

  •  (1) For the purposes of subsection 12(2) of the Act, the start-up business class is prescribed as a class of persons who may become permanent residents on the basis of their ability to become economically established in Canada, who meet the requirements of subsection (2) and who intend to reside in a province other than Quebec.

  • Marginal note:Member of class

    (2) A foreign national is a member of the start-up business class if

    • (a) they have obtained a commitment that is made by one or more entities designated under subsection 98.03(1), that is less than six months old on the date on which their application for a permanent resident visa is made and that meets the requirements of section 98.04;

    • (b) they have submitted the results of a language test that is approved under subsection 102.3(4), which results must be provided by an organization or institution that is designated under that subsection, be less than two years old on the date on which their application for a permanent resident visa is made and indicate that the foreign national has met at least benchmark level 5 in either official language for all four language skill areas, as set out in the Canadian Language Benchmarks or the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens, as applicable;

    • (c) they have, excluding any investment made by a designated entity into their business, transferable and available funds unencumbered by debts or other obligations of an amount that is equal to one half of the amount identified, in the most recent edition of the publication concerning low income cut-offs published annually by Statistics Canada under the Statistics Act, for urban areas of residence of 500,000 persons or more, as the minimum amount of before-tax annual income that is necessary to support a group of persons equal in number to the total number of the applicant and their family members; and

    • (d) they have started a qualifying business within the meaning of section 98.06.

  • Marginal note:Size

    (3) No more than five applicants are to be considered members of the start-up business class in respect of the same business.

  • SOR/2018-72, s. 3

Marginal note:Agreements with organizations

  •  (1) The Minister may enter into an agreement with an organization to provide for any matter related to the start-up business class, including

    • (a) the making of recommendations and the provision of advice to the Minister on the designation of an entity and on the revocation of those designations;

    • (b) the establishment of criteria, standards of conduct and best practices for the making of commitments or the performance of other activities related to the start-up business class by an entity;

    • (c) the making of recommendations and the provision of advice to the Minister on the operation of these Regulations with respect to the start-up business class;

    • (d) the establishment of peer review panels referred to in section 98.09; and

    • (e) the submission of reports to the Minister on the activities of designated entities.

  • Marginal note:Requirements

    (2) In order to exercise the functions referred to in paragraphs (1)(a), (b), (d) and (e), the organization must have expertise in relation to the type of entity in question, namely,

    • (a) business incubators;

    • (b) angel investor groups; or

    • (c) venture capital funds.

  • Marginal note:Conditions

    (3) An organization may exercise the functions referred to in subsection (1) only when the following conditions apply:

    • (a) the organization is in compliance with the agreement and the agreement remains in force;

    • (b) subject to subsections 98.12(2) and 98.13(4), the organization complies with requirements imposed under subsection 98.12(1) and paragraphs 98.13(2)(b), (c), and (f) and requests made under subsection 98.13(3);

    • (c) the organization is in compliance with these Regulations; and

    • (d) the organization has expertise in relation to at least one of the entity types referred to in paragraphs (2)(a) to (c).

  • SOR/2018-72, s. 3

Marginal note:Designation

  •  (1) The Minister must designate the entities referred to in subsection 98.01(2) according to the following categories:

    • (a) business incubators;

    • (b) angel investor groups; and

    • (c) venture capital funds.

  • Marginal note:Requirements

    (2) The Minister may only designate an entity if

    • (a) it is recognized for its expertise in assessing the potential for and assisting in the success of start-up business opportunities in Canada; and

    • (b) it has the ability to assess the potential for and assist in the success of start-up business opportunities in Canada.

  • Marginal note:Conditions

    (3) A designated entity must respect the following conditions:

    • (a) it must continue to meet the requirements of subsection (2);

    • (b) it must enter only into commitments that respect these Regulations;

    • (c) it must provide the Minister upon request with information on its activities related to the start-up business class, including information on foreign nationals with whom it has made commitments and the businesses referred to in those commitments;

    • (d) it must, subject to subsections 98.12(2) and 98.13(4), comply with requirements imposed under subsection 98.12(1) and paragraphs 98.13(2)(b), (c) and (f) and requests made under subsection 98.13(3);

    • (e) it must comply with the terms of its commitments and with these Regulations; and

    • (f) it must comply with any federal or provincial law or regulation relevant to the service it provides.

  • Marginal note:Suspension

    (4) If there is reason to suspect that an entity does not meet the conditions or has submitted false, misleading or inaccurate information to the Minister, the Minister may

    • (a) suspend the entity’s ability to make commitments; and

    • (b) refuse to consider applications associated with commitments made by that entity.

  • Marginal note:Duration

    (5) An action taken under subsection (4) comes into force on the day on which the Minister issues a notice of the action to the entity and remains in effect until the earlier of the day on which the situation is resolved and the day that is nine months after the day on which the notice is issued.

  • Marginal note:Revocation

    (6) If there are reasonable grounds to believe that an entity does not meet the conditions set out in subsection (3) or has submitted false, misleading or inaccurate information to the Minister, the Minister may revoke the entity’s designation.

  • Marginal note:Public notice

    (7) The Minister must publish on the Department’s website a list of all entities that are designated and those that are suspended under subsection (4).

  • SOR/2018-72, s. 3
 

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