DALTUS

All provincial programs designed for businessmen are usually very similar, except the Quebec province. The main requirements include having a business management experience, having a personal net worth of certain level, establishing or buying a business in the selected province and hiring Canadians.

The amount of personal net worth varies between the provinces. For example, the New Brunswick Business Nominee Program requires at least $300,000 CAD personal net worth. However, in reality an applicant needs to demonstrate much higher net worth in order to succeed.

Due to a huge demand for such programs and a high competition, the number of applications is usually much higher than the allowed yearly intake limit. Therefore, the provinces can pick the applicants who are able to invest more funds in the provincial economy and hire more local employees.

Another issue that should be considered is the types of eligible businesses that the province would support. The provinces are mostly interested in attracting the high-tech and innovative projects with good potentials and benefits for the province.

Each province has its own set of requirements to potential applicants. However, they all can be divided in two major groups. One of them includes the provinces that offer a permanent resident status right away, as soon as the immigration process is completed. But they usually request to pay a certain amount as a government deposit (Conditionally Refundable Deposit), and impose certain conditions that should be met within 2 years.

The other group includes the provinces that do not issue a permanent resident status after the immigration process is completed. Instead they give you a work visa (work permit) for 2 years, during which you should fulfill your investment obligations and provide employment to local workers. After that, if the province is satisfied with the results, you obtain the permanent resident status in Canada.

Despite the obvious attractiveness, the provincial business programs have their own challenges. The rules and procedures can be changed anytime, which happens quite often. Also the provinces have very limited quotas for the number of applicants that they can accept; therefore, the competition is really high.