- country
- Canada
- eligibility
- Federal permanent-residence pathway for immigrant entrepreneurs with a qualifying business and a letter of support from a designated organization. Each applicant must hold 10% or more of the total voting rights, and applicants plus the designated organization together must hold more than 50% of total voting rights. Requires CLB 5 in English or French and proof of settlement funds (minimum CAD $15,263 for a single applicant). Investment thresholds: minimum CAD $200,000 from a designated Canadian venture capital fund, OR CAD $75,000 from a designated angel investor group; no financial investment required for a business-incubator endorsement but applicant must be accepted into a designated Canadian business incubator program. Applicants are not required to invest their own money.
- processing notes
- Applications submitted via the online Permanent Residence (PR) Portal. Reported wide processing variability; July 2024 measures capped intake (max 10 applications per designated organization per year) and prioritized applicants backed by Canadian capital. Federal government has signaled a new targeted entrepreneur pilot later in 2026 prioritizing CleanTech, AI and Life Sciences.
- quota
- Program PAUSED as of January 1, 2026: IRCC stopped accepting new commitment certificates from designated organizations after December 31, 2025, and stopped accepting new applications as of December 19, 2025. Applicants holding a valid 2025 commitment certificate must apply by June 30, 2026. IRCC is not currently designating new organizations (existing designated organizations continue to participate). No published numerical quota beyond overall PR admission targets.