By Moustafa Daly
Canada’s immigration minister recently announced the country’s tech talent strategy to attract foreign workers and entrepreneurs to the country.
The strategy opens the door for US H-1B visa holders to relocate to Canada, creates a STEM-specific track, and introduces a fast-tracked process for the existing Start-up Visa Program – specifically its Angel and Venture Capital streams.
“It is too soon to tell the new time frames because the procedure is too recent, but my educated guess would be that it should take an average of 18 to 24 months from file submission to Permanent Residence decision,” says Julien Tétrault, president of Quebec-based JTH Lawyers Inc., which specializes in assisting applicants to the Angel stream, to Uglobal.
As such, entrepreneurs on either stream will save at least a year, as Tétrault explains that such a procedure normally takes up to 37 months on average.
“We’re prioritizing applications that are supported by venture capital, angel investor groups, and business incubators and have capital committed, along with applications that are supported by business incubators who are members of Canada’s Tech Network,” said Canada’s immigration minister Sean Fraser upon announcing the changes.
What are Canada’s Angel and Venture Capital streams?
The Start-up Visa Program has three streams: Incubator, Angel, and Venture Capital. The Incubator stream is the most popular and applicants don’t need to provide proof of investment – just a viable and scalable business idea they plan to launch or scale up in Canada.
The Angel stream, on the other hand, entails a financial commitment by a Canadian Angel Fund to invest at least CAD75,000 ($56,000) in the startup.
Similarly, the Venture Capital stream requires a Canadian Venture Capital to commit to an investment of CAD200,000 ($149,000) in the startup.
When Canadian Angel Funds and VCs commit to finance such amounts in startups, they typically also seek investors with deep pockets to share the risk, explains Tétrault. This makes it more viable for high-net-worth-individuals (HNWI) to “co-invest in the startup for a minority share, and still benefit from getting Permanent Residence through their investment,” he adds.
What Angel Funds in Canada can support Startup Visa applicants?
To be eligible for a Start-up Visa on the Angel stream in Canada, applicants must secure investments from one or more government-designated organizations.
There are eight designated funding groups for Angel stream applicants: Canadian International Angel Investors; Ekagrata Inc.; Golden Triangle Angel Network; Keiretsu Forum Canada; Oak Mason Investments Inc.; TenX Angel Investors Inc.; VANTEC Angel Network Inc.; and York Angel Investors Inc.
Also, applicants must prove proficiency in either English or French to qualify for applying.
“Once Permanent Residence is obtained, access to citizenship is the same as it would be for any immigrant in Canada, which is after 1,095 days (equivalent to three years),” adds Tétrault.
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