Canada curtails its start-up visa program, less than a 1000 applications will be accepted this year

MUMBAI: In July last year, Canada sought to make its start-up visa program more attractive, but an announcement on Monday night, will put an end to the dreams of aspiring immigrant entrepreneurs. In fact, several of them, who had got initial funding or got support from business incubators may find themselves at a loose end.
From April 30, Canada has capped the number of permanent residence applications that will be accepted for processing each year, to those associated with no more than 10 startups per designated organisation.According to a release issued by the Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the reason behind this move is to reduce the backlog and improve processing times of the applications filed.
Put simply, currently there are approximately 82 such designated organisations comprising venture capital funds (VCFs), angel investors and business incubators. Thus, it means that not more than 820 applications will be accepted (assuming that the number of such organisations remains constant).
In addition, the announcement states that priority processing will be available for entrepreneurs whose start-up is supported by Canadian capital or by a business incubator that is a member of Canada’s Tech Network.
The startup visa (SUV) program offers a clear path to permanent residence and does not require the entrepreneur-applicants to invest any of their funds or have a minimum net worth, but they need to show adequate funds to support themselves and their family on arrival in Canada. Support from one or more of the designated partners, viz: venture capital funds (VCF), angel investor groups (who need to invest at least Canadian dollars (CAD) 200,00 and 75,000 respectively) or acceptance into a program by a business incubator is a must.
The immigration level targets under this program were set at 5,000 for the current year and 6,000 for 2025 and 2026. Josh Schachnow, an immigration lawyer and founder of a tech fir, points out, “But now they’re being reduced to basically nothing (with less than 100 designated entities, it means less than 1,000 applications through SUV for the entire year).”
Many in the entrepreneur-funding sector and immigration experts, view this to be a bad move. In 2023, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) had ranked Canada as the most attractive destination for startup founders. Since the program began in 2013, about 900 entrepreneurs have become permanent residents through this category, representing the launch of more than 300 start-ups. Incidentally, the US does not have a specific visa with a pathway to citizenship for immigrant entrepreneurs.
In addition, Canada’s immigration minister, Marc Miller announced a full pause on application intake for the Self-­Employed Persons Program to focus on processing applications from the inventory, starting April 30, 2024. The Self-Employed Persons Program provides a pathway to permanent residence for people with notable experience in art, culture, recreation or sports and who will contribute to Canada’s cultural vitality. Due to the high number of applications submitted for this program, processing times have increased to beyond four years. While the pause is in place, IRCC will continue finalizing applications from the backlog while assessing options for reforming the program and ensuring its integrity, states a release.