With the Owner/Operator LMIAs No More, what are the alternatives for business owners to immigrate to Canada?
It’s official. As of April 1, 2021, the Temporary Foreign Worker Program will remove the special processing instructions for the owner/operator category. These applications will now be assessed according to the normal procedures. This means employers will be required to advertise and document their recruitment efforts for owner/operator LMIAs.
These changes were made as part of a regular policy review to ensure that the TFWP continues to meet its intended purpose and is only used when qualified Canadians or permanent residents are not available.
Business owners still wanting to apply to the LMIA stream have until April 1, 2021, to do so. Despite the end of this awesome category, there are still options available to business owners. Here are our favorites:
Significant Benefit Work Permits: Entrepreneurs -C11
This work permit is best for entrepreneurs who have a unique and viable business or project in Canada and control at least 50% of the business. Businesses will need to demonstrate they can offer a “significant contribution” to Canada that current residents cannot provide.
So, what exactly does an economic benefit mean? In line with the rest of this category, the wording is vague, and therefore the assessment becomes very discretionary, more so than usual. Some examples of economic benefit could include a business that has new technology, product, or service, establishing intellectual property, proprietary technology/ business process, or increasing exports from Canada. Additionally, Officers can also review the key sectors of a province, such as IT, or Financial (in Ontario), and the amount of investment, location of the business and job creation to determine whether an economic benefit would result.
Professionals will also show personal accomplishments and public recognition in their industry as well as a demand for the product or service. Another key consideration is demonstrating sufficient funds to support the operations in Canada as outlined in the business plan.
Work permits may be issued for an initial two-year period. Family members can also obtain corresponding work and study permits to join the principal applicant in Canada.
Intra-company Transferee (ICT) -T24, T44, T51, C12
Perhaps one of the more commonly known categories, the ICT program, is a winner among business owners; why? Available to all nationalities, entrepreneurs that already have an existing business outside of Canada and looking to run an affiliate, branch or subsidiary in Canada can leverage the start-up work permit through the ICT program.
To apply, entrepreneurs must incorporate their company in Canada and back the expansion by a detailed business plan. Applicants must also have been working at the foreign company for at least 12 months in the past three years. While there is no minimum financial requirement, the foreign company must show sufficient funds to support the new operations in Canada.
In most cases, a one-year work permit will be issued for new businesses and start-ups; for established companies, initial permits can be issued for two years. Family members can join the main applicant, with a spouse eligible to obtain an open work permit and children(s) study permits.
Pathway to Permanent Residence
One of the benefits of the owner/operator category was the ability to receive an additional 50 or 200 points (dependent on the NOC code) under the popular express entry program for arranged employment (also referred to as job offer points) upon approval of the LMIA. While LMIA exempt permits don’t offer the same immediacy on these points, applicants with a closed LMIA exempt work permit (such as those listed above) can still obtain arranged employment points after one year of working at the Canadian company.
Together with the job offer points, applicants will need to meet the other eligibility requirements for express entry. Learn More About Express Entry