Build, buy or bring a business to Canada. We map your capital, experience and target province against every route that is actually open in 2026, then build the application that fits. No recycled brochures, no programs that closed last year.
Business immigration to Canada changed more between 2025 and 2026 than in the previous decade. Two federal programs closed, and two provinces removed their entrepreneur streams altogether. Before you spend a dollar, it is worth knowing exactly which doors are still open.
IRCC stopped accepting new permanent residence applications on 31 December 2025. A narrow group holding a valid 2025 commitment certificate had until 30 June 2026 to file. That deadline has passed.
Intake stopped on 30 April 2024 and the pause was extended until further notice in December 2025. This was the route for people in cultural activities or athletics.
With the federal routes closed, the provinces and territories are now the main path to permanent residence through business ownership.
Both provinces have ended entrepreneur immigration. This matters to us directly: our office is in Ontario, and we tell Ontario-based founders the truth rather than selling them a stream that no longer exists.
The Work Permit Business stream has not been formally closed, but PEI issued zero entrepreneur invitations across every draw held in 2026. Every invitation went to labour and Express Entry candidates.
Quebec runs its own business programs under the Canada-Quebec Accord, and they are open with no intake cap. Separately, several work permit routes let you operate a business in Canada without permanent residence.
Four questions. We check your profile against every entrepreneur stream that is open in 2026 and show you where you actually qualify.
How much can you invest in the business?
Not your total wealth. This is the money going into the Canadian business itself.
What is your personal net worth?
Everything you own minus what you owe. Most provinces verify this through an approved accounting firm.
Where are you willing to settle?
Almost every stream now rewards, or requires, settling outside the largest cities.
Which best describes your background?
Provinces weigh ownership experience and senior management experience differently.
Twenty-four routes, including the ones that have closed. Filter by what matters to you, and note that regional thresholds are usually about half the metropolitan ones.
21 routes shown
| Net worth | $600,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $200,000 |
| Ownership | 33.33% |
| Job creation | 1 full-time |
| Language | CLB 4 |
Settle anywhere in British Columbia. Monthly draws ran through August 2026 and BC protected entrepreneur nominations when other streams were reduced.
| Net worth | $300,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $100,000 |
| Ownership | 51% |
| Job creation | 1 full-time |
| Language | CLB 4 |
Enrolled communities outside Metro Vancouver. Community referral and an exploratory visit are mandatory, and the business must be new.
| Net worth | $300,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $100,000 |
| Ownership | 51% |
| Job creation | 1 job |
| Language | CLB 4 |
Communities under 100,000 outside the Calgary and Edmonton metro areas. Only 60 nominations are shared across all Alberta entrepreneur streams for 2026.
| Net worth | No minimum |
|---|---|
| Investment | No minimum |
| Ownership | 34% |
| Job creation | Optional |
| Language | CLB 7 |
For graduates of Alberta publicly funded institutions holding a valid post-graduation work permit. Scored on points rather than thresholds.
| Net worth | No minimum |
|---|---|
| Investment | $50,000 regional |
| Ownership | 34% urban, 51% regional |
| Job creation | Optional |
| Language | CLB 5 |
Restricted to named sectors including technology, aerospace, energy, agriculture, tourism and life sciences. A designated agency recommendation is required.
| Net worth | $500,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $500,000 |
| Ownership | Not published |
| Job creation | None stated |
| Language | None stated |
No performance agreement and no work permit stage. Nomination is issued on approval, which is unusual among Canadian business streams.
| Net worth | $500,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $150,000 rural |
| Ownership | 33.33% |
| Job creation | 1 job held 6 months |
| Language | CLB 5 |
$250,000 in the Capital Region. You must live within 100 km of the business and spend at least 80% of your time in Manitoba.
| Net worth | $500,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $300,000 |
| Ownership | 33.33% or $1M |
| Job creation | None stated |
| Language | None stated |
A $75,000 refundable deposit is held for two years, and a five business-day research visit is required before applying.
| Net worth | $400,000 outside Halifax |
|---|---|
| Investment | $100,000 outside Halifax |
| Ownership | One third |
| Job creation | 1 permanent full-time |
| Language | CLB 5 |
Rises to $600,000 and $150,000 inside Halifax. A $2,000 application fee applies from 1 September 2026, introduced because demand exceeds the federal allocation.
| Net worth | No minimum |
|---|---|
| Investment | No minimum |
| Ownership | 33.33% |
| Job creation | Not published |
| Language | CLB 7 |
You must already have owned and actively managed a Nova Scotia business for one year on a post-graduation work permit from a two-year in-person credential.
| Net worth | $500,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $150,000 |
| Ownership | Not published |
| Job creation | 1 full-time |
| Language | CLB 4 |
Replaced the older entrepreneurial streams. Net worth falls to $300,000 for agriculture. No business invitation rounds appear in published 2025 or 2026 draw data.
| Net worth | $600,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $200,000 |
| Ownership | 33.3% |
| Job creation | 1 full-time |
| Language | CLB 5 |
No provincial application fee. An exploratory visit and in-person interview are required, with priority for agriculture, aquaculture, technology and natural resources.
| Net worth | No minimum |
|---|---|
| Investment | Not published |
| Ownership | 33.3% |
| Job creation | 1 year-round |
| Language | CLB 7 |
Requires a two-year in-person credential from Memorial University or College of the North Atlantic completed within the past two years.
| Net worth | $500,000 incl. $300,000 liquid |
|---|---|
| Investment | $300,000 |
| Ownership | Not published |
| Job creation | Not published |
| Language | IELTS 6 |
Verified by a Yukon accounting firm. A mandatory exploratory trip and in-person Whitehorse interview apply, with quarterly reporting and site visits.
| Net worth | $250,000 outside Yellowknife |
|---|---|
| Investment | $100,000 outside Yellowknife |
| Ownership | 33.3% |
| Job creation | 1 full-time outside Yellowknife |
| Language | CLB 4 |
Doubles inside Yellowknife. First come, first served year round. A four business-day exploratory trip and interview are required before invitation.
| Net worth | $600,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $150,000 outside Montreal |
| Ownership | 25% of capital |
| Job creation | Not required |
| Language | French level 7 |
Spend at least $300,000 inside greater Montreal. Open with no intake cap, but spoken French at level 7 on the Quebec scale is mandatory.
| Net worth | $600,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $150,000 outside Montreal |
| Ownership | Control of the business |
| Job creation | Not required |
| Language | French level 7 |
For acquiring a business that has operated at least five years. Requires a service offer from an organisation specialised in business takeovers.
| Net worth | $100,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $25,000 deposit outside Montreal |
| Ownership | Sole practitioner |
| Job creation | Not required |
| Language | French level 7 |
For practising your own profession. The start-up deposit is $50,000 inside greater Montreal. Real estate and several other sectors are excluded.
| Net worth | $2,000,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $1,000,000 plus $200,000 contribution |
| Ownership | Passive investment |
| Job creation | Not required |
| Language | French level 7 |
A five-year guaranteed investment repaid without interest, plus a non-refundable contribution. The review fee is $18,241 from 1 January 2026.
| Net worth | — |
|---|---|
| Investment | — |
| Ownership | 10% each, over 50% with the designated organisation |
| Job creation | — |
| Language | CLB 5 |
Closed to new applications on 31 December 2025. The final filing deadline for holders of a valid 2025 commitment certificate was 30 June 2026.
| Net worth | — |
|---|---|
| Investment | — |
| Ownership | — |
| Job creation | — |
| Language | — |
Intake stopped on 30 April 2024 and the pause was extended until further notice. It covered cultural activities and athletics.
| Net worth | — |
|---|---|
| Investment | — |
| Ownership | — |
| Job creation | — |
| Language | — |
Revoked in law effective 25 June 2026. Ontario now has no entrepreneur or investor pathway of any kind. Be cautious of sites still advertising it.
| Net worth | — |
|---|---|
| Investment | — |
| Ownership | — |
| Job creation | — |
| Language | — |
All three business categories closed permanently on 27 March 2025 following the federal cut to provincial nomination allocations.
| Net worth | $600,000 |
|---|---|
| Investment | $150,000 |
| Ownership | 70% for equity counting |
| Job creation | Not stated |
| Language | CLB 4 |
Not formally closed, but PEI issued zero entrepreneur invitations across every 2026 draw. The application fee is $10,000 and only partly refundable.
All figures verified against provincial, territorial and federal government sources in August 2026. Where a government has not published a requirement, we say “not published” rather than estimating it. Programs change frequently, so confirm current criteria before committing funds.
Most provincial streams expect you to be in Canada operating the business before they nominate you. These are the permits that make that possible, and one that no longer exists despite what you may be told.
The route for entrepreneurs who want to run a business in Canada without an LMIA. IRCC rewrote this category in 2025 and the title now says the quiet part out loud: it is for temporary purposes only. If your real goal is permanent residence, this is the wrong door and officers are instructed to say so.
This is the permit that pairs with a provincial entrepreneur stream. Most provinces require you to arrive, sign a business performance agreement and actually run the business before they will nominate you. C60 is what lets you do that.
If you already run a business outside Canada, you may be able to open a Canadian branch or affiliate and transfer yourself into it. IRCC split the old C12 code into three: C61 for opening a new office, C62 for executives and senior managers, and C63 for specialised knowledge.
For years, buying a Canadian business and issuing yourself a job offer was a well-worn route to Express Entry points. Service Canada removed the special owner-operator processing on 1 April 2021, and nothing replaced it as a named category.
Most provincial business routes take two to three years from first assessment to permanent residence. Anyone promising materially faster is describing a program that does not exist.
Week 1
We check your capital, net worth, experience and language against every stream that is genuinely open. If nothing fits yet, we tell you that and explain what would need to change. This conversation saves people far more money than it costs.
Weeks 2 to 4
Choosing the province is the single most consequential decision you will make. The same $150,000 that barely registers in one jurisdiction can carry a full application in another. We also weigh draw activity, because a stream that never invites anyone is not really open.
Months 2 to 4
Most provinces require a third-party net worth report from an approved accounting firm, and score the business concept separately from your personal profile. A weak concept sinks a strong applicant more often than the reverse.
Months 3 to 6
Several provinces require you to visit before applying, and some require an interview. We prepare you for both. Your expression of interest is then scored against everyone else in the pool.
Months 6 to 12
After an invitation you sign a business performance agreement setting out investment, job creation and residency commitments, then apply for a C60 work permit. Read this document carefully. It becomes the standard you are measured against.
Year 2 onward
You run the business, usually for twelve to twenty months, then file a final report. Meet the agreement and the province nominates you, which is what unlocks permanent residence. We stay with you through the reporting, because this is where applications most often come apart.
Ontario removed its entrepreneur stream in June 2026 and we are an Ontario firm. We could stay quiet about that. Instead we say it on our own website, because a client who spends two years on a closed program is not a client we want.
We are regulated by the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants. That means a complaints process, mandatory insurance and a public register. Ask anyone advising you on a six-figure investment whether they can say the same.
The application is largely mechanical. Choosing where to apply, reading which streams are actually issuing invitations, and matching your capital to the right tier is where outcomes are decided. That is where we spend our time.
Most business applications fail after approval, not before, when a performance agreement milestone is missed. We treat the reporting period as part of the engagement rather than the point where our involvement ends.
No. IRCC stopped accepting new permanent residence applications under the Start-Up Visa on 31 December 2025. A narrow group holding a valid 2025 commitment certificate had until 30 June 2026 to file, and that deadline has now passed.
Applications already in the system continue to be processed, and people already in Canada on a Start-Up Visa work permit are being prioritised. IRCC has said it will introduce a targeted entrepreneur pilot, with details promised during 2026. As of late August 2026 no such program has been announced. If a website describes eligibility criteria or investment thresholds for a “2026 Entrepreneur Pilot”, it is speculation rather than published policy.
Ontario revoked the OINP Entrepreneur Stream in law effective 25 June 2026, and the replacement stream is employment-based only. There is currently no entrepreneur or investor pathway anywhere in Ontario.
That leaves three realistic directions. You can apply through another province and settle there, since British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon and the Northwest Territories all remain open. You can operate a business in Ontario on a C11 work permit, accepting that it is temporary and does not lead to permanent residence on its own. Or you can pursue permanent residence through a different category altogether, such as Express Entry, while running your business.
Be careful here. A number of consultant websites still advertise the Ontario entrepreneur stream as available. It is not.
It depends far more on where you settle than on what kind of business you run. The lowest published investment minimums are $50,000 for Alberta’s Foreign Graduate Entrepreneur stream in a regional location and $100,000 for regional streams in British Columbia, Alberta and the Northwest Territories. The most common band is $150,000 to $200,000.
Investment is only half the test. Provinces also set a personal net worth minimum, usually between $300,000 and $600,000, and most verify it through an approved accounting firm. You will additionally need settlement funds that are separate from the business money.
Regional thresholds are typically about half the metropolitan ones, which is why the question of where you are willing to live usually matters more than the size of your budget.
Almost never. Most provincial entrepreneur streams follow the same sequence: you are invited, you sign a business performance agreement, you receive a two-year work permit, you move to Canada and actually operate the business for twelve to twenty months, you file a final report, and only then are you nominated. The nomination is what unlocks permanent residence.
Alberta’s Farm Stream is the notable exception, issuing nomination at approval with no work permit stage.
Realistically, plan for two to three years from first assessment to permanent residence. Anyone promising materially faster is describing something that does not exist.
Yes, and in several programs it is actively encouraged. Alberta’s Rural Entrepreneur Stream treats business succession favourably and waives the job creation requirement for it. Quebec runs a dedicated Business Takeover stream for companies that have operated at least five years.
Be aware of the exceptions. British Columbia’s Regional stream requires a genuinely new business, and Yukon requires that you do not already own the business when you apply. Buying also brings its own diligence burden, since you are inheriting the previous owner’s books, contracts and liabilities.
It no longer exists. Service Canada removed the special owner-operator processing, which had exempted these applications from advertising and recruitment requirements, on 1 April 2021. Nothing replaced it as a named category.
You can still file an ordinary LMIA as a business owner, but you would face the full advertising and prevailing wage rules, which is difficult when the position in question is your own ownership role. In practice the LMIA-exempt substitute is a C11 work permit, or C60 where a province supports you.
Some agencies continue to market owner-operator LMIA packages as a fast route to permanent residence. If you are offered one, please get a second opinion from a licensed consultant before any money changes hands.
Yes, and there is no way around it. All four Quebec business programs, covering entrepreneurs, business takeover, self-employed workers and investors, require spoken French at level 7 on the Quebec scale, evidenced by a test result less than two years old.
What makes Quebec worth considering despite that requirement is that its programs are open with no intake cap, at a moment when several provinces have closed theirs. The Self-Employed Worker Program also has an unusually low threshold, needing $100,000 net worth and a deposit of $25,000 outside greater Montreal.
There is no universal answer, but a few patterns hold. British Columbia has been the most consistently active, running monthly draws through August 2026 and protecting its entrepreneur nominations when other streams were cut. The Northwest Territories operates first come, first served year round rather than through competitive draws. Newfoundland and Labrador charges no provincial application fee at all.
Be cautious with two. Alberta has only 60 nominations shared across all its entrepreneur streams for 2026, against more than 200 applications already in process. Prince Edward Island has not formally closed its stream but issued zero entrepreneur invitations across every draw held in 2026.
The right province depends on your capital, your sector, your language ability and where you are genuinely willing to live. That last one is not a detail. Most programs require you to reside near the business and spend the majority of your time in the province.
In our experience, three things. The first is a weak business concept. Provinces score the concept separately from your personal profile, and a strong applicant with a thin plan is refused more often than the reverse.
The second is the performance agreement. Applications fail after approval more often than before it, because someone missed an investment, job creation or residency milestone. Those commitments are measurable and they are checked.
The third is choosing a program that was never realistic. Every year people invest in streams that had already closed, or that had stopped issuing invitations. An hour of honest assessment at the start prevents almost all of this.
Information sessions, citizenship celebrations, community events and the everyday work of settling in. Hover to pause, click any photo to open it full size.
Business immigration rules are moving faster than any other category right now. Programs have closed with weeks of notice and thresholds shift between draws. Follow our journal so a change does not catch you mid-application.
IRCC has extended the concurrent processing window from 60 to 90 days, giving workers inside Canada an extra month to supply proof of their employer’s LMIA. Here is who qualifies, what the four conditions really mean, and the timing traps that still catch people.
Ontario’s biggest OINP overhaul in years is live, the new Workforce Priority Stream EOI portal opened August 4, alongside a fresh PNP Express Entry draw (507 ITAs at CRS 768) and continued French-language momentum. Here’s what it means for you.
A busy July: six Express Entry draws, the French-language cut-off dropping to 399, a pause on new Parents & Grandparents sponsorship, and new LMIA wage thresholds, plus what it all means for you.
Content on this page is general information and not legal advice. Investment minimums, net worth thresholds, allocation limits and program availability change frequently, and several streams referenced here closed during 2025 and 2026. Confirm current requirements before committing funds. Serving clients across Canada · Based in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario · info@ubuntuwic.ca
