In Canada, immigration programs for businessmen are gaining popularity
The specificity of the business category is that not many immigrants used it in the past, and not many immigration companies have experience working with it. Accordingly, not much reliable information circulates on the Internet, generating a lot of not entirely correct or completely incorrect statements and perceptions about this category.
Moreover, in the Russian-language segment of the Internet, one quite often encounters advertisements for immigration services that can only be called outright deception. As an example, I can cite an ad I have been seeing frequently lately – 'Buy Canadian citizenship. Canada accepts businessmen for permanent residence for $99k+ legally and reliably!' I think this ad has already misled more than one person. At least, I often have to convince people that it is not so, that there is no way to get Canadian citizenship immediately by paying 100-120 thousand dollars, and that Canada does not sell it. That is, at the very least, this is dishonest advertising that creates a false impression among people considering immigration.
Another source of false information is local Russian and Ukrainian companies offering immigration services, which, apparently, have a very vague idea of both the immigration process itself and what happens afterwards. Incidentally, such companies technically do not have the right to provide immigration services, because under Canadian law, these can only be provided by a licensed Canadian lawyer or a member of the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council. The law 'The Cracking Down on Crooked Consultants Act,' passed in Canada in June of this year, is primarily aimed at them.
First and foremost. Regardless of which program you go through the immigration process (Business Class or Skilled Worker Class), you ultimately receive immigration visas. Not permanent resident status, not citizenship, but immigration visas. Only by entering Canada under them within a strictly limited period of their validity are you issued permanent resident status. This is usually done at the border upon entry into the country. Note – you do not receive Canadian citizenship at this point, only permanent resident status.
You will have the opportunity to obtain Canadian citizenship in the future, but this will require meeting a number of conditions. You will not get it automatically.
To obtain Canadian citizenship (and with it a Canadian passport), you must meet a number of conditions, the main one being residence in Canada for a total of 3 years within the last 4 years. You will also need to pass an exam and take the oath. You must appear in person for this. That is, there is no question of obtaining citizenship remotely, with the lawyer doing everything for you.
This is connected to another misconception I often encounter. Many people confuse the concepts of time present in Canada to maintain permanent resident status and time present in Canada to be eligible to apply for Canadian citizenship. These are different things.
To avoid losing your permanent resident status, you need to reside in Canada for at least two cumulative years out of any five-year period. With permanent resident status, you can live in Canada for your whole life if you meet the residency requirements, freely leaving and re-entering. However, you will not be a Canadian citizen. To obtain citizenship, you need to accumulate three years of residence over a four-year period. As I have already written, these are two completely different requirements, and they are not related.
Often among those planning to immigrate to Canada under the Investor category, there is a mistaken belief that it is enough to pay 100-120 thousand and they will automatically be granted permanent resident status. The reason for this misconception, as I have written, is largely dishonest advertising as well as a lack of understanding of what the immigration process consists of and what the passing requirements are for this category.
It should be noted that a program under which paying 100-120 thousand Canadian dollars grants permanent resident status in Canada does not exist in nature. Nowhere in the official requirements is there even a hint that paying that amount will give you permanent resident status in Canada.
The official requirements for the Investor program are that you must show that you have accumulated assets of 1 million 600 thousand dollars (under the old rules it was 800 thousand), must demonstrate business management experience for at least 2 of the last 5 years that meets certain requirements, and undertake to invest 800 thousand dollars (under the old rules it was 400 thousand) in a Canadian government fund for a period of 5 years. The money is returned to you after this period, but no interest is paid on it. To this it should be added that you and your family members must not have diseases that could cause your immigration visa application to be refused, you and your family members must not have criminal records, and you and your family members must not pose a threat to Canada's security. That is, there is no question of automatically granting you permanent resident status upon paying 100-120 thousand dollars.
To obtain permanent resident status, you must go through a full immigration process during which all your personal documents and financial statements of the businesses you manage will be carefully examined, you will be checked for ties to criminal circles and organizations that may pose a threat to Canada's security, etc. You will also need to undergo a medical examination.
It is also worth keeping in mind that, starting from June 2010, the acceptance of applications under the Investor category has been temporarily suspended. At the time of writing this article, the acceptance of applications under the Investor category has not yet been resumed, and the above-mentioned requirements for this category have not yet been officially announced.
Another program is Entrepreneur (предприниматель). In my opinion, this program, which belongs to the Business Class category, is currently the most attractive. It is aimed at those who owned their own business that meets certain requirements and have personal funds in the amount of 300 thousand. At the same time, those who qualify under this program are not yet required to take a test of knowledge of one of Canada's official languages, and the processing times for applications are the same as for the Investor category, which are currently slightly longer than for the Skilled Worker Class category.
I also want to add that so far not many applicants are going through this program, and if you meet the conditions, it is worth seriously considering going through the immigration process under it. You need to do this as quickly as possible, as in the near future the number of applications under it may increase, and quite significantly.
Another factor is that it is currently quite easy to go through the immigration process under this category, as there are no requirements for language proficiency test or age, and the amount of personal funds required is quite modest, only 300 thousand dollars. The Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration Canada has already signaled that it plans to make the presence of IELTS or TEF test results mandatory for this program, and it is not excluded that these proposals may be implemented in the future. Also, if the number of applications under this program increases significantly (which is more than likely), the ministry may tighten requirements both in terms of personal funds and the business requirements that you must establish in Canada. Therefore, I strongly recommend taking advantage of this program now, before it is changed.
Currently, the business class, and especially the Entrepreneur (предприниматель) category, are very attractive for those who would like to immigrate to Canada. However, it is necessary to realize that for the successful completion of the process, it is not so much the availability of the required funds that matters, but rather the correctly chosen strategy and careful preparation of your documents.
It should also be taken into account that the conditions for proceeding under these categories (especially the Entrepreneur category) may be changed for the worse. Therefore, if you are planning to start the immigration process, it is better not to delay.
Elena RYABININA.
«Russkiy Toronto»