Provincial Nominee Programs: Entrepreneurs

The Start-Up Visa Program is closed to new applicants.

The Canada Start-Up Visa Program closed to new applicants as of December 31, 2025. Only applicants who received a valid commitment certificate from a designated organization in 2025 may still apply for permanent residence, with a final submission deadline of June 30, 2026. New Start-Up Visa work permits are no longer accepted. If you are considering entrepreneur immigration to Canada, the provincial entrepreneur streams are now your primary pathway.

Stage 1: Expression of Interest or Registration 

Most provincial entrepreneur streams begin with an Expression of Interest (EOI) or registration process rather than a direct application. You submit a profile describing your business experience, proposed business concept, financial capacity, and connection to the province. Your profile is scored and ranked against other registered candidates. If your score meets the threshold when a draw is conducted, you receive an invitation to apply for the full program.

This competitive scoring stage is where the quality of your business concept, your management experience, and your financial profile determine whether you even get the opportunity to proceed. A weak EOI, one that does not clearly articulate the economic contribution of the proposed business, the depth of the applicant's management experience, or the viability of the business plan, will not receive an invitation regardless of how strong the applicant otherwise is.

Stage 2: Full Application and Business Plan Assessment

Once invited, you submit a full application including a comprehensive business plan, financial documentation, background verification, and all supporting materials. The province is responsible for conducting due diligence to verify that the proposed business is consistent with provincial requirements, that the business plan indicates the proposed business is or shall be economically viable, and that the applicant shall actively engage in establishing the proposed business.

The business plan is the most important document in the application. It must be realistic, detailed, and clearly demonstrate the economic benefit to the province, including job creation, investment, and market viability. A business plan that reads like a generic template or that makes projections that are not grounded in credible market analysis will not be competitive.

Many provinces also conduct an interview at this stage, an opportunity for the province to assess the applicant's genuine understanding of the proposed business, their management experience, and their commitment to establishing the business in the province.

Stage 3: Work Permit and Business Establishment Period

Most provincial entrepreneur streams do not issue a nomination certificate immediately on approval of the application. Instead, many provincial entrepreneur streams first issue a temporary work permit, allowing applicants to live in Canada for a limited period while establishing or operating their business.

If approved, you sign a Performance Agreement with the province. This agreement is unique to you, it is based on the information provided in your application, business plan, and interview. You are also issued a Letter of Support which you can use to submit your work permit application to IRCC.

During the business establishment period, you must meet the milestones set out in your Performance Agreement, typically including investment of the committed capital, creation of the required number of full-time jobs for Canadian citizens or permanent residents, active management of the business, and genuine residency in the province.

Stage 4: Nomination and Permanent Residence

Once you have met the requirements of your Performance Agreement during the business establishment period, you apply to the province for your nomination certificate. If the province is satisfied that you have met your commitments, it issues a nomination certificate, which you then use to apply to IRCC for permanent residence under the Provincial Nominee Class.

The business establishment period is where most applications succeed or fail.

Meeting the commitments in your Performance Agreement is not automatic. Provinces monitor compliance actively and conduct site visits and progress reviews. Applicants who do not meet their investment milestones, who fail to create the required jobs, or who are not genuinely managing their business are at risk of having their nomination withheld. The MyVisa Team advises clients throughout the establishment period, not just at the application stage.

Refused Work Permit Applications

In order to undertake the work in Canada and meet the commitments in your Performance Agreement, you must obtain a work permit. If your work permit application is refused, the MyVisa Team can assist. Learn more about how we can assist: Work Permit refusals.

Business management experience

PNP entrepreneur streams typically require at least three years of senior leadership or business management experience. Experience as a business owner, CEO, COO, or in a comparable senior management role is generally required. Middle management experience or technical expertise without ownership or senior management responsibility does not typically qualify.

Net Worth

Every provincial entrepreneur stream requires verification of the applicant's personal net worth. Minimum net worth requirements range from $250,000 in programs with lower thresholds to $600,000 or more in programs with higher requirements, such as BC's urban Base Category. Net worth must be legally sourced and clearly documented through bank statements, financial statements, property valuations, and other credible evidence.

Investment Commitment

Investment commitment. Investment requirements range from $150,000 to $600,000 depending on the province and stream. Programs targeting rural or regional communities typically have lower investment thresholds, while urban programs have significantly higher requirements. The investment must typically be committed to the proposed Canadian business, not held passively.

Business Plan

A credible and detailed business plan is mandatory in every provincial entrepreneur stream. The plan must demonstrate the viability of the proposed business in the Canadian market, the economic benefit to the province, the applicant's capacity to establish and manage the business, and realistic projections for investment, revenue, and job creation.

Job Creation

Most streams require the applicant to create a minimum number of full-time jobs for Canadian citizens or permanent residents during the business establishment period, typically one to two positions, though some streams require more.

Language Proficiency

Most provincial entrepreneur streams require a minimum level of English or French language proficiency, typically at a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level between 4 and 7 depending on the stream. Language proficiency is assessed through an approved language test.

Genuine intent to reside in the province.

Every provincial entrepreneur program requires that the applicant genuinely intends to establish their business and make their home in the nominating province. Applications that treat a province as a procedural step toward living in a different part of Canada are at serious risk of refusal.

The right province depends on your business, not just the thresholds.

Choosing a province based solely on which program has the lowest investment threshold is a common and often costly mistake. The province must be a credible fit for your proposed business. A technology startup in a rural Atlantic province, or a hospitality business in a northern territory, will face harder scrutiny than a business concept that genuinely serves the provincial market. The MyVisa Team assesses the fit between your business and each province before recommending a strategy.

A genuine and credible business concept.

The business must be viable in the Canadian provincial market. Provinces reject concepts that are unlikely to succeed, that are not consistent with the province's economic needs, or that appear designed to meet immigration requirements rather than to create a real and sustainable enterprise. The business plan must reflect genuine market research, realistic financial projections, and a credible operational strategy.

Deep and well-documented management experience.

The depth of your actual management experience, not just your title, is a primary scoring factor. Applications that demonstrate genuine ownership, strategic decision-making, profit and loss responsibility, and team leadership are significantly stronger than those that describe management experience in general or vague terms.

Transparent and verifiable financial documentation.

Net worth and source of funds documentation must be comprehensive, transparent, and clearly traceable. Provinces scrutinize financial documentation carefully and request additional information where the source of funds is unclear or where the documentation does not clearly establish the applicant's net worth. Funds that cannot be clearly traced to legitimate sources are a red flag that can derail an application regardless of how strong the rest of the profile is.

A realistic performance agreement.

The commitments you make in your Performance Agreement must be achievable within the business establishment period. Applicants who commit to ambitious investment and job creation milestones and then fail to meet them during the establishment period will not receive their nomination. The MyVisa Team helps clients structure their Performance Agreement commitments to be genuine and realistic and not simply aspirational.

Genuine provincial connection.

The province must be a credible and genuine fit for both the business and the applicant. Provinces conduct site visits, request progress reports, and assess whether the applicant is genuinely present in and contributing to the provincial economy. An applicant who is rarely in the province or whose business does not appear to be operating as described will face serious difficulties at the nomination stage.

Programs open and close without notice.

Provincial programs can pause intake, change eligibility criteria, or close streams entirely with very little notice. A stream that was open last month may not be open today. The MyVisa Team monitors provincial program updates continuously and advises clients on timing their applications to take advantage of open streams.

Score thresholds fluctuate.

Provinces that use EOI pools score and rank candidates and issue invitations based on available allocation. The score required to receive an invitation varies from draw to draw and can change significantly depending on the volume of candidates in the pool. A score that was competitive six months ago may not be today.

Federal allocation limits affect provincial capacity.

Each province is allocated a fixed number of nominations each year under the federal-provincial immigration agreement. When a province reaches its annual allocation, it stops issuing nominations, regardless of how strong a candidate's application is. Allocation limits are becoming an increasing constraint as demand for provincial nominations grows.

The provincial nomination is only the first step.

A provincial nomination certificate allows you to apply for permanent residence, it does not grant permanent residence itself. You must still submit a permanent residence application to IRCC, which conducts its own assessment including security, medical, and criminal clearances.

Misrepresentation is treated seriously.

Every piece of information in a PNP application, including your work experience, job offer, and intent to settle, is verified. IRCC and provincial programs have increasingly sophisticated tools for cross-referencing information. Inconsistencies between your PNP application and your Express Entry profile, your work permit application, or your employment records can trigger serious consequences.