Canada Self Employed Visa

The Canadian Self Employed Immigration program is a business visa service designed for those wishing to live and work in Canada on a permanent basis.

Canadian Self Employed visas, along with the Canadian Immigrant Investor Program or (IIP) and Canadian Entrepreneur Immigrant Programme make up the Canadian Business Immigration Program, a range of business visas designed to attract Canadian visa applications from people with desirable business skills and experience, who by living and working in Canada will contribute to, and further develop the Canadian economy.

Indya Pulse can help you to navigate the wide range of visas for Canada available and determine which Canadian business immigration service is most appropriate for your requirements. As a specialist Canadian immigration consultancy we can assist you at every stage of your visa application and our immigration consultants can provide everything required for your relocation to Canada, immigration lawyer advice, information on immigration processes and more.

Benefits

Applying for Canadian visas of this kind constitutes a route to settlement in Canada, and accordingly, confers permanent residence status upon successful applicants. Unlike a Canadian work permit which would require a specific job offer to be in place, a Canadian Self Employed visa offers the holder complete freedom to set up their business venture in the country. No time restrictions are placed upon a business visa for this route as is the case with temporary immigration services such as the Canadian visit visa or tourist visa, and as permanent residents, candidates will receive the same rights and privileges as Canadian citizens with the exception of the right to vote. Beyond permanent residency, after three years in Canada, applicants may be able to pursue a grant of Canadian citizenship.

Eligibility Criteria

In Canada, immigration applications of this type do not require a minimum net worth to be demonstrated. However, it is necessary to satisfy an entry clearance officer that you have sufficient capital to settle yourself and your family and to carry out your proposal. Migration to Canada for the purpose of self-employment requires applicants to be able to contribute to cultural or athletic activities or to purchase and manage a farm. Candidates may only apply for one type of Canadian business immigration service. Once an application has been made, it is not permitted to switch to an alternative route.

Points System

Applying for a Canadian Self Employed person's visa requires a candidate to achieve the minimum pass mark on a points based skills assessment. As with the Canadian Skilled Worker Visa, and schemes such as the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme or HSMP in the UK, candidates are assessed against their business experience, educational achievements, age and language proficiency, and must achieve a score of 35 or more points.

Business Experience

Business experience gained in the five years directly prior to an application being submitted is worth between 20 and 35 points to a Canadian visa application of this class.

Education

In Canada, visa applications of this kind receive 5-25 points for a candidate's level of education. Points are awarded based on an applicant's highest academic qualification and the amount of time spent in education.

• Master's Degree or PhD and at least 17 years of full-time study - 25 Points.

• Two or more Bachelor's degrees and at least 15 years of full-time study - 22

• Three-year diploma, apprenticeship or trade certificate and at least 15 years of full-time study - 22 Points.

• Bachelor's Degree plus at least 14 years of full-time study - 20 Points.

• Two-year diploma, apprenticeship or trade certificate and at least 14 years of full-time Study - 20 Points.

• One-year Bachelor's degree plus at least 13 years of full-time study - 15 Points.

• One-year diploma, apprenticeship or trade certificate and at least 13 years of full-time study - 15 Points.

• One-year diploma, apprenticeship or trade certificate plus at least 12 years of full-time study - 12 Points.

• Graduation (Secondary School) - 5 Points.

Language Skills

A Self Employment Visa for Canadian migration allows a successful applicant to become a permanent Canadian resident and as such, points are awarded for proficiency in either French or English, the official languages of Canada. In cases where a candidate is skilled in both languages, they should select one to be their "first language". The points system awards a maximum of four points for the first language and two points for the second in each of the four assessed ability areas of listening, speaking, reading and writing.

First Language (Points awarded per ability area)

• High - 4 Points.

• Moderate - 2 Points.

• Basic - 1-2 Points.

• None - 0.

Maximum - 16

Second Language (Points awarded per ability area)

• High - 2 Points.

• Moderate - 2 Points.

• Basic - 1 - 2 Points.

• None - 0.

Maximum - 8 Overall maximum - 24

Age

An applicants' age can be worth a maximum of 10 points when applying for Canadian immigration visas of this class. 10 points are awarded to those aged between 21 and 49. For each year outside this range, two points are deducted with no points available to those aged less than 17 or more than 53.

Adaptability to life in Canada

Applications for Canada Visas through this route primarily use the same points assessment criteria as both the Immigrant Investor visa and the Entrepreneur visa, however, in the area of adaptability, a different system is employed which takes into account previous work or study conducted in Canada, Canadian relatives and your partner's education.

Spouse or Common-law partner's Education

• Master's Degree or PhD and at least 17 years of full-time study - 5 Points.

• Three-year University qualification and at least 15 years of full-time study - 4 Points.

• Three-year post-secondary qualification and at least 15 years of full-time study - 4 Points.

• One or two-year post-secondary qualification and at least 13 years of full-time study - 3 Points.

• Secondary school diploma or less - 0 points.

Study conducted in Canada (Applicant or partner)

• Post-secondary educational qualification of at least 2 years obtained in Canada since the age of 18 - 5 Points.

• Less than two years post-secondary education in Canada, or none at all - 0 Points.

Work conducted in Canada (Applicant or partner)

• 1 year or more of full time work in Canada - 5 Points.

• Less than 1 year of full time work in Canada, or none at all - 0 Points.

Existing family in Canada (Applicant or partner)

• Parent, Grandparent, Aunt, Uncle, Sister, Brother, Nephew, Niece, Child or Grandchild who is a Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident living in Canada - 5 Points.

• No Relatives at all in Canada - 0 Points.

Dependants

In Canada, visa applications of this kind permit spouse immigration and dependent immigration for your husband, wife, unmarried partner, or common-law partner to migrate to Canada. Any unmarried and dependent children who are under the age of 22 may also join you in the country.