The Start-Up Visa (SUV) program is a pathway for entrepreneurs who wish to immigrate to Canada. It targets innovative individuals with the potential to build businesses that can compete on a global scale. Through this program, successful applicants receive permanent resident status, which allows them to establish their start-ups in Canada and contribute to the country’s economy and innovation ecosystem.
Allegedly in response to increasing wait times for pending Start-Up Visa (SUV) applications, the Immigration Department (IRCC) implemented new measures effective April 30, 2024. Our Founder, Mr. Jain, has spoken frequently about the need to keep processing times down. He wrote several articles in 2022 about the importance of raising the annual quota for Start-Up Visa cases: see this Featured Article for the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association: Canada’s Start-up Visa Program: A simple fix before it’s too late, August 2, 2022: https://cila.co/canadas-start-up-visa-program-a-simple-fix-before-its-too-late/. See also this Featured blog post in The Lawyer’s Daily, July 22, 2022: “Simple Fixes for Canada’s Start-up Visa Program”: https://www.thelawyersdaily.ca/articles/38117/simple-fixes-for-canada-s-start-up-visa-program-ravi-jain?category=opinion.
In the articles, Mr. Jain argued that given the unique nature of Start-up Visa applicants (who literally cannot wait), it was imperative that Ottawa increase the target for these applicants in the next Levels Plan. He said that we need not sacrifice the generous room in the Levels Plan for humanitarian and family programs – we should increase the size of the pie rather than carving it up by making other slices smaller to make the Start-up Visa program’s piece larger. Furthermore, he has argued that Canada should allocate the financial and human resources to quickly weed out those applications which are clearly without merit.
Mr. Jain also made a personal plea to the Minster’s Office. Shortly afterwards, the 2023-2025 Levels Plan dramatically increased targets from about 1,000 per annum to 3,500 in 2023, 5,000 in 2024 and 6,000 in 2025.
Key Measures Implemented:
- Application Cap: IRCC has decided to cap the number of permanent residence applications processed annually. This cap will limit the processing to a maximum of 10 start-ups per designated organization.
- Prioritized Processing: To further optimize the allocation of resources, IRCC will prioritize applications that are supported by Canadian capital or by a member of Canada’s Tech Network business incubator.
Important Takeaways:
- The cap applies per start-up, regardless of whether the commitment certificate is for a single entrepreneur or a team.
- Prioritized processing includes both existing and new applications meeting the specified criteria.
- The cap is temporary and will be effective until the end of 2026, with specific provisions for the year 2024.
- Designated organizations, such as business incubators and venture capital funds, are encouraged to focus on promising proposals and be selective in their commitments.
- Unused cap space cannot be carried over or transferred between organizations.
IRCC claims it will reduce wait times and prioritizing high-potential start-ups. However, the real issue is that unscrupulous individuals and ‘representatives’ are misusing the program. The government did well to increase the room in the annual ‘levels plan’ so that more cases could be processed per year, but they need to reign in the ‘gatekeepers’ which are those who are able to provide legal advice. This should be limited to qualified Canadian lawyers. Capping processing to 10 start-ups per designated entity will make it very difficult for designated entities to survive. Many devote considerable time to marketing and traveling the world to bring awareness to this government program. I suspect many are feeling the sting of this government’s approach to entrepreneurs and the organizations authorized to assist them.
If you are looking for an experienced lawyer for Start-Up Visas we can assist. Contact us to book a consultation.