After you have applied
What happens after applying for the Canadian business immigration program
Your application will be processed at the visa office where you applied.
The process may vary depending on the Canadian business visa office. However, some processing steps are common to all offices.
- The application assessment process
- Processing time
- Medical examinations
- Criminal and security checks
- The decision on your application
- Change of address
- Confirmation of permanent residence
- Making your investment
The application assessment process
After you submit your application, a Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) officer will verify that you have submitted all the required documentation with your application. The officer will make sure you have:
- completed your business visa application form correctly and signed it
- paid your processing fee for business immigration and
- included the required supporting documentation if you used the regular application process.
If you applied using the Simplified Application Process, the visa office will contact you and ask you to provide the required documentation about four months before your application is processed.
If your application is not complete, the visa office will return it to you without processing it.
The visa office where you applied will send you a letter when it receives your completed application. The letter will tell you what you need to do and what happens next.
The length of time it takes to process business immigrants applications varies depending on where you applied.
You may be able to avoid unnecessary delays by:
- making sure all the necessary information is included with your application
- notifying the visa office of any changes to personal information on your application, such as your address, phone and fax numbers or a change in the makeup of your family
- avoiding repeated inquiries to the visa office
- ensuring that the photocopies and documents you provide are clear and legible
- providing certified English or French translations of original documents that you submit in other languages and
- applying from a country where you are a citizen or permanent resident.
Your application will be delayed if the visa office has to take extra steps to assess your case. Your application will take longer if:
- there are criminal or security problems related to your application
- your family situation is not clear because of a situation, such as a divorce or an adoption that is not yet complete or child custody issues that have not been resolved or
- the visa office that processes your application has to consult with other CIC offices in Canada or abroad.
Medical examinations
When applying for the permanent residency in Canada under the business immigration program, you must pass a medical examination before coming to Canada. Your dependants must also pass a medical examination even if they are not coming to Canada with you.
Applications for permanent residence will not be accepted if an applicant’s health:
- is a danger to public health or safety, or
- would cause excessive demand on health or social services in Canada.
Instructions on how to take the medical examination will normally be sent to you after you submit your application to the visa office.
Criminal and security checks
If you have a criminal record you may not be allowed to enter Canada. People who pose a risk to Canada’s security are not allowed to come to Canada either.
If you want to immigrate to Canada, you and any family members over the age of 18 who come to Canada with you must provide police certificates to the visa office.
If you apply using the regular application process, you must submit the police certificates with your application. If you apply using the simplified application process, the visa office will contact you and ask you to provide the required documentation at a later date.
You can find more information about criminal and security checks in the I Need To… section on the right-hand side of this page.
The decision on your application
The CIC officer will make a decision on your application based on several factors, including:
- the results of your medical examination
- the results of your criminal and security checks
- whether you meet the definition of an investor and
- the points you accumulate under each of the five selection factors.
The visa office will contact you if it needs more documentation or if you are required to attend an interview.
If your application is approved, you will be asked to submit your passport to the Canadian visa office where you applied in order to receive your permanent resident visa.
If you move or change your address, telephone number or any other contact information after you submit your application, you must contact the visa office where you submitted your application.
Confirmation of permanent residence
If your application is approved, the visa office will issue a permanent resident visa to you. Your permanent resident visa includes your Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR) and your entry visa. Your COPR will include identification information as well as your photograph. Please check the information on your COPR to make sure it is correct. It should be the same as the information on your passport. If there is a mistake on your COPR, contact your visa office.
You must have your COPR and your visa with you when you arrive in Canada.
If your application is approved, you must make an investment of C$400,000 within a specified time before a permanent resident visa will be issued. In most cases, you must make the investment within 30 days. The visa office will send you a letter with additional instructions. Your permanent resident visa will not be issued until you make your investment.
Financing of the investment
Full funding
The investor deposits the full amount (CDN$400,000). No further payment is required. At the end of the 62-month period, CDN$400,000 is returned to the investor with no accrued interest.
Financed funding
The investor pays the reduced amount (CDN$130,000).*
No further payment is required by the investor. However, the CDN$130,000 is not returned to the investor at the end of the 62-month period.
The reduced amount is used to finance a $400,000 closed 62-month term loan from a chartered bank. This loan is initiated and repaid at no further cost to the applicant investor.
This option is particularly attractive for applicants seeking to retain maximum capital for investment in ongoing business operations.
When arriving in Canada
When you arrive in Canada, you will be greeted by an officer from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). The CBSA is responsible for border and point of entry activities in Canada. You can find more information about the CBSA in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page.
The officer will ask to see your passport and other travel documents. Make sure they are not packed in your luggage, and that you have them with you. This will help speed up your entry to Canada.
You must present the following documents upon your arrival:
- Your valid passport and/or travel documents. Your passport must be a regular, private passport. You cannot immigrate to Canada with a diplomatic, government service or public affairs passport.
- Your valid Canadian permanent resident visa, and your Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR). The officer will make sure you are entering Canada before or on the expiry date shown on your permanent resident visa. Please note that this document cannot be extended, therefore you should make sure to use it before it expires.
- Proof that you have sufficient funds to support yourself and your family after you arrive in Canada.
The officer will ask you a few questions to make sure you still meet the requirements to immigrate to Canada as a business person. They will be similar to the ones you answered on your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada. The officer will confirm that you still meet the requirements for admission to Canada. This should only take a few minutes.
You will not be allowed into Canada if you give false or incomplete information, or if you do not satisfy the officer that you meet the requirements for entry into Canada.
If there are no problems at the point of entry, the officer will authorize you to enter Canada as a permanent resident. The officer will also confirm your Canadian mailing address. Your permanent resident card will be mailed to you at this address.
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