Canada’s main entrepreneur immigration pathway, the Start-Up Visa, is closed to new applicants. As of December 19, 2025, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) stopped accepting new permanent residence applications, and the only entrepreneurs who can still apply are those who already hold a valid 2025 commitment certificate from a designated organization. Those remaining applicants must file by June 30, 2026.1Government of Canada. Start-up Visa Program The program does not apply in Quebec, which runs its own immigration streams. If you do not already have a 2025 commitment certificate, this route is not available to you, and any future federal entrepreneur pathway will depend on what IRCC announces next.
Who Can Still Apply and By When
December 31, 2025 was the last day a designated organization could submit a commitment certificate to IRCC. Applications for permanent residence stopped being accepted on December 19, 2025. If your commitment certificate was issued in 2025 and is still valid, you have until June 30, 2026 to submit your permanent residence application.1Government of Canada. Start-up Visa Program
The associated open work permit stream is also closed to new applicants. If you already hold a Start-Up Visa work permit, you may apply to extend it while your permanent residence application is processed; new work permit applications under this program are no longer accepted.2Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Closed: Start-up Visa Optional Open Work Permit
Eligibility for Remaining Applicants
Business Ownership Structure
The qualifying business must be incorporated in Canada, with its essential operations and active management taking place inside the country. Up to five people can apply as co-owners of a single venture. Each applicant must hold at least 10% of the voting rights, and the applicants together with the designated organization must hold more than 50% of total voting rights. Applicants who have not yet fully set up their Canadian operations can still qualify, provided they intend to meet the incorporation and management requirements after receiving their permanent resident visa.3Justice Laws Website. Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations SOR/2002-227
Language Proficiency
Every applicant must reach Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 5 in all four skills: listening, reading, writing, and speaking. Falling short on any single skill sinks the application.4Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. What Level of Language Proficiency Do I Need for a Start-up Visa Results come from an approved third-party test. Accepted English tests are IELTS, CELPIP, and PTE Core; the standard French option is TEF Canada.5Government of Canada. Express Entry: Language Test Results
Settlement Funds
You must show enough money to support yourself and any accompanying family after arrival. The amounts published as of mid-2025 are:
- 1 person: $15,263 CAD
- 2 people: $19,001 CAD
- 3 people: $23,360 CAD
- 4 people: $28,362 CAD
- 5 people: $32,168 CAD
- 6 people: $36,280 CAD
- 7 people: $40,392 CAD
- Each additional person beyond 7: add $4,112 CAD
These funds cannot be borrowed from another person. Cash, stocks, bonds, banker’s drafts, and traveler’s cheques are acceptable forms.6Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Proof of Funds – Start-up Business Class Check IRCC before filing, since the thresholds are updated annually.
The Designated Organization Backing Your Business
The application rests on a commitment from one of three types of designated organization: a venture capital fund, an angel investor group, or a business incubator. As of early 2026, IRCC lists 22 venture capital funds, 6 angel investor groups, and 43 business incubators.7Government of Canada. List of Designated Organizations – Immigrate With a Start-up Visa Each type carries a different minimum:
- A venture capital fund must invest at least $200,000 CAD in the business.
- An angel investor group must invest at least $75,000 CAD in the business.
- A business incubator must accept the entrepreneur into one of its programs, with no minimum dollar investment.
These are minimums the organization commits to, not fees you pay them.8Government of Canada. Start-up Visa Designated Organizations – Section: Make an Investment or Pledge Your Support Once an organization agrees to back your venture, it issues you a Letter of Support (form IMM 0211) that you include with your application, and sends a commitment certificate (form IMM 5766) directly to IRCC. The commitment certificate must include a term sheet or client agreement.9Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Start-up Visa Designated Organizations: Send Us a Commitment Certificate
What It Costs
For the main applicant, the government fee totals $2,385 CAD: a $1,810 processing fee plus a $575 right of permanent residence fee (RPRF). Adding a spouse or common-law partner costs $1,525 ($950 processing fee plus $575 RPRF). Each dependent child costs $260.10Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Pay Your Application Fees Online Biometrics collection is $85 per person, capped at $170 for a family applying together.11Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Biometrics Medical exams from an approved panel physician are separate and vary by country and clinic; budget a few hundred dollars per family member. A couple with one child faces roughly $4,240 CAD in government fees alone, before medical and translation costs.
How to File
Applications go through IRCC’s Permanent Residence Portal.12Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Permanent Residence Portal The core form is the Generic Application Form for Canada (IMM 0008), which collects your biographical details.13Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Generic Application Form for Canada (IMM 0008) Schedule 13 covers the business immigration details.
Along with the forms, expect to provide:
- Your Letter of Support from the designated organization.
- Proof of settlement funds through bank statements or similar documents.
- Language test results at CLB 5 or higher in all four skills.
- Valid passports, birth certificates, and marriage certificates for you and your dependants.
- Police certificates from every country where you have lived for six months or more.
- Education and work history documents: diplomas, transcripts, and reference letters.
Documents not in English or French need certified translations. If you hire someone to help with the application for a fee, they must be authorized: a lawyer or paralegal who is a member of a Canadian provincial or territorial law society, a notary belonging to the Chambre des notaires du Québec, or a consultant registered with the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants. IRCC will return or refuse applications submitted through unauthorized paid representatives.14Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Learn About Representatives
After Submission
After IRCC receives the application, you will get instructions to complete a medical examination with an approved panel physician. Every family member must undergo the exam, including those who are not moving with you. You have 30 days from receiving the instructions to complete it, and the results are valid for 12 months.15Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Medical Examination for Permanent Residence Applicants
Biometrics instructions arrive separately. You have 30 days to visit a designated collection site to give your fingerprints and photograph.16Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Biometrics: Where to Give Your Fingerprints and Photo
One process to be aware of: IRCC has used a peer review panel of industry experts to evaluate the designated organization’s due diligence and the business model’s growth potential. That process was paused on August 1, 2024 while IRCC makes changes to it, and any peer reviews underway at that time were cancelled.17Government of Canada. Start-up Visa Designated Organizations: Peer Review Process
Processing Time
IRCC currently lists the processing time for Start-Up Visa applications as “more than 10 years.”18Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Immigrate With a Start-up Visa: About the Process That figure is not a typo. A large backlog built up over several years, and the closure to new applications in late 2025 was partly a response to it. Applicants already in line face a long wait.
Grounds That Can Still Cause a Refusal
Meeting the eligibility rules does not guarantee approval. Canada can refuse any applicant on grounds of criminal inadmissibility, medical inadmissibility, security concerns, or misrepresentation. A conviction for an offense with a Canadian equivalent can disqualify you. Applicants with past convictions may be able to apply for criminal rehabilitation once at least five years have passed since all sentences were completed, though the process itself can take a year or more.
On the medical side, an applicant whose health conditions are projected to cost Canadian health or social services more than roughly $28,878 CAD per year (or $144,390 over five years) may be found medically inadmissible for excessive demand. The threshold is updated periodically. Misrepresentation anywhere in the application, whether in the business plan, financial documents, or personal history, can trigger a refusal and a five-year ban from reapplying.
If the Business Fails Later
If your startup fails after you have received permanent residence, your status is not affected. IRCC states that not every startup will succeed and treats the risk as shared between the public and private sectors.19Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. If I Immigrate Through the Start-up Visa Program, What Happens If My Business Fails Your PR card does not depend on ongoing business performance, which sets this program apart from entrepreneur streams that tie residency to continued business activity.