International Business Start-Ups

If you have a new start-up business, you may qualify to enter Canada with an ICT Start-Up Visa. To encourage entrepreneurial growth, Canada has created a special program for international businesses seeking expansion into Canada through the Intra-Company Transfer (ICT) category.

If you’re a key staff member of a business in your home country, and you’re seeking to expand into the Canadian marketplace, the ICT Start-Up Visa lets you travel to Canada to open a new business office here.

When applying for the ICT Start-Up Visa, you’ll need to prove your company’s financial capability, and show a sensible business plan. At Xenoom we can help with all documentation, and we can also help secure the required physical location for the Canadian business office of your company. You may qualify under one of the two categories listed on this page.

Executive and Managerial

The company must show that it’s capable of supporting the business expansion into Canada. The business plan must detail the expected role of the executive or manager.

Specialized Knowledge

The company must show the employee’s knowledge is proprietary, and essential to the new Canadian start-up operations. The employee’s skills and value to the company are based on that knowledge and experience.

The ICT Start-Up Visa program can give you a one-year temporary work permit. Renewal of this permit depends on fulfilling three conditions.

  1. The Canadian company must qualify as a branch, subsidiary or affiliate of the company in your home country
  2. Both the new Canadian office and the foreign employer must continuously provide the indicated goods and/or services for the entire year
  3. The new physical office must be staffed during the year

If you’re planning to live in Quebec, be aware that employers based there will only hire International skilled workers on Temporary Work Permits who have a CAQ in addition to the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).

The CAQ certifies that the Quebec Ministère d’Immigration, Diversité et Inclusion (MIDI) agrees with the idea that hiring an international worker

will have a neutral or positive effect on the local labor market. Jobs in Quebec that last for 30 days or fewer don’t require a CAQ.

Xenoom specialists can help you explore all the visa options, and quickly qualify for the right Canadian visa. To learn about eligibility for the ICT Start-Up Visa and other programs, contact us now!

ICT Start-Up Visa