The Canadian Start-Up Visa Program has officially opened today.
Entrepreneurs from around the world who wants to build companies in Canada can apply to the pilot program, which will run for five years to provide permanent residency and access to a wide range of business partners.
Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has worked with Canada’s Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA) and the National Angel Capital Organization (NACO), to designate the venture capital funds and angel investor groups that participate in the program.
They include:
Venture Capital Funds
BDC Venture Capital
– Blackberry Partners Fund II LP (doing business as Relay Ventures Fund II)
– Celtic House Venture Partners
– Celtic House Venture Partners Fund III L.P.
– Celtic House Venture Partners Fund IV LP
– DRI Capital Inc.
– Golden Opportunities Fund Inc.
– iNovia Capital Inc.
– New Brunswick Innovation Foundation Inc.
– Northwater Intellectual Property Fund
– OMERS Ventures Management Inc.
– Pangaea Ventures Fund III, LP
– PRIVEQ Capital Funds
– PRIVEQ III Limited Partnership
– PRIVEQ IV Limited Partnership
– Quorum Group
– Advantage Growth (No.2) L.P.
– Ontario SME Capital Corporation
– Quorum Investment Pool Limited Partnership
– Quorum Secured Equity Trust
– Rho Canada Ventures
– Summerhill Venture Partners Management Inc.
– Tandem Expansion Management Inc.
– Vanedge Capital Limited Partnership
– Version One Ventures
– Wellington Financial LP
– Westcap Mgt. Ltd.
– Yaletown Venture Partners Inc.
Angel Investor Groups
– Angel One Network Inc.
– First Angel Network Association
– Golden Triangle Angel Network
To apply for permanent resident status in the country, the foreign entrepreneur must:
– secure an investment from one of the above mentioned angel investor groups or venture capital funds;
– demonstrate language proficiency skills at a Canadian Language Benchmark 5 in listening, speaking, reading and writing, and
– have at least one year of education at a post-secondary institution.
FinSMEs
01/04/2013