International Business Start-ups In Canada

Canada has created a special category for foreign businesses that want to set up new operations in Canada through the Intra-Company Transfer (ICT) category.

The ICT Start-Up Program allows key staff members of a foreign business to travel to Canada on a temporary basis to open a new office and begin doing business.

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When applying for an ICT Start-Up visa, applicants must demonstrate their company’s ability to become established in Canada. They must provide documentation that shows that the company can financially support a start-up operation. They will also have to outline plans for staffing and doing business in Canada, and prove that they have secured (or are in the process of securing) physical premises.

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Individuals being transferred through the ICT Start-Up Program must fall under one of two categories:

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• Executive/Managerial: The company must demonstrate that it is large enough to support an executive/managerial function; or

• Specialized Knowledge: The company must show that the employee’s knowledge is proprietary and is essential to start-up operations.

The ICT Start-Up program provides a one-year temporary work permit. Renewal of this permit is conditional, and depends on the company fulfilling three major factors:

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• The Canadian and foreign companies must maintain a qualifying relationship (branch, subsidiary or affiliate of the foreign employer);

• Both the new Canadian office and the foreign employer must have engaged in the continuous provision of goods or services for the past year; and

• The new office must have been staffed.

To learn if you or your company are eligible to apply to this program, please contact us.