Immigrant Investor Venture Capital (IIVC) Pilot Program

CIC will accept applications from May 25 to December 30, 2015, and will process the first 60 complete applications. CIC will also accept up to 60 additional applications that will be placed on a waiting list.

The program may close earlier if 60 immigrant investors are approved for permanent residence, or once 60 applications are in processing and 60 applications are on the waiting list.

To qualify for the IIVC Pilot Program you must meet all of the requirements listed below. You must also plan to live outside the province of Quebec.

• You must have a personal net worth of CDN $10 million or more. Your net worth must have been acquired through lawful, private sector business or investment activities.

Personal net worth acquired by inheritance or in the value of your primary residence will not count towards the personal net worth requirement.

• CIC will require applicants whose applications can be considered for their second stage review to obtain a due diligence report at the applicant’s expense from one of the designated service providers. The due diligence report is an independent examination and validation of your past business or investment experience, source of funds and personal net worth.
• You must be willing and able to make an at-risk investment (non-guaranteed) of CDN $2 millionin the Immigrant Investor Venture Capital (IIVC) Fund. If you are one of the immigrant investors approved under this program, you will be required to enter into an agreement with CIC committing a sum of CDN $2 million to the IIVC Fund for approximately 15 years. As with any venture capital investment, you could receive proceeds over time or at the end of the investment term. Proceeds will depend upon the fund’s performance and will be based on its gains or losses, including expenses and fees incurred in managing the fund. However, this would be an at-risk investment. This means that there is no guarantee of a return and it is possible that you could lose some or all of your investment.
• Language skills. You must: prove your proficiency in English or French in all four language abilities (speaking, reading, listening and writing) and meet the minimum language levels of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 5 in either English or French for all four language abilities.
• You must have:
  • a completed Canadian post-secondary degree, diploma or certificate of at least one year
    OR
  • a foreign equivalent, as validated by an original Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) report from a CIC-designated organization. The ECA report must indicate that your completed foreign education credential is equal to a completed Canadian post-secondary education credential of at least one year.
• If you can demonstrate that you have a personal net worth of $50 million or more acquired through lawful, private sector business or investment activities, you can request an exemption from the education requirement when you apply, using the form provided by CIC.

Inadmissibility

Some people are inadmissible – they are not allowed to come to Canada. Many things can make you inadmissible, such as being involved in criminal activity, in human rights violations, or in organized crime.

You can also be inadmissible for:

• security, health or financial reasons, or
• if you have lied in your application (or former application) or in an interview, or
• if you do not meet the conditions in Canada’s immigration law, or
• if one of your family members is not allowed into Canada.

If you are inadmissible to Canada, you cannot apply under the Immigrant Investor Venture Capital Pilot Program – your application will be refused.

Contact Visa2Canada today to find out if you qualify for the Venture Capital Pilot Program