The Government of Canada has officially updated program delivery instructions for business visitors and investors holding Vietnamese passports, given that the Comprehensive and Progress Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) for Vietnam entered into force on January 14, 2019.
With this update, businesspersons from Vietnam have gained heretofore unprecedented access to Canadian immigration, both on short-term and longer-term basis.
The investor provisions of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) now apply to applicants who
- are citizens of Australia, Japan, Mexico or Vietnam;
- will establish, develop or administer an investment to which the business person or their enterprise has committed or is in the process of committing a substantial amount of capital; and
- are in a supervisory or executive role or a role that involves essential skills.
Successful applicants to this program are eligible for a one-year work permit, with possible extensions at the officer’s discretion if the applicant is able to provide documentation that satisfies the processing officer of the applicant’s need to have their stay extended. This also will allow the applicants to accumulate valuable time working in Canada, for the purposes of a Permanent Residence Application.
The overall terms and conditions are similar in many respects to the U.S.’ E-2 visa. There is no minimum dollar figure established for meeting the requirement of “substantial” investment to qualify for this permit. Substantiality is normally determined by using a “proportionality test” in which the amount invested is weighed against one of the following factors:
- the total value of the particular enterprise in question (determining proportion is a largely straightforward calculation involving the weighing of evidence of the actual value of an established business, i.e., purchase price or tax valuation, against the evidence of the amount invested by the applicant); or
- the amount normally considered necessary to establish a viable enterprise of the nature contemplated. (This may be a less straightforward calculation. Officers will have to base the decision on reliable information on the Canadian business scene to determine whether the amount of the intended investment is reasonable for the type of business involved.)
Obviously, this is a sliding scale calculation. The amount of “substantial” investment to create a Canadian digital consulting business is far less than a new Canadian Oil company.
The objective of investor status is to promote productive investment in Canada. Therefore, an applicant is not entitled to this status if the investment, even if substantial, will return only enough income to provide a living for the applicant and family.
For more information regarding investment immigration to Canada, contact us today.
