The Immigrant Investor Program was created in 1986. Since its commencement, a total of over $3 billion dollars has been raised through this method. In fact, in the year 2004 alone, the province of Quebec raised $ 272 million and the federal program, approximately $ 720 million, from Investors and their families. Currently, Investors are predominately immigrating from China, Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong as well as the Middle East. There are also a significant number of investors whom emigrate from other regions of the globe.

Applicants seeking Investor status in Canada are those highly successful business persons who have established and/or directed a highly successful and lucrative business in their host country. Having met the qualifications for Investor Immigrant, Investors are not obliged to purchase or operate a business in Canada and their permanent residence is non-conditional. In order to be eligible under the Immigrant Investor Program, the Principal Applicant must demonstrate the following:


Must demonstrate a minimum of two years of management experience in a qualified business:

1. Two one –year management experience in a qualified business and control over a percentage of business equity; Investors are also obliged to hold and control a percentage of the business’s equity for a specified period of time.
2. Two one-year periods of experience in the management of at least five full-time employees per year in a business.
3. A combination of one-year management experience as described in (a) and one- year management experience as described in (b).

1. You must demonstrate that the ‘fair market value’ of all your assets and the assets of your spouse or common-law partner were legally obtained*;
2. These assets must also exceed the ‘fair market value’ of all your and your spouse or common-law partner’s liabilities by a minimum of CAD $800,000.

1. Investors are required to invest a minimum of CAD $400,000 into the Canadian economy, which is returned free of interest after an approximately five-years term.
2. The investment is administered by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and is fully guaranteed. The investment will be used to create jobs and help the province’s economy grow.
3. Investors may also seek to jointly provide this fund (CAD $400,000) by making an arrangement with an existing reliable investment company or bank, where the investor will provide CAD $120,000 and the remainder ($280,000 CAD) is provided on loan by this affiliate.

Must obtain a minimum of 35 points under the selection grid:

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has a point system that is used to calculate the eligibility of applicants based on several criteria. Applicants must obtain a total of 35 points to be eligible. As a result of the Canada- Quebec Accord, the province of Quebec operates its own Immigrant Investor Program that can be found in the Quebec Immgration section of this website. Should you wish to live and invest in the province of Quebec, you must meet the specific requirements of its program, which differ from the rest of Canada's provinces and territories.


Note:Having satisfied these criteria, you must still meet the security and health requirements of the Federal government. The following offers a summary of the key requirements for Investor Immigrants as specified by Canadian Immigration Canada.