To start or expand a business in Ontario, Ontario immigration has started a OINP Corporate Stream. The OINP Corporate Stream provides support to established international corporations or business to expand its operations or buy a business in Ontario. In order to apply for OINP corporate stream Canada visa, a candidate needs to make an OINP login and file application online through OINP e filing portal. OINP Corporate Stream specifically focuses on business immigration to Ontario.
After some time when the business is successfully established under the OINP Corporate Stream, the key staff members becomes eligible to apply for provincial nominee certificate under the Ontario PNP (OINP). This allows the employees to gain the Canadian permanent residency under the Immigrate to Canada norms. The corporation’s signing officer becomes the key applicant under this stream. Points can be calculated under the Ontario Immigration points calculator.
There are various requirements that need to fulfilled in order to be eligible under the OINP Corporate Stream. Following are those specific requirements:-
Under this, the corporates need to fulfill some requirements in order to proceed further with the application process in the OINP Corporate Stream under Ontario PNP. Following are those requirements:-
✍ It must have been established for at least 36 months at the time of application.
✍ It must currently employ key staff seeking nominations, and these key staff must be essential to the business operation in Ontario.
✍ Corporate must create five full-time permanent positions for Canadian citizens or permanent residents for each nominee position being sought.
✍ There is a period of two years for key staff nominees to demonstrate a minimum language requirement.
✍ They must create five new full-time permanent jobs for Canadians or permanent residents per key staff member. The positions ought to be paid at on or above the associated prevailing wage level and the position must be filled for at least 10 months before the submission of the final report.
Under this the two further criteria that emerge out. Following are those criteria:-
If there is a succession of business, following are the criteria which needs to be fulfilled in order to be proceed further in settling up the business in Ontario:-
✍ Current proposed business plan must grow or expand the business.
✍ If the business is being purchased, the ownership must completely be transferred from the previous owner(s) to the corporation.
✍ Business ought to exist in continuous operation by the same owner for the previous 5 months.
✍ Business organizations must preserve all existing permanent full-time jobs.
✍ The business must not be previously owned and operated by current or former OINP business stream nominees.
✍ Business organizations must maintain, at minimum, the current wage levels and employment terms of existing staff.
✍ Business organizations must meet the job creation commitment.
If the business is established in Ontario or there is a leasehold company is proposed to come into existence, following are the conditions that are required to be fulfilled:-
✍ Business must demonstrate that all commitments outlined in the Performance Agreement are met in two-year monitoring period and which makes them eligible for the nomination.
✍ There is a limit of three projects per year.
✍ Companies eligible for land development demonstrate that the proposed business is a long-term and non-speculative investment. Plus the land development is an vital part of the core business.
✍ Activity (ies) proposed must be a permanent, ongoing business that seeks to expand or improve the current status.
✍ Companies under the leasehold must produce the proposed good or deliver a service of their own and not just set-up to manage the operations of other companies to make a profit.
✍ Businesses must provide local site certification documents and local planning authority approval.
In order to run and support the proposed business, the prospective candidate must fulfill some conditions under the Ontario PNP Immigration. These conditions are as follows:-
✍ It should be considered a permanent business in Ontario.
✍ Business operating in province must have a clear structural linkage to the Parent Corporation.
✍ Business ought to follow Canadian legal requirements, all regulatory industry and licensing requirements.
✍ Business must derive its primary income sources from active (earned) income.
✍ There should be a intention to make a profit through the sale of goods and/or services.
✍ Business must also comply with all provincial labour laws, employment standards, health and safety, and labour relations legislation.
✍ A business plan should be submitted in a written document that describes the proposed business in detail, including:
i) Purpose and objectives of the proposed business.
ii) Operation and finance goals.
iii) Challenges that lie between the execution of the business plan and the achievement of its purpose, objectives, and goals.
iv) Strategies for overcoming challenges.
A business should also fulfill the requirements of investment laid by the Ontario Immigration. Following are the criteria that are required to be fulfilled for investment in Ontario:-
✍ Proposed investment activity by business must be of significant economic benefit to Ontario.
✍ Businesses must make a minimum investment of CAD 5 million to expand into Ontario or purchase an existing business in the province.
✍ The established business in Ontario in a land development or a leasehold company, have some additional requirements which are as follows:
i) The investment must be a minimum of CAD 10 million.
ii) The proposed investment amount must cover more than the purchase price of the land and construction costs.
✍ Business investment funds must have been obtained from legal sources.
There are some requirements the key staff needs to fulfill in order to be eligible for the further processing in the OINP Corporate Stream. Following are those requirements:-
✍ Staff is essential for the establishment and operations of the business.
✍ The key staff ought to in a senior, executive or management level or must possess specialized knowledge capacity in the applicant corporation’s existing business. Single key staff can only be proposed in a NOC A position.
✍ Staff must possess at least 36 months of experience in the last 60 months in the intended position they will hold in the proposed business in Ontario with the applicant corporation;
✍ Member of the staff must be continuously working for the applicant corporation in that position in the immediate 12 months prior to the submission of the application;
✍ There should be no immediate family relationship with any member of the corporation’s executive board or board of directors or shareholders who hold more than 10 percent equity in the corporation in frame.
✍ Staff must not hold equity in the company, except in the case where that equity has been obtained as part of the remuneration package in accordance with the employee contract. Here point to be noted is that the equity held by the key staff ought to be less than 10 percent of the business.
✍ Member of the staff or employee must be taking on permanent full-time positions in the proposed business in Ontario that meet the prevailing wage levels.
Key staff members have to fulfill some additional conditions in order to qualify under this visa and gain a permanent residency status. Following are those conditions:-
✍ Staff must possess a language proficiency equivalent to Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 5 in English and/or French. Language proficiency must be demonstrated through the following International English Language Testing (IELTS) General Test Scores and French test scores i.e. TEF score in each language proficiency.
i) Listening: IELTS 5 or TEF 181-216
ii) Reading: IELTS 4 or TEF 151-180
iii) Writing: IELTS 5 or TEF 226-270
iv) Speaking: IELTS 5 or TEF 226-270
✍ Staff has to put up in Ontario for at least 9 months out of the 12 month period in which they are in Ontario under a temporary work permit.
✍ They must be in the position for which they were approved by the OINP and must be carrying out the approved job duties.
In order to establish a business in Ontario under Ontario PNP, a corporate needs to follow a process in order to streamline the application process. Following is the set process for OINP Corporate Stream:-
1. Satisfying criteria set for OINP Corporate Stream.
2. Application Submission
3. Assessing the application
4. Performance Agreement signing
5. Temporary Work Permit
6. Arriving and establishing business
7. Nominating and applying for Permanent Residence (PR)
8. Monitoring
Signing officer along with key staff members ought to attend the in person interview in the OINP offices in Ontario shortly after the application is submitted. This interview stage helps to better understand the proposed business plan and key staff members experience. The applicant company have to bear all the expenses relating to transportation and other cost incurred for the interview.
The company or the corporation has to sign a performance agreement with OINP, if the application is approved. This agreement indicates the commitments to be fulfilled by the corporation and key staff members in order to be eligible for the permanent residence status (PR) in Ontario.
Following are the things included in the document:-
✍ Investment amount and the timelines
✍ Timeframes of any commitments
✍ Business description
✍ Mandate business milestones and achievements
✍ Number and type of positions to be created for Canadian citizens or permanent residents
A point to be noted here is it is on the discretion of OINP to offer a permanent residency (PR) status to key staff member. If the business does not comply with the commitments mentioned in the Performance Agreement, the key staff members won’t be eligible for the permanent residency (PR) status.
When the key staff arrives in Ontario, the corporation has to submit the final report, in the template provided, between 18 to 20 months with their valid work permits. In the final report, the business ought to demonstrate that they have met the all commitments in performance agreement. The report in picture starts the nomination process and submission to OINP is done only when they have completed the required monitoring of the business.
OINP issues a Letter of confirmation after the signing procedure of Performance Agreement is done. Through this Letter the business can apply for the temporary work permit which would allow the key staff with their families to Ontario province on temporary basis.
Not all businesses are eligible in the Ontario province under under the OINP Corporate Stream of Canada Immigration. Those businesses which post a risk to long term economic benefit for the province are not considered eligible. The proposed business in this category is that business who cannot be included in the list of ineligible businesses.
There are some occupations not eligible in the area of Greater Toronto Area. Following are the businesses ineligible in the said area:-
✍ Holding Companies
✍ Franchises already present in Ontario province though new foreign franchises expanding into Ontario are permitted.
✍ Businesses being previously owned or operated by current or former OINP business stream nominee.
✍ Bed and Breakfasts
✍ Automated Car Wash Operations
✍ Gas Stations
✍ Tire Recycling
✍ Scrap Metal Recycling
✍ Pawnbrokers
✍ Laundromats
✍ Payday loan and related businesses
There are some businesses ineligible outside of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Following are business that are not eligible to apply outside of Greater Toronto Area (GTA)
✍ Holding Companies
✍ Pawn brokers
✍ Tire Recycling
✍ Businesses which have been previously owned/operated by current or former OINP business stream nominees
✍ Scrap Metal Recycling
✍ Laundromats
✍ Automated Car Wash Operations
✍ Payday loan and related businesses
For more updates upon the Ontario Corporate Stream please do call us on +919625212959 Email your queries on info@makevisas.com.
