Can you start a business on your status?
Permanent residents and citizens can start and run any business. Holders of an open work permit can generally be self-employed; holders of an employer-specific work permit generally cannot work for their own business; study permit holders are limited in the work they can do; and visitors can own a company but not work in it. The rule that matters is whether operating the business counts as “work” under your permit, and that is an immigration question: confirm it with a licensed immigration consultant (RCIC) or lawyer before you open the doors.
Owning shares or being a director is separate from working. Many newcomers incorporate while their status is still in progress, with the business plan and the registration ready for the day they can operate.
The steps, in the order that works
The sequence matters because each step depends on the one before it.
- 1Get your Social Insurance Number (SIN) if you do not have one yet; you need it for CRA accounts and payroll.
- 2Choose the structure: sole proprietorship to test an idea cheaply, or a corporation for limited liability, the small business tax rate and credibility with banks and landlords. See our guide on sole proprietorship versus corporation.
- 3Pick the province and register. Each province has its own registry and rules; our province pages explain each one. Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta and most others have no residency requirement for directors.
- 4Obtain your CRA Business Number with the accounts you need (GST/HST, payroll, corporate tax, import-export).
- 5Open the business bank account. Bring the registration documents, the Business Number and identification for every director; ask about the bank’s newcomer package.
- 6Get licences and permits from your municipality and industry regulator, then register with the workers’ compensation board before you hire.
- 7Brand and launch: a Google Business Profile, business email, a simple website and signage make a new business look established from day one.
If your immigration pathway needs a business plan
Several pathways are built around a business: the federal Start-up Visa, the entrepreneur streams of the provincial nominee programs (Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, the Atlantic provinces and the territories), Quebec’s entrepreneur and investor programs, intra-company transfers for opening a Canadian branch, and the C11 entrepreneur work permit. Every one of them asks for a business plan written to the program’s criteria: investment, jobs, location, your experience and the business’s viability.
We write those plans and the financial projections behind them, working directly with your immigration representative, who sets the strategy and files the application. We do not provide immigration advice.
Money and support for newcomer entrepreneurs
Canada funds newcomer entrepreneurs more than most people expect. Futurpreneur Canada offers loans and mentoring to founders aged 18 to 39, the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) lends to small businesses including new ones, the Canada Small Business Financing Program guarantees bank loans for equipment and leaseholds, and every province runs small business centres with free advice. Community Futures offices cover rural areas. Banks also compete for newcomer customers with fee waivers and credit cards that do not require a Canadian credit history.
A credible business plan with realistic projections is the common requirement across all of them, which is why we treat the plan as the first deliverable rather than the last.
Where newcomers get stuck
- The bank: arriving without one of the documents, or choosing a bank that cannot open an account for your residency situation. We check the bank’s requirements first and assemble the kit.
- Sales tax: registering for GST/HST late (or too early), or not realizing that British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Quebec have a second provincial tax with its own return.
- Deadlines: an Ontario initial return within 60 days, annual returns, payroll remittances and T4s. A missed annual return can eventually get a corporation dissolved.
- Language rules in Quebec for business names and signage.