bermudaby

The Canada Investor Fund
As of April 1, 1999, the Department of Citizenship and Immigration Canada is the single agent for the Investor Program. Prior to visa issuance, Investor immigrants will pay CAD$ 400,000 to the Receiver General for Canada. This can be arranged through the Canadian Embassy, Consulate or High Commission where the Investor application is made. Citizenship and Immigration Canada, as agent, will prepare and deliver to the Investor a debt obligation in the amount of CAD$ 400,000, repayable without interest after five years. This money will be allocated among Canadian provinces for their use.

You may finance your investment in the Immigrant Investor Program. It is your responsibility to make the appropriate arrangements with the financial institution of your choice. For more information, please refer to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada's website.

Does this mean that the only requirement for a visa is to deposit this money? If that's so, I assume that retired people could use this method to move to Canada? We would love to go and don't need to work for a living so....
If anyone has done this I'd be grateful for any feedback.
Many thanks

iaink

No, there is more to it than just money. The main one is business management experience

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/business/invest-1b.html

Some of the PNPs might require only substantial investments funds...dunno though as I didnt trawl through them all.

bermudaby

Many thanks for the response. I should have included the paragraph below, appears to put a slightly different slant?

The full amount of the investment (without interest) is guaranteed to be refunded to the investor after approximately five years.

This category normally appeals to those qualified business people who do not wish to be active in a new business in Canada, or do not wish to have terms and conditions applied to their visa

iaink

Where are you getting it from? The cic website?


I suspect from the date (1999) that its an old defunct class, just like the "retirement" class that used to exist too.

BC PNP website? I would ask in the immigration area, When you read the additional blurb on the investor PNP requirements I suspect the answer is that very few if any visas are handed out under those conditions alone, but someone like Andrew Millar would probably know for sure.

From the FAQs...
"For the BC PNP Business Categories, applicants are to establish new businesses or expand existing businesses very soon after their arrival in British Columbia."

Mayfly

The link below outlines the investor program.

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/business/invest-1.html

We have applied this way and have just received our medical requests. If we are accepted our processing time will be 10 months approximately. The average processing time through the UK seems to be approximately 12-18 months.

bermudaby

Thanks for the replies to my query. I'm not sure of anyone with the business knowledge they seem to want being prepared to invest $400,000 without receiving interest on the money! Bit of a contradiction there, methinks....

edinburgh

hi

we have applied this route , any bank will lend you the $400,000 up front because they know the government will pay it back after 5 years ,you just pick up the tab for the interest , you pay it up front

its costly but bypasses a lot of the time and problems mentioned on this site

good luck

iaink

Are you allowed to use borrowed funds? Wouldnt that be like borrowing the finds for skilled worker landing, only more so.

Sjt53

I have seen a couple of Immigration attourneys web sites,that speak of bank loans of CAN$280 with you paying the CAN$120 up front forfieting that by way of covering the loan intrest. What are the actual loses in real terms if one was to put up the whole amount and take a loss on accumalated intrest. I know in reallity you would probably expect to invest it in property and get a much better return but I just wonder if the banks are making a killing here?

Stesol

You are effectively buying your PR visa - the cost of which is the interest you lose on the investment and as edinburgh said, it can save a a lot of time and trouble

JonboyE

It is an effective annual compound rate of 7.394%. Not too bad but nice money for the bank given they have virtually no risk.

Sjt53

Thanks Jonboy
Hoping to move to Victoria but I will have to get qualification via the challenge route (as a carpenter) if you are familiar with that. It does make you wonder if the investment route would not be simpler though expensive!

lof

well, carpenters are in really high demand in the lower mainland and parts of vancouver island. shouldn't be that much of a challenge to find a job for the lmo-wp route or pnp or sw with aor, i guess??? unless i'm missing something here...