Canada Launches a Startup Visa to Lure Entrepreneurs

Warning to Silicon Valley and Bangalore: Canada wants to poach your entrepreneurs. The country, which already has one of the world’s most open immigration policies, began accepting applications for a new visa for highly skilled entrepreneurs on April 1. Under the pilot program, foreign nationals with funding from a government-approved list of about two dozen Canadian venture capital firms or angel investor groups can apply for immediate permanent residency. “If a Canadian venture capitalist is going to invest in a startup, we’d rather that business [be located] in Canada than India or Silicon Valley or somewhere else overseas,” says Jason Kenney, Canada’s citizenship, immigration, and multiculturalism minister.

The country joins a growing list of nations, including Australia, Chile, and the U.K., that have recently introduced or revamped visas designed to woo foreign entrepreneurs. Unlike Canada, most only grant permanent residency once startups can prove they’re having a positive economic impact—an assessment usually based on the number of well-paying jobs created.