JAVED Legal and Immigration Services assists with business immigration matters, including assessing your circumstances and advising on which routes are actually open to you. The main federal business programs are currently paused, and this page sets out where things stand.
Program status, current as at 20 September 2026. The Self-employed Persons Program is paused and IRCC is not accepting new applications. The Start-up Visa Program is paused and is closed to applications other than from people who already held a valid 2025 commitment certificate, and the deadline that applied to those has passed. In Ontario, the province states that the new Ontario Workforce Priority stream has launched and that its other Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program streams are now closed.
Confirm the current position with IRCC and with the relevant province before making plans or committing money.
The federal programs
The Self-employed Persons Program, which was directed at people with relevant experience in cultural activities or athletics, is paused. IRCC is not accepting new applications.
The Start-up Visa Program, which requires the support of a designated organisation, is paused. It is closed to new applications, and the limited route that remained for holders of a valid 2025 commitment certificate has now expired.
Because neither route is open to new applicants, this page does not set out their requirements in detail. Doing so would suggest an application can be made when it cannot.
Provincial routes
Provinces run their own immigration programs, decided by the province rather than by IRCC, and their requirements and intake periods change independently of the federal programs.
In Ontario, the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program is being restructured. The province states that the new Ontario Workforce Priority stream has launched and that its other streams are now closed, and it has signalled further changes. There is accordingly no open Ontario entrepreneur route at present. The current position is published by the province on the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program page.
Other provinces operate their own business and entrepreneur streams. Their status varies and changes independently, so none is described here without first checking it against the province’s own published material.
What an assessment covers
- What is actually open now, rather than what was open when an article or an advertisement was written.
- Whether a temporary route is relevant while a permanent residence route is unavailable. A work permit is a different question from permanent residence, and the work permits page describes the main categories.
- Whether an economic route fits better. Some people who approach the practice about business immigration are better suited to an economic program assessed on work experience, education and language.
- What would need to be in place if a paused program reopens, and what can sensibly be prepared in the meantime.
Common questions
Can I apply to the Start-up Visa Program now?
No. It is paused and closed to new applications.
Does buying or starting a business in Canada lead to permanent residence?
Not by itself. Permanent residence comes from a program, and the applicant has to meet that program’s requirements. Investing in a business does not create status on its own, and it is worth taking advice before committing money on that basis.
Is there an Ontario entrepreneur stream?
Not at present. Ontario states that its other Immigrant Nominee Program streams are closed following the launch of the Ontario Workforce Priority stream.
Discuss your matter
Be ready to describe the business, your own background and work history, where you are currently living, and your immigration status if you are already in Canada.
Related pages: immigration services · Express Entry and economic immigration · work permits · contact our office
Last reviewed: 20 September 2026 against IRCC and Government of Ontario material. Program status in this area changes frequently; check the official pages linked above for the current position.