Start-up Visa Canada (SUV)

What the Start-up Visa is

The Start-up Visa (SUV) is a federal permanent-residence program for entrepreneurs with an innovative business idea that is supported by a designated organisation in Canada. The defining feature is that endorsement: a designated venture capital fund, angel investor group or business incubator must agree to back your business and issue a Letter of Support (with a matching commitment certificate sent to IRCC).

Many entrepreneur routes give a temporary status that you later try to convert. The Start-up Visa instead leads directly to permanent residence, which makes it attractive to founders who want certainty about settling in Canada.

It exists to attract genuinely innovative companies that can compete globally and create jobs in Canada. That ambition runs through the whole program: the designated organisations are gatekeepers for quality, and a strong, credible business case is the heart of every successful application.

The four core requirements

Whatever the business, every Start-up Visa application rests on four pillars. All of them must be satisfied, and meeting the baseline ones does not guarantee approval; the business case still has to convince.

Designated organisations and the Letter of Support

A designated organisation is a Canadian body, a venture capital fund, an angel investor group or a business incubator, that IRCC has approved to support Start-up Visa Canada applicants. To use the program, you must persuade one of them to back your business, usually after a peer review and the organisation's own due diligence on your venture.

When they agree, two related documents appear: the Letter of Support is given to you to file with your application, while the organisation separately sends a matching commitment certificate directly to IRCC. The Letter of Support is the cornerstone of the whole application: without it, there is no Start-up Visa.

Each type of organisation has its own expectations and cost. A venture capital fund or angel investor group typically commits a minimum investment in the business, while a business incubator accepts you into its program rather than investing cash. Securing that backing is competitive, and a polished, well-evidenced pitch is what separates the applications that win support from those that do not. Our team helps you prepare a credible case before you approach an organisation, while being clear that the designated organisation, not us, decides whether to issue the Letter of Support.

Multiple founders: up to five principal applicants

The Start-up Visa is built for teams, not only solo founders. Up to five ownerscan be named as principal applicants on a single qualifying business. Each must individually meet the language and settlement-fund requirements and pass admissibility, and the designated organisation's support must identify the essential members of the team. Because the application links the founders together, the structure needs care: if one essential applicant withdraws or is refused, it can affect the others. We plan team applications so the business case and the people behind it stay aligned from the outset.

The interim work permit

Permanent-residence processing takes time, and a promising business should not have to wait idle. Applicants whose start-up is ready to launch may be eligible for a temporary work permit so they can come to Canada and start building the company while the PR application is processed. This permit is tied to the start-up and is intended to keep momentum behind the venture. It is not automatic, and eligibility depends on your circumstances and the readiness of the business, so we assess whether the interim work permit is available and worthwhile in your particular case.

Start-up Visa processing time, cost and intake caps

Two timing factors shape a Start-up Visa plan. First, the permanent-residence processing time takes a meaningful period. Second, and importantly, the program applies intake caps and limits on the number of applications it accepts, and these can change.

Caps mean that the timing and order of applications can matter as much as the strength of the file. Because both the processing estimates and the intake limits are adjusted by IRCC from time to time, we point applicants to canada.ca for the current Start-up Visa processing time and intake position rather than quoting a fixed timeline that may already have moved.

On the cost side, plan for two separate budgets. The first is the IRCC government fees plus the settlement funds you must show, both confirmed on canada.ca. The second is the investment side: a designated venture capital fund or angel investor group will expect a minimum investment in the business, while a business incubator charges for or selects you into its program. We set out our own professional fee in writing so the full picture of the startup visa Canada cost is clear before you commit.

Start-up Visa compared with other routes

The Start-up Visa is one of several routes for people who want to build or run a business in Canada, and it is not always the best fit. If your background is in cultural activities or athletics rather than an innovative scalable company, the federal Self-Employed Persons Program may be more relevant (subject to its current availability).

If you would rather invest in or manage an established or smaller business in a specific province, the entrepreneur streams within the Provincial Nominee Programs are often a better match. And skilled workers without a business idea usually look to Express Entry instead. Our team weighs these options honestly against your profile, because choosing the wrong route is the most expensive mistake an entrepreneur can make.

How Wild Mountain helps with the Start-up Visa

Working under a licensed RCIC (CICC #R706497), our team supports Start-up Visa Canada applicants from first assessment through to the permanent-residence application. We check eligibility honestly, help structure a qualifying business that fits the voting-rights and active-management rules, prepare you to approach designated organisations, and build a complete, accurate application around the Letter of Support once it is secured.

We represent clients entirely online, by video call and secure document sharing, and we are clear about what we can and cannot control: we do not issue Letters of Support, and changeable figures such as settlement funds, processing time and intake caps are always confirmed against canada.ca.

1. 01

   Assess and strategise

   We review your business idea, team, language and funds against the Start-up Visa rules, and compare it honestly with PNP entrepreneur streams and other routes.

2. 02

   Structure and pitch

   We help you structure a qualifying business and prepare to approach designated organisations for a Letter of Support, with clear written fees.

3. 03

   Apply for PR

   Once the Letter of Support is secured, we build and submit the permanent-residence application, and assess whether the interim work permit fits your timeline.