Canada Start-Up Visa (SUV)

The Start-up Visa (SUV) program is paused. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) stopped taking applications on June 30, 2026 and continues to process the applications it accepted before that date.

The program gave permanent residence to entrepreneurs whose business had the backing of a designated venture capital fund, angel investor group or business incubator.

General intake had already ended on Dec. 31, 2025, except for applicants holding a valid commitment made in 2025, according to an IRCC notice. The same notice announced a new, targeted pilot for immigrant entrepreneurs in 2026. IRCC hasn't launched it or given a start date.

• Status: paused since June 30, 2026
• New applications: none accepted
• Applications already accepted: still processed
• SUV work permit: no new applications since Dec. 19, 2025, except extensions for applicants already in Canada

Remote workers and founders weighing Canada now should read the Canada guide, which covers the routes still open, including visitor stays for people working for employers abroad.

These were the rules while the program was open. They still apply to applications in process.

• Support from a designated organization: a venture capital fund committing at least CA$200,000, investors from a designated angel group committing at least CA$75,000, or acceptance into a designated business incubator's program. The money came from the organization, not the applicant.
• Ownership: Each applicant must hold at least 10% of the voting rights, and the applicants and the designated organization together must hold more than 50%.
• Language: Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 5 in listening, reading, writing and speaking, in English or French, from an approved test.
• Settlement funds: at least CA$15,263 for a single applicant, rising with family size.
• Location: businesses in Quebec weren't eligible.

Family can join: Yes. A spouse or common-law partner and dependent children could be included in the permanent residence application.

A complete application combined three kinds of evidence, each tied to an eligibility rule above:

• The commitment from the designated organization
• Results from an approved English or French language test at the required level
• Proof of settlement funds, using IRCC's table (updated July 29, 2025), which starts at CA$15,263 for one person

No new applications can be filed while the program is paused, so the checklist matters only to applicants whose files IRCC already accepted.

These fees apply to applications still in process.

• Processing fee, principal applicant: CA$1,895 for applications received on or after April 30, 2026
• Right of permanent residence fee: CA$600, paid before permanent residence is granted; the amount in force at the time of payment applies
• Spouse or partner: CA$990, or CA$1,590 with the right of permanent residence fee
• Settlement funds: at least CA$15,263 for one person; this is money shown, not a fee

Fees are listed on IRCC's fee list.

Where to apply: Online through the IRCC Permanent Residence (PR) Portal as the Start-Up Business Class; no new applications are accepted while the program is paused.

IRCC stopped accepting new applications for the optional SUV work permit on Dec. 19, 2025, except from applicants already in Canada, who can still extend an existing one. IRCC gives priority to permanent residence files of people in Canada on an SUV-specific work permit.

The IRCC page on next steps still describes the work permit as available while a file is processed; that text predates the change.

The program grants permanent residence directly; it is not a temporary visa. Successful applicants became permanent residents, with no visa to renew.

The optional SUV work permit was temporary. Since Dec. 19, 2025, only applicants already in Canada can extend one.

Tax follows residence, not immigration status. The Canada Revenue Agency decides residency first by residential ties. A person without significant residential ties who spends 183 days or more in Canada in a tax year is a deemed resident and reports world income, from inside and outside Canada.

A tax treaty can change the result for someone who is also resident in the treaty country. The SUV carried no tax rule of its own.