Comparison Between EB-5 Visa To USA And Canada IIP
You simply cannot afford to escape this comparison between EB-5 visa and Canada Immigrant Investor Program, if USA investment is what you dream of. While USA indeed is a land of opportunities but this surely isnt sufficient reason for you to immigrate to US at the earliest, to establish a new business or invest in an already existing business there.
Immigration experts at Abhinav have put in a lot of their precious time to save their clients from making, probably the most expensive mistake of their life, as they study and unravel the intricacies of the two programs before you. Given below are a few points that compare business or investor program for US (EB-5 visa) with an investor or business program for Canada (Canada Immigrant Investor Program)
Investment formalities There are several points that can form the basis of comparison under the investment formalities:
Minimum investment amount - The minimum investment amount to qualify under the EB-5 program is $500,000, if you plan to position your commercial enterprise within any rural area; else the minimum amount is $1,000,0000.
A deposit of CDN $400,000 needs to be given by the applicant for a span of five years into the securities guaranteed by the Canadian government. Besides, the eligibility criteria that include relevant business/managerial experience for at least two out of the past five years is required, before we file your application. Minimum net worth of CDN $800,000 is also required. However, there is no compulsion for the creation of jobs by your Canadian business.
Going by the currency rates nowadays, investment under the EB-5 program is significantly higher than required under Canada IIP (Immigrant Investor Program).
Option to get the investment amount financed - Also, Canada IIP also provides you the flexibility of seeking loan from the authorized financial institution, in order to meet the demands of investment under this program. You may simply make the margin payment of at least CAD $120,000 and get the remaining amount financed by the authorized financial body. So, you can avail an excellent investment opportunity in Canada at such a minimum opportunity cost. However, there is no such financing option available under the EB-5 program.
Time for submitting the investment amount - Investment in Canada IIP is demanded once the application forms, declarations and documentation formalities, including selection interview, in relation to business experience and accumulation of net worth are all completed and approved by visa officials.
The foremost requirement of EB-5 visa program is to make the qualifying investment with ISCIS, followed by filing the Form I-526 petition along with the supporting documents and after this takes over the immigration process to check your profile against the eligibility criteria. In this case, you need to be prepared to lose a good deal of money, involved in the transfer of foreign exchange, if by any chance your application is refused. You may even have incurred some cost in buying and selling of some of your valuable assets to arrange for liquid funds for the investment amount that may add onto your loss even more. Not to forget, the non-refundable fee that might have been paid by you to apply for the EB-5 visa application.
Active vs. passive investment EB-5 is an active program that involves a mandatory requirement for your viable US business to create a minimum of 10 full-time jobs every year, for the initial two consecutive years. Participation of the immigrant in the policy making or management of the EB-5 business is also demanded. Limited partnership or a limited partner is deemed according to the regulations that comply with the Uniform Limited Partnership Act. This program permits the immigrant to do whatever they wish, while the US, including looking for employment in USA.
Canadian IIP, on the other hand, is a passive investment program. Qualifying candidate does not have any compulsion to start up with the business or manage and hire any employees. Creation of jobs is also not forced upon the investor. After gaining an approval under this visa, you are free to indulge in any activity you wish, in Canada. This may even include seeking a job or starting an active business in Canada. Moreover, if you wish to establish a business enterprise, there is no restriction regarding the nature of business or geographical area, as in the case of EB-5.
Unconditional vs. conditional green card On approval under the EB-5 program, a two-year conditional visa is granted to you. During this conditional period, you have to comply with certain post-visa conditions, like direct creation of a minimum of ten full-time jobs by your US commercial enterprise, and many more. If you fail to abide by these conditions, you will have no other option than to leave the country, no matter how well your business might be doing.
When it comes to Canada IIP approval, you have the unconditional permanent residence status from the very first day of your landing in Canada. So, you need not worry about any conditions that you must adhere to, in order to get the status of the Canadian permanent resident.
Documentation requirements EB-5 documentation formalities are a lot more subjective and extensive for the EB-5 program. Constant demand of evidences also leads excessive processing delays in some cases.
Administrative fee Apart from the USD $500,000 for investment, administrative fee of USD $50,000 is also demanded at most investments of regional centers. In case of refusal of your visa application, major part of this fee is not refunded.
In the case of Canada IIP program, the cost is incurred towards the government offices as processing fee of the application. Usually, a family consisting of the applicant, two children (dependant) and spouse, costs almost CAD $6000.This fee is non-refundable. However, the consultation fee charged by us would definitely be returned to you, in case of refusal of your application.
Dependants allowed Anyone below the age of 21 years is considered a dependent under the EB-5 program. In case of Canada IIP, anyone below 22 years of age is considered a dependent, to be a part of the application of the principal applicant. Also, full-time students (from any government or accredited institution) above 22-years are also considered as dependents only, under the Canadian immigration investor program.
So, Abhinav offers both these attractive programs but being concerned about the welfare of our clients, our recommendation is Canada Immigrant Investor Program, which is enjoying a coveted advantage nowadays due to its well-established procedures and simplicity. Please contact us for any further clarification on the matter or you may simply fill our free assessment form to get a charge-free evaluation of your eligibility for EB-5 or Canada IIP and we shall revert to you very soon.
