Canadian Immigration Questions and Answers with Attorney David Cohen

Every month, Attorney David Cohen will answer a few general Canadian immigration questions submitted by our readers. Here are this month’s questions and answers:

I am interested in immigrating through the Quebec Provincial Nomination Program’s Business Immigration (Entrepreneur) Category. What do I need in order to be eligible to apply?

To be eligible for the Quebec Entrepreneur Program, an applicant must:

• Have net assets of at least $300,000, legally obtained;
• Have at least two years experience in the last five years running a lawful and profitable business, of which the applicant owns at least 25%;
• Present an application in one of the two following program components:

-Submit a business plan with the purpose of creating or acquiring a business in Quebec that the applicant will manage and own at least 25% of the equity with a value of at least $100,000; or

• Have acquired at least 25% of the capital equity in a business in Quebec with a value of $100,000. The applicant must be involved in the management of the business.

Between April 1^st, 2014 and March 31^st, 2015, Quebec will be accepting a total of 500 applications from entrepreneurs and self-employed workers. To date, Quebec has already received 366 applications, according to the government’s website.

I am filling out an application for a Labour Market Impact Assessment. What is the difference between low-wage and high-wage positions?

When applying for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) a Canadian employer must offer a specific wage to the foreign worker. In order to determine what that wage is, an employer must find the median wage for that specific occupation in the specific region where the foreign worker will be working. The median wages per occupation can be found on the Canada Job Bank Website.

Once the employer has determined the median wage for that occupation in the region, he must then compare that wage to the general provincial/territorial median wage (which is not occupation specific). You can see a list of provincial median wages here.

If the prevailing wage for the position being offered is above the general provincial wage, the position is considered high-wage. If the prevailing wage for the position being offered is lower than the provincial wage, the position is considered low-wage.

For example according to the Canada Job Bank website, the median wage for a Software Developer in Toronto is $33.65 per hour. The median provincial/territorial wage for Ontario is $21.00. As such, a Software Developer in Toronto would be considered a high-wage position.

For more information, please visit our page on Labour Market Impact Assessments 

I am an international student who recently graduated from university in Nova Scotia. I would like to live and work in Nova Scotia permanently.  What are my options to receive permanent residency in Nova Scotia?

There are many options available to individuals who have acquired Canadian experience.

An international graduate from a Canadian college or university in Nova Scotia, with a job offer from a Nova Scotia employer, can apply for permanent residency through the nominee program’s Skilled Worker stream.

See more at: http://novascotiaimmigration.com/new-immigration-pathway-created-for-international-students/#sthash.F2VQDmDl.dpuf

In addition, international graduates who have obtained at least one year of skilled, professional or technical work experience in Canada may also be eligible for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) or the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP).

For more information about the requirements for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), please visit the following link:

http://www.canadavisa.com/canadian-experience-class.html

For more information regarding the requirements for the Federal Skilled Worker Program, please visit the following link:

http://www.canadavisa.com/canadian-skilled-worker-immigration.html

 If you would like your general immigration question to be featured in our newsletter, please email your question to QNA@CANADAVISA.COM

If you would like to be assessed for Canadian immigration, please complete a free Canadian immigration assessment form.