Business Concept PNP Plans

The Provincial Nominee Program (usually abbreviated PNP) is a provincial immigration pathway that allows provinces to nominate prospective immigrants for entry into Canada, based on the potential economic benefit to the province.

If you own a business or have senior management experience in your current country of residence and wish to immigrate to Canada, we can help you develop a business concept to satisfy the PNP’s entrance requirements. The Business Concept accompanies the registration package or expression of interest (EOI) which is the first step in the application process for the PNP program. The Business Concept is important because any business plan that gets written thereafter must draw from the business concept. So, a good business concept is a foundational to the entire PNP application process.

What is the Provincial Nominee Program?

In a nutshell, the PNP is a Canadian immigration pathway wherein business owners or senior managers can apply to start a new business within Canada. For prospective immigrants with strong business experience, the PNP can offer a greater chance of success than other immigration pathways.

The PNP is a provincially-governed program, which means that each province has its own specific set of application requirements. PNP applications are currently evaluated on a points system, wherein an application is reviewed and scored points based on various self-declared factors and a submitted business concept, according to a rubric. Each province has a slightly different points rubric, though there are many similarities between them.

Points are assigned out of a set total for a number of different self-declared factors, such as:

Age
Education level
Language ability
Business experience
Planned investment amount
Net worth

The provinces of British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, and Ontario require a business concept as part of a PNP submission. This business concept is generally more high-level than a business plan, and should provide a description of the business model, including market research, investment allocation, job creation, and significant economic benefits to the target province.

In provinces that require it, this business concept is worth about 30 to 40 percent of the total points for the entire application. Business concepts typically have a minimum score threshold that must be met and varying character limits for each section.

Points are awarded to the business concept based on a variety of factors including:

business model
market research
geographic region
key sector
skilled job creation
investment allocation
economic benefit

What are the Steps for Applying?

The exact process for applying to the PNP depends on the province. If you are applying for a province that requires a business concept, then the first step is to develop a business concept.

At Sharp Business Plans, we can help you write a business concept that is sufficiently detailed, and ensures that you get the maximum point value on any factors that you can control or change. We work with immigration lawyers and consultants to understand your business goals and requirements.

Once the business concept is completed, the applicant must fill in the self-declared criteria (such as age, business management experience, and education). This information, along with the business concept, is submitted as the initial registration package (also called an Expression of Interest, or EOI, in Ontario).

Once the province receives the initial registration package, they score it against the rubric. Invitations to apply are provided to the top applicants for a given region within a particular time frame. An applicant with a high score may be invited to submit a complete application – including a full business plan – as soon as the application is evaluated. If the score is not quite high enough at the time of review, it may be kept on file for up to a year after submission, and reviewed on a monthly basis. If upon later review, the application is among the top scorers, then that applicant may be invited to submit a complete application at that later date.

If the business plan is approved, the applicant will be asked to attend an interview conducted by an immigration officer. If the immigration officer is satisfied with their understanding of the business, the application is approved and the applicant will sign a performance agreement outlining the commitments they have made to invest and create jobs in the province. At this point they will receive their temporary work permit allowing them to enter Canada.

Once the applicant arrives in Canada, they will have up to 20 months to implement their business plan, actively manage the business, and satisfy the terms and conditions of the signed performance agreement. As a final step, the applicant must submit a report demonstrating that these terms and conditions have been met. At such time, they will receive their permanent residency (PR).

How can Sharp Business Plans Help?

At Sharp Business Plans, we have prepared numerous successful business concepts and business plans for the PNP. We work with immigration lawyers and immigration consultants to develop business concepts that satisfy provincial requirements.

A key scoring factor in the PNP is the economic benefit of a given business concept. As experts in business planning, we can review business concepts and argue for different economic benefits, or suggest changes to an initial business model that can have a positive scoring impact.

If you come to us with a fully-formed business idea, we can help you ensure that you’ve considered every factor for the PNP and help you maximize your potential application score. If you come to us with only a resume or CV, we can work with you to develop a business concept that targets an industry or sector where there is more economic demand in the province you wish to immigrate to, and where you are therefore more likely to get accepted.

Keep in mind that highly populated metropolitan areas are harder to get accepted into than suburban or rural areas. This is partly because metropolitan areas have more competition for immigration, and partly because provincial governments tend to want to prioritize economic growth in smaller population centres. So if, for example, you want to immigrate to an urban centre like Toronto, but your business concept may not score high enough, we might suggest a different municipality in Ontario.

The PNP provides a great opportunity to start and grow your business in Canada – at Sharp Business Plans, we know what types of applications get approved, and we’re here to help you score the maximum number of points to get accepted quickly.