Alberta’s Rural Entrepreneur Stream is aimed at entrepreneurs who want to start a business or buy an existing business in a rural Alberta community and immigrate to Canada.
Successful candidates come to Alberta on a work permit, establish their business as per the terms of a Business Performance Agreement, before being nominated for permanent residence through the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program (AAIP).
What Is A Rural Alberta Community?
The AAIP defines rural Alberta communities as any community with a population of less than 100,000 situated outside the Calgary and Edmonton census metropolitan area.
A list of participating communities is to be made available soon by the AAIP.
Exploratory Visit
Candidates interested in a specific rural Alberta community should connect with the community contact person to discuss their business proposal and schedule an exploratory visit.
Candidate Requirements
|
Area |
Requirements |
|
Work experience |
Have either a minimum 3 years of experience as an active business owner/manager or a minimum of 4 years of experience as a senior manager within the past 10 years. |
|
Education |
Completed a minimum of high school equivalent to the Canadian standard with an Education Credential Assessment (ECA). |
|
Language |
Have a minimum Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level of 4 for each English language skill or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) of 4 for each French language skill: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. |
|
Net worth |
Minimum net worth of $300,000. All assets must be candidate’s own personal holdings or spouse’s or common-law partner’s. |
|
Business investment |
Minimum investment of $200,000 from candidate’s own (and/or spouse/common-law partner) equity. Higher levels of investment will be awarded more points. |
|
Business establishment |
Minimum ownership of 51% for a new business. Business partners must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents. OR 100% ownership for business succession (the succession buy-out must result in a complete change in ownership where the candidate will assume full control of the business). |
|
Job creation |
New businesses must create at least one full-time job for Canadian citizens or permanent residents. More job creation will be awarded more points. For business succession, job creation is not required. |
|
Community support letter |
Candidates must have a Community Support Letter from a participating rural Alberta community. |
Factors Increasing Candidate’s Chances
|
Economic benefit |
Business succession |
|
Age |
21 to 49 |
|
Spouse |
Your spouse/common-law partner has one of the following: 1) Completed at least one year of full-time post-secondary education (Certificate, Associate Degree, Diploma, Bachelor’s Degree or higher). 2) Minimum level Canadian Language Benchmark 4 in English or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens 4 in French in all four language abilities (Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking). |
|
Alberta relative |
Relatives are defined as father, step-father, mother, step-mother, child, step-child, sister, step-sister, brother, step-brother of candidate or spouse or common-law partner |
Alberta Rural Entrepreneur Stream Expression of Interest Pool
Under the Rural Entrepreneur Stream, candidates must submit a profile to an Expression of Interest pool.
Points are awarded based on the Rural Entrepreneur Stream Points Grid.
Alberta selects candidates with the highest-ranking points and request they submit a Business Application.
Rural Entrepreneur Stream Points Grid
|
Criteria |
Descriptions |
Points |
|
RURAL FACTOR (25 points) |
||
|
Business Location (Maximum of 25 points) Mandatory requirement |
Rural Community |
|
|
Community outside the Edmonton and Calgary Census Metropolitan Areas and under 100,000 population size (mandatory minimum) |
||
|
Tier 1: Less than 10,000 population |
25 |
|
|
Tier 2: 10,001 to 50,000 population |
17 |
|
|
Tier 3: 50,001 to 99,999 population |
10 |
|
|
BUSINESS EXPERIENCE FACTOR (20 points) |
||
|
Business owner-manager or senior management experience within the past 10 years (Maximum of 20 points) Mandatory requirement |
Business owner-manager |
|
|
3 to less than 4 years (mandatory minimum) |
12 |
|
|
4 to less than 5 years |
16 |
|
|
5 or more years |
20 |
|
|
or Senior manager |
||
|
4 to less than 5 years (mandatory minimum) |
12 |
|
|
5 to less than 6 years |
16 |
|
|
6 or more years |
20 |
|
|
BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENT FACTORS (60 points) |
||
|
Total Business Investment (Maximum of 20 points) Mandatory requirement |
$200,000 to $399,999 (mandatory minimum) |
5 |
|
$400,000 to $599,999 |
10 |
|
|
$600,000 to $799,999 |
15 |
|
|
$800,000 or more |
20 |
|
|
Net Worth (Maximum of 10 points) Mandatory requirement |
$300,000 to $399,999 (mandatory minimum) |
6 |
|
$400,000 to $499,999 |
8 |
|
|
$500,000 or more |
10 |
|
|
Job Creation Jobs must be created for Canadian citizens or permanent residents (not including relatives) for a period of at least 6 months. (Maximum of 20 points) Mandatory requirement For business succession, job creation is not mandatory; however, candidates will be awarded points for job creation. |
1 job (mandatory minimum) |
4 |
|
2 jobs |
8 |
|
|
3 jobs |
12 |
|
|
4 jobs |
16 |
|
|
5 jobs or more |
20 |
|
|
Business Successions (Maximum of 10 points) Not a Mandatory requirement |
Investment to takeover an existing business |
10 |
|
HUMAN CAPITAL FACTORS (35 points) |
||
|
Language Proficiency (Maximum of 25 points) Mandatory requirement |
Proficiency in English or French: |
|
|
CLB/NCLC 4 (4 for each Reading, Writing, Learning and Speaking) (mandatory minimum) |
15 |
|
|
CLB/NCLC 5 (5 for each Reading, Writing, Learning and Speaking) |
20 |
|
|
CLB/NCLC 6 or higher (6 for each Reading, Writing, Learning and Speaking) |
25 |
|
|
Education (Maximum of 10 points) Mandatory requirement |
High-school Diploma equivalent to Canadian standards (mandatory minimum) |
4 |
|
Associate Degree or Diploma (at least one year) |
7 |
|
|
Bachelor’s degree or higher |
10 |
|
|
ADAPTABILITY FACTORS (35 points) |
||
|
Canada/Alberta experience from work or studies within the past 10 years (Maximum of 15 points) Not a mandatory requirement |
In rural Alberta |
|
|
12 to 24 months |
10 |
|
|
More than 24 months |
15 |
|
|
And / Or |
||
|
In non-rural Alberta (Calgary and Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area) |
||
|
18 to 30 months |
6 |
|
|
More than 30 months |
10 |
|
|
And / Or |
||
|
In Canada |
||
|
24 to 36 months |
3 |
|
|
More than 36 months |
5 |
|
|
Relative(s) in the community or Alberta (Maximum of 10 points) Not a mandatory requirement |
Relatives are defined as father, step-father, mother, step-mother, child, step-child, sister, step-sister, brother, step-brother of candidate or spouse/common-law partner |
|
|
Relative(s) living in Alberta |
5 |
|
|
or |
||
|
Relative(s) living in the community where you intend to reside and operate a business |
10 |
|
|
Spouse’s/Common-law partner’s Language Proficiency or Education (Maximum of 5 points) Not a mandatory requirement |
Proficiency in English or French: |
|
|
CLB/NCLC 4 (4 for each Reading, Writing, Learning and Speaking) |
3 |
|
|
CLB/NCLC 5 (5 for each Reading, Writing, Learning and Speaking) |
4 |
|
|
CLB/NCLC 6 or higher (6 or higher for each Reading, Writing, Learning and Speaking) |
5 |
|
|
and / or Education: |
||
|
Certificate, Associate Degree or Diploma (at least one year) |
3 |
|
|
Bachelor’s degree or higher |
5 |
|
|
Age (Maximum of 5 points) Not a mandatory requirement |
21 to 49 |
5 |
|
Maximum Points |
175 |
|
