Archived - New Brunswick Business Applicants Stream


This category has been replaced with the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program - Entrepreneurial stream. For details on the new stream available to foreign business owners interested in owning and actively managing a business that will contribute to New Brunswick’s economy, please visit this page.

Minimum Requirements

In order to be eligible as a Business Applicant, candidates must: 

  • Be between 22 and 55 years of age;
  • Hold at least a high school diploma;
  • Demonstrate sufficient English and, or French language ability to actively manage a business in New Brunswick;
  • Demonstrate an intention to live and operate a business in New Brunswick;
    • The applicant must assume a day-to-day management role in the business.
  • Show relevant and proven management experience in three of the last five years;
  • Provide a business plan, approved by a New Brunswick government official, that will show how the business will benefit New Brunswick;
  • Have a personal net worth of at least $300,000 CAD;
  • Have sufficient funds to establish the business, settle successfully, and support all dependent family members for up to two years;
  • Submit a conditionally refundable deposit of $75,000 CAD and a signed copy of the Deposit Agreement prior to nomination;;
  • Make at least one business trip to New Brunswick and demonstrate an understanding of the province's business environment;
  • Meet with an NBPNP official for an interview following the business trip; and
  • Score 50 points on a selection grid.

 

Selection Factors

If all other eligibility criteria (outlined above) are met and the business plan is approved, applicants will be assessed according to five selection factors. In order to qualify for the Business Applicant Stream, candidates must score a minimum of 50 points.

Factor 1: Age

AgePoints
22-245
25-5510

Factor 2: Language

SkillSpeaking AbilityEnglishFrench
AdvancedOperational command of the language with only occasional inaccuracies99
IntermediateEffective command of the language despite some inaccuracies and misunderstandings77
BasicPartial competence in familiar situations44

Factor 3: Education

Level CompletedRequirementsPoints
Post-graduate education
  • Master's degree awarded by a graduate school of a college or university, after completing a Bachelor's degree
  • Doctorate degree awarded based on at least three years of graduate studies and a thesis, after completing a Master's degree
18
Post-secondary education
  • Academic degree awarded by a college or university to those who complete an undergraduate curriculum that required at least three years full-time study, or
  • Diploma completed in a specific trade that required at least two years full-time study
15
Secondary education
  • High school diploma awarded after junior/middle school and before college, university or other formal training
10

Factor 4: Business Experience

Applicants are assessed based on the number of years they have owned a business or worked as a senior manager in a business during the last five years as well as based on the type of management experience.

Years of ExperiencePoints
4 years 10 
3 years 
2 years
Management Experience Points
Key areas of responsibility

Finance

Sales and marketing

Human resources

Operations

2

2

2

2

Full-time employees supervised

10 or more

9 or less

4

2

Authority for decisions 

Business owner

Senior manager

6

4

Factor 5: Adaptability

Adaptability (maximum 25 points)Points

Family Living in New Brunswick

The applicant, or his/her spouse/common-law partner, has a son, daughter, brother, sister, mother, father, child, grandparent, aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew living in New Brunswick as a Canadian citizen or permanent resident

 

10

Education in New Brunswick

The applicant has completed at least one year of post-secondary education in NB

The applicant has completed at least two years of post-secondary education in NB

 

5

10

Employment in New Brunswick

The applicant has worked for at least one of the last five years in NB

The applicant has worked for at least two of the last five years in NB

 

5

10

Spouse's Employment in New Brunswick

The applicant's spouse/common-law partner has worked for at least six months in the last calendar year in NB

 

5

Knowledge of Business in New Brunswick

The applicant demonstrates knowledge of business as evidenced during the interview, in the business plan and other documents

 

1-10

 

Business Trip

Applicants are required to take a business trip to New Brunswick, prior to submitting their application, in order to become better acquainted with the province's business environment. The trip must be a minimum of five full business days, not including travel days, interview days, and statutory holidays.

During the trip, applicants are required to conduct extensive research. It is recommended that candidates set up meetings with various business people and officials in New Brunswick to aid in this research.

Following the business trip, applicants are required to participate in an interview with an NBPNP official to discuss the findings of their trip including topics such as identification of business opportunities, labour requirements, competition, suppliers, market trends, taxes and financials, etc. 

The New Brunswick business trip and the interview with an NBPNP official must take place within one year of the date on the candidate's Notice of Interview.

 

Interview

After completing the business trip, applicants are required to attend an interview in New Brunswick with an NBPNP official. The purpose of this interview is to evaluate the applicant based on his/her:

  • Ability to speak, listen, and understand English or French;
  • Previous management experience;
  • Understanding of business in New Brunswick;
  • Overall suitability to become economically established in New Brunswick; and
  • Other topics relevant to the immigration application.

 

Business Plan

Under the Business Applicants stream, all candidates are required to submit a business plan with their application. The business plan is a written document explaining how the business will operate.

Applicants have three options when considering a business in New Brunswick. They may:

  1. Purchase an existing business;
  2. Enter into a partnership with a New Brunswick entrepreneur; or,
  3. Start a new business.

In order to qualify, the applicant must control a minimum percentage of equity in the business, equal to or greater than 33.33 percent.

 

Conditionally Refundable Deposit

In order to guarantee the applicant's intention to operate a business in New Brunswick, a deposit of $75,000 CAD is required. This deposit is refundable provided that:

  • The applicant meets the requirements of the Deposit Agreement;
  • The applicant and his/her dependent family members have been granted permanent resident status by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC, formerly CIC);
  • The applicant and his/her dependent family members are permanent residents of New Brunswick;
  • The applicant establishes his/her business within two yeas of landing on Canada;
  • The applicant's business is registered or incorporated;
  • The applicant provides proof that a minimum $125,000 CAD business investment has been made; 
    • If the applicant can provide proof that a minimum $65,000 CAD business investment has been made, and all other requirements are met, a maximum of $30,000 CAD may be refunded to him/her.
  • The applicant has assumed a day-to-day managerial role in the business;
  • The applicant's business has been operating for one year; and,
  • If applicable, a partnership agreement has been finalized and signed by all parties involved.

If the applicant is unable to establish a business within two years of landing in Canada, he or she may make a written request to NBPNP for an extension. There is no guarantee, however, that the extension will be granted. In the event that the applicant fails to establish and operate an approved business within the first two years of landing in Canada, and no extension is requested or granted, the province of New Brunswick will retain the full deposit.

If the applicant is not granted a Permanent Resident Visa, the deposit will be refunded in full.

 

Business Investment

Applicants must be prepared to make a minimum business investment of $125,000 CAD in New Brunswick. Qualifying investments include:

  • Purchase of land and/or building for business purposes;
  • Moving costs for devices, equipment, and goods required for business operation;
  • Purchase of manufacturing equipment;
  • Purchase of office equipment, computers, and similar equipment;
  • Expenses for marketing and promotions;
  • Expenses for professional services in connection with establishing the business;
  • Purchase of initial inventory;
  • Intellectual property;
  • etc.

 

When Not to Apply

Candidates should not apply if they:

  • Have an application in process under another immigration program in Canada;
  • Are not lawfully residing in their country of residence at the time an application is received at the NBPNP Office (proof of lawful residence is required);
  • Have an unresolved humanitarian and compassionate claim in Canada;
  • Are failed humanitarian and compassionate claimants living in Canada;
  • Have an unresolved refugee claim in Canada;
  • Are failed refugee claimants living in Canada;
  • Are under a removal order in Canada;
  • Are prohibited from entering Canada;
  • Are engaged in full-time post-secondary education;
  • Are live-in caregivers; or
  • Are seasonal workers.