CANADA STARTUP VISA DESIGNATED ORGANIZATIONS

Foreign entrepreneurs must gain support from one or more of the designated organizations to immigrate to Canada under the Startup Visa Program. 

The Government of Canada approves venture capital funds, angel investor groups, and business incubators to participate in Start-up Visa Program. Venture capital funds and angel investor groups can invest in innovative startups. Business incubators can accept to their programs. If a designated organization decides to support a start-up, it will issue a Letter of Support.

If a Venture Capital Fund supports a start-up, it must agree to invest a minimum of $200,000. List of Canadian designated Venture Capital Funds approved for start-up visa program:

• 7 Gate Ventures

• Arete Pacific Tech Ventures (VCC) Corp

• BCF Ventures

• BDC Venture Capital

• Celtic House Venture Partners

• Extreme Venture Partners LLP

• Golden Venture Partners Fund, LP

• iNovia Capital Inc.

• Intrinsic Venture Capital

• Lumira Capital

• Nova Scotia Innovation Corporation (o/a Innovacorp)

• PRIVEQ Capital Funds

• Real Ventures

• Relay Ventures

• ScaleUp Venture Partners, Inc.

• Top Renergy Inc.

• Vanedge Capital Limited Partnership

• Version One Ventures

• Westcap Management Ltd.

• Yaletown Venture Partners Inc.

• York Entrepreneurship Development Institute (YEDI) VC Fund

If an Angel Investor Group supports a start-up, it must agree to invest a minimum of $75,000.

• Canadian International Angel Investors
• Ekagrata Inc.
• Golden Triangle Angel Network
• Keiretsu Forum Canada
• Oak Mason Investments Inc.
• Southeastern Ontario Angel Network
• TenX Angel Investors Inc.
• VANTEC Angel Network Inc.
• York Angel Investors Inc.

If a Business Incubator supports a start-up, it must accept it to one of these programs:

• Alacrity Foundation
• Alberta Agriculture and Forestry
• Agrivalue Processing Business Incubator
• Food Processing Development Centre
• Biomedical Commercialization Canada Inc. (operating as Manitoba Technology Accelerator)
• Creative Destruction Lab
• Empowered Startups Ltd.
• Extreme Innovations
• Genesis Centre
• Highline BETA Inc.
• Innovacorp
• Innovation Cluster - Peterborough and the Kawarthas
• Interactive Niagara Media Cluster o/a Innovate Niagara
• Invest Ottawa
• Knowledge Park o/a Planet Hatch
• LatAm Startups
• Launch Academy - Vancouver
• LaunchPad PEI Inc.
• Millworks Centre for Entrepreneurship
• NEXT Canada
• North Forge East Ltd.
• North Forge Technology Exchange
• Platform Calgary
• Pycap Inc (o/a Pycap Venture Partners)
• Real Investment Fund III L.P. o/a FounderFuel
• Ryerson Futures Inc.
• Spark Commercialization and Innovation Centre
• Spring Activator
• The DMZ at Ryerson University
• Toronto Business Development Centre (TBDC)
• TSRV Canada Inc. (operating as Techstars Canada)
• University of Toronto Entrepreneurship Hatchery
• VIATEC
• Waterloo Accelerator Centre
• York Entrepreneurship Development Institute