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What is Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream?

Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream is for foreign educated graduates i.e. who have completed their studies outside Canada, and, who now want to launch their own start-up enterprise or innovative businesses in Alberta. The above program is a collaboration between the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) and approved designated agencies.

Any applicant desirous to apply under Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream (FGSVS) must work with a designated agency. A LOR (letter of recommendation) shall be issued by the designated agency, which shall be submitted with EOI by the applicant through AINP Portal. A written report shall be provided by the designated agency after reviewing the overall business plans of the applicant, which shall be submitted by the applicant along with their business application.

Approved Designated Agencies

The role of the designated agency is to:

Support the marketing of Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream
Reviewing the business idea and providing support for development of business plan.
Selecting and recommending Foreign graduates for AINP.
Helping foreign graduates in networking and providing business counselling, coaching and guidance to foreign graduates.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for this stream, candidates must meet the following criteria:

Area	Requirements
Work experience	Minimum of 6 months full-time work experience that can be a combination of actively managing or owning the business or equivalent thereof.
Education	Completion of a degree from a post-secondary institution outside of Canada within the last 2 years with an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) providing equivalency to a Canadian degree.
Business plan	A business plan with projected financials.
Pitch deck	A 10-minute presentation (slides only) that outlines the what the business would do.
Language	Minimum Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level of 7 for each English language skill or NCLC 7 for each French language skill
Business establishment	Must have a minimum of 34% ownership if the business is located in an urban centre or a minimum of 51% ownership if located in regional area outside Calgary and Edmonton Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs).
Business investment	Mandatory minimum investment for an urban centre is $100,000. Mandatory minimum investment for a regional area is $50,000. the above can be arranged from a recognized Canadian financial institution, venture capital, or angel investment firm prior to coming to Alberta as well.
Letter of recommendation	Must have a letter of recommendation from an AINP-approved designated agency.
Settlement funds	Candidates must demonstrate that they have the funds needed to set up their business and support themselves while they are on a work permit and launching their start-up.

Settlement funds requirement for Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream in Canadian dollars.

Source: Statistics Canada
	Population size of community and funds required
Number of family members	Less than 1,000	1,000 to 30,000	30,000 to 99,999	100,000 to 499,999	500,000 and over
1	$8,922	$10,151	$11,093	$12,961	$12,960
2	$11,107	$12,636	$13,810	$16,135	$16,135
3	$13,655	$15,534	$16,977	$19,836	$19,836
4	$16,579	$18,861	$20,613	$24,084	$24,083
5	$18,803	$21,392	$23,379	$27,315	$27,315
6	$21,208	$24,127	$26,367	$30,807	$30,806
7	$23,611	$26,861	$29,356	$34,299	$34,299

Points grid for Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream

Criteria	Description	Points
Human capital
Language proficiency Maximum of 30 points Mandatory requirement	First official language
	CLB 7 (7 for each reading, writing, listening and speaking) (mandatory minimum)	10
	CLB 8 (8 for each reading, writing, listening and speaking)	20
	CLB 9 or higher (9 for each reading, writing, listening and speaking)	30
Education Maximum of 35 points Mandatory requirement	Minimum requirement is the completion of a degree from a post-secondary institution outside of Canada within the last 2 years with an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA). Education credential must be equivalent to Canadian standards.
	Bachelor’s degree (mandatory minimum)	5
	Master’s degree	10
	Doctoral degree	15
	Preference given to candidates with the following degrees:
	Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics	10
	Business	10
Business management, ownership or equivalent Equivalencies are work experience with business incubator or business accelerator Maximum 35 bonus points Mandatory requirement	Business ownership or management experience (more points allocated for additional years of experience)
	6 months (mandatory minimum)	5
	more than 6 months to less than 1 year	10
	1 to 2 years	15
	More than 2 years	20
	Preference will be given to candidates with business ownership experience.	15
Business Factors
Business Plan Maximum of 40 points Mandatory requirement	A business plan with projected financial information. Business plan guidelines are available on the AINP website.	40
Investment: prior to coming to Alberta Maximum 25 points Mandatory requirement	Minimum level of investment from candidate’s own equity, and/or from a recognized Canadian financial institution, venture capital, or angel investment firm before coming to Alberta. (Candidates with higher levels of investment available before coming to Alberta will be awarded more points. Points will also be awarded for urban centre or regional area, not both). Urban centre: Edmonton and Calgary Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) Regional area: Communities outside the Edmonton and Calgary CMAs Urban centre:
	$100,000 (mandatory minimum)	5
	$100,001 to $150,000	11
	$150,001 to $200,000	18
	Over $200,000	25
	Or, Regional area:
	$50,000 (mandatory minimum)	5
	$50,001 to $100,000	11
	$100,001 to $150,000	18
	Over $150,000	25
Proposed investment: additional investment after launch Maximum 20 points Not a mandatory requirement	Additional investment after launching start-up from candidate’s own equity, or from recognized Canadian financial institution, venture capital, or angel investment firm. Higher levels of investment after launch will be awarded more points. Points awarded for urban centre or regional area, not both. Urban centre: Edmonton and Calgary Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) Regional area: Communities outside the Edmonton and Calgary CMAs Urban centre:
	$100,000 to $150,000	5
	$150,001 to $200,000	10
	$200,001 to $250,000	15
	Over $250,000	20
	Or, regional area:
	$50,000 to $100,000	5
	$100,001 to $150,000	10
	$150,001 to $200,000	15
	Over $200,000	20
Job Creation Maximum of 15 points Not a mandatory requirement	Jobs must be created for Canadian citizens or permanent residents (not including relatives) for a period of at least 6 months.
	1 job	5
	2 jobs	10
	3 jobs or more	15
Total points: maximum		200

Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream mandatory minimums, pass or fail grid

Criteria	Description	Pass or Fail
Ownership of start-up Mandatory minimum	Must have a minimum of 34% ownership in an urban centre or a minimum of 51% ownership if the business is located in a regional community.	Pass or Fail
Businesses in key or priority sectors Mandatory minimum	Business plan or pitch deck must indicate business connected to one of the following sectors: technology aerospace financial services energy agriculture tourism life sciences pharmaceuticals	Pass or Fail
Settlement Funds Mandatory minimum	Candidates must demonstrate they have funds to support themselves while they are on a work permit and launching their start-up in Alberta. Minimum settlement funds required will be based on the Low Income Cut-Offs (LICOs). Refer to the Settlement Fund section.	Pass or Fail
Pitch Deck Mandatory minimum	A 10-minute presentation (slides only) that describes the foreign graduate and their venture focused on what an investor would want to see.	Pass or Fail
Letter of Recommendation Mandatory minimum	The candidate must have a letter of recommendation from an AINP approved designated agency.	Pass or Fail

Ineligible businesses Eligible businesses for Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream

Following businesses will be considered eligible for Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream:

The purpose of the proposed business must be to make a profit making from active or earned income, through the sale of goods or provision of services.
The proposed business must comply with all statutory federal and provincial requirements.
The proposed business must comply with applicable trade certification requirements in Alberta.
The business plan must indicate that the proposed business is connected to one of the following sectors: technology, aerospace, financial services, energy, agriculture, tourism, life sciences, and pharmaceuticals.
The proposed business must have a physical place of business in Alberta at all times.
For franchises, Candidates must also provide evidence that they have received support from the master franchisor to operate a franchise location.
Foreign Graduate must own a minimum of 34% of the business in an urban centre, or a minimum of 51% of the business in a regional area.
Foreign Graduate is required to reside in Alberta and be involved in the day-to-day management of the business.

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