Entrepreneurial Stream

The New Brunswick Entrepreneurial stream is one of the streams of the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program (NBPNP), a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), operated by the province of New Brunswick. This stream is designed to target experienced business owners or senior business managers who want to live in New Brunswick.

Get Started

Successful applicants must start a new business or buy an existing business in which they participate in the day-to-day management duties. The province of New Brunswick regularly organizes events overseas for foreign nationals who wish to immigrate to Canada. Please refer to our schedule of upcoming New Brunswick information sessions and job fairs. Those who are successful through these information sessions will be eligible to immigrate to Canada through the New Brunswick PNP or the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program.

Program Requirements

Requirements
Express Entry ProfileNo
Connection to ProvinceYes
Job OfferNo
Language ProficiencyCLB 5
Level of EducationPost-secondary
Work ExperienceBusiness ownership and management
3 years
Investment RequirementInvestment: 250,000 CAD
Personal Net Worth: 600,000 CAD

Connection to New Brunswick

Only candidates who have an eligible connection to New Brunswick may submit an Expression of Interest to the New Brunswick Entrepreneurial stream. Candidates must have either visited New Brunswick for at least five business days within the last 24 months, or have participated in an Entrepreneurial Stream information session within the last 24 months to be eligible.

 

Language Proficiency

To be eligible for the New Brunswick Entrepreneurial Stream, all candidates must demonstrate language proficiency in English or French consistent with Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 5.

 

Level of Education

Candidates must have completed either an academic degree from a college or university that required at least three years of full-time study, or a diploma in a specific trade that required at least two years of full-time study.

 

Work Experience

Candidates must have sufficient work experience to demonstrate that they can successfully establish and run a business in New Brunswick. They must own at least one third (33.3%) of a business that they actively managed for at least three out of the last five years. The candidate must have been responsible for supervising at least two employees.

 

Investment Requirement

Candidates need to demonstrate that they have a minimum personal net worth of at least $600,000 CAD. At least $300,000 CAD of their net worth must be readily available and unencumbered. To succeed through this stream, the candidate will have to invest at least $250,000 CAD in the business that they establish and actively manage in New Brunswick.

 

Age

Candidates must be between 22 and 55 years old on the day their application is received.

 

Points Assessment Grid

Candidates must score at least 65 points on the New Brunswick Entrepreneurial Stream Assessment Grid.

 

Business Requirements

Applicants to the New Brunswick Entrepreneurial Stream must establish a new business or purchase an existing business in New Brunswick. In either case, the candidate must own at least one third (33.3%) of the business and be actively involved in the management of the business. The business must be of economic benefit to the province of New Brunswick. It must be a private-sector, for-profit business. The business must also create at least two full-time jobs for Canadian permanent residents or citizens.

Application Procedure

The New Brunswick Entrepreneurial stream operates on an Expression of Interest (EOI) system. Eligible candidates must submit an EOI and a business concept to the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program (NBPNP). The NBPNP also sometimes pauses intake of new EOIs. Unlike most other provinces, New Brunswick does not publish when they will open to accept new EOIs. While each candidate must score at least 65 points on the New Brunswick Entrepreneurial Stream Assessment Grid to be eligible for the stream, only the highest ranking candidates whose business concepts will have an economic benefit for the province are issued an invitation to apply.

Applicants who receive an invitation to apply from the NBPNP must submit a complete application for provincial nomination. The stream charges a $2,000 CAD processing fee. If the application is successful, the applicant must submit a $100,000 CAD deposit and sign a business performance agreement with the NBPNP. If the applicant meets all of the conditions of the business performance agreement, they will be eligible to apply for a refund of the deposit after one year. Once the NBPNP receives the deposit and signed business performance agreement, it will issue the applicant a provincial nomination.

After receiving a provincial nomination, an applicant has six months to submit a federal application for Canadian permanent residence. Applicants in this program must complete and submit a paper-based application for permanent residence and submit it by mail to the appropriate application centre. Paper-based PNP applications for permanent residence are generally processed within 18 months.

New Brunswick Entrepreneurial Stream Assessment Grid

Candidates must score at least 65 points on the assessment grid to be eligible to submit an Expression of Interest the New Brunswick Entrepreneurial stream. The stream also uses the assessment grid to rank candidates. Only those candidates with the most competitive scores will be invited to apply to the program.

Overview of Factors

FactorPoints
Age10
Language25
Education25
Business Ownership / Management20
Business Concept15
Adaptability5
Maximum100

Age

AgePoints
21 or younger0
22-345
35-5010
51-555
Maximum10

Language

LevelPoints
First LanguageReadingWritingListeningSpeaking
CLB 7 or higher5555
CLB 64444
CLB 53333
Maximum20
Second Language
CLB 5 or higher5
Maximum5

Education

Level of EducationPoints
Post-graduate Master's degree or PhD25
Post-secondary academic degree20
Post-secondary diploma in a specific trade15
Maximum25

Work Experience

Work ExperienceYears of ExperiencePoints
Business Ownership
Business owner or at least one third of a business, actively managed operations, responsible for supervising at least three people10 in the last 10 years20
6-9 in the last 10 years18
3 in the last 5 years15
Senior Management
Senior manager involved in daily operations as primary decision maker responsible for supervising at least two people10 in the last 10 years12
6-9 in the last 10 years10
5 in the last 5 years5
Maximum20

Business Plan

Business plan elementsPoints
Candidate will transfer 10 years of business ownership or senior management experience to the same industry and sector in New Brunswick3
Candidate will establish or purchase a business in a key industry sector3
Business is located outside of Fredericton, Saint John and Moncton.3
Eligible expenses are greater than $500,000 CAD, or4
Eligible expenses are between $351,000 CAD and $499,000 CAD, or3
Eligible expenses are between $250,000 CAD and $350,000 CAD2
Candidate has:
1) Identified target market(s) for the New Brunswick based business
2) Knowledge of statutes, regulations and bylaws
3) Identified relevant business resources. *
2
Business will:
1) Increase research, development and technological commercialization
2) Transfer specialized knowledge and expertise to New Brunswick.
3) Attract new business activities to New Brunswick.
4) Link New Brunswick to global markets and value-chains. *
2
Maximum15
*Applicants must meet at least two conditions to claim total points

Adaptability

Adaptability for your spouse or common-law partnerPoints
Completed a program of full-time study of at least one year at a recognized post-secondary institution in New Brunswick after the age of 17 years and with a valid study permit5
Completed at least six months of continuous full-time employment in New Brunswick5
Meets the minimum level CLB 5 in English or NCLC 5 in French in all four language abilities (i.e., reading, writing, listening, speaking). 5
Maximum5

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