BlogStart Up Visa Processing: The Playing Field Has Changed!
When Canada’s Start Up Visa (SUV) was first introduced in 2013, the uptake from applicants was very slow with few applications in the first several years. Things started picking up by 2018 and 2019 with the program building up momentum, largely due to immigration lawyers and consultants becoming more familiar with the program and recommending it to aspiring business immigrants. One of the most attractive features of the program was that SUV applicants would be given permanent residence (PR) on a proposed innovative business concept and that applications would be approved quickly - within 12 months or less. Then the global pandemic hit and immigration processing ground to a halt. Yet the momentum of ongoing SUV applicants continued unabated. By October 2021, “LexBase” editor Richard Kurland reported a backlog of approximately 6700 applicants and opined that the processing of applications would take several years. His prediction has come true! The combination of an increased number of applications and lengthier processing times of several years, has changed the way that SUV applications are assessed by visa officers and current and prospective applicants should be aware that the SUV playing field has changed!
