How do non-residents of Canada start a company in Canada?

You are not a Canadian, but want to start a company or run a business in Canada? This article is for you. There are three situations below, please choose the one that suits you best!

1. There are companies overseas that want to Starting a business in Canada

With global integration, overseas business owners need to expand their business to the Canadian market. If you have an overseas business (outside of Canada), it is actually very simple to establish a company in Canada: each province in Canada has its own procedures and fee regulations for registering a company outside the province.

For example, if you are a non-resident of Canada and currently run a company in China, and want to open a company in Ontario, you will need to register the new company as an out-of-province company in that province.

For out-of-province registrations, you will need a "service agent," an "individual over 18 years of age who resides in Ontario, or a corporation with a registered office in Ontario."

All Canadian provinces and territories have similar requirements. To do business in Canada, you need to contact the provincial registration agency in your province and follow the prescribed procedures. If you want to do business in multiple provinces, you need to register your new business in each province separately.

On the other hand, if you are a non-Canadian who wants to start a business in Canada and do not already have an established business in your country of origin, there are several ways to start a business in Canada.

2. No company wants to immigrate to Canada to start a company

First, if you want to live in Canada, you can apply for the Canadian Business Immigration Program. This is a way for you to start a business in Canada and live here.

When you go to the Canadian Immigration Department to look up information about immigrating to Canada, you will see that there are two types of immigrants: work visas for entrepreneurs and self-employed individuals.

To come to Canada as a self-employed person, you must have:

relevant experience in cultural activities or sports and intend and be able to make a significant contribution to the cultural or sporting life of Canada, or
Experience in farm management, intending and able to purchase and manage a farm in Canada.

In addition, other factors that affect your application to come to Canada as a self-employed person include your education, age, adaptability and language ability; you must be able to listen, speak, read and write English or French proficiently.

3. Starting a business in Canada without living in Canada

If you are not a Canadian citizen or permanent resident and do not plan to immigrate to Canada, you can still start a business in Canada by forming a partnership with one or more Canadian citizens or permanent residents.

The Canada Business Corporations Act provides for the following:

At least 25% of the directors must be Canadian residents (if 25% is not an integer, it shall be rounded up to the nearest integer). For a corporation with fewer than four directors, at least one director must be a Canadian resident (S. 118(3)).

When starting a business in Canada, if the business is a partnership, you will need to register your partnership in your province or territory.

If you are starting a business, you will first need to decide whether to register your business federally or provincially. There are some differences between the two; but if your new business is registered as a federal corporation, you will still need to register your business in each province or territory where you do business.