Starting April 30, 2024, the Self-Employed Persons Program is temporarily paused and new applications are not accepted. The pause is scheduled until January 2027.
The Self-Employed Persons Program targets people who want to become self-employed in Canada.
They must have a relevant experience in cultural activities or athletics, and intend to make a significant contribution to Canada.
Self-Employed Persons Program – Cultural activities, Athletics, and Significant Contribution
A “significant contribution” is not explicitly defined by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). IRCC has included it in the eligibility requirements to stop pointless applications that are not made in good faith. It is up to the immigration officer to interpret if the applicant truly intends to make a significant contribution. Also, significant contribution is not valid only at the national or international level: a dance teacher who will be teaching in a Canadian small town could be interpreted as a significant contribution at the local level and be valid.
With regards to occupations, only those in the Unit Group 5 (Occupations in art, culture, recreation and sport) under the National Occupation Classification (NOC) qualify for this program. You can look up the eligible occupations in this complete 2021 NOC list, and use the search bar to find all NOC occupations starting with the 51, 52 and 53.
Examples of eligible occupations would be :
- Librarians,
- Editors and journalists,
- Singers,
- Dancers,
- Comedians ans actors,
- Photographers,
- Athletes and coaches,
- Designers, etc.
Self-Employed Persons Program – Eligibility
To be eligible to the self-employed person program, you need to satisfy to the four following main requirements:
- You intend on and be capable of self-employment in Canada.
- You (and your family members) have to undergo medical tests, and provide police certificates for countries where you lived for more than 6 consecutive months after the age of 18.
- You have relevant experience between (i) five years before your application date and (i) when a decision is made on your application, either in cultural or athletic activities:
- At least two years of self-employment (can be made up of 2 separate periods of 1 consecutive year), or
- At least two years of participation in international activities (can be made up of 2 separate periods of 1 consecutive year), or
- At least a combo of one year of self-employment (see 1.), and one year of participation in international activities (see 2.).
- You have to meet the selection criteria for self-employed people, which means getting a minimum of 35 points out of a 100. See how much points you should get below.
Education (Max 25 points)
| Education | Points |
|---|---|
| Min 17 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Master’s or PhD | 25 |
| Min 15 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 2 Bachelor’s degrees (or same university level) | 22 |
| Min 15 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 3-year diploma or certificate (outside university) | 22 |
| Min 14 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 2-year Bachelor’s degree (or same university level) | 20 |
| Min 14 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 2-year diploma or certificate (outside university) | 20 |
| Min 13 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 1-year Bachelor’s degree (or same university level) | 15 |
| Min 13 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 1-year diploma or certificate (outside university) | 15 |
| Min 12 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 1-year diploma or certificate (outside university) | 12 |
| Secondary (high) school diploma | 5 |
Experience (Max 35 points)
| Number of years of Relevant Experience | Points |
|---|---|
| 5 years | 35 |
| 4 years | 30 |
| 3 years | 25 |
| 2 years | 20 |
Age (Max 10 points)
| Age | Points |
|---|---|
| Between 21 and 49 | 10 |
| 20 or 50 | 8 |
| 19 or 51 | 6 |
| 18 or 52 | 4 |
| 17 or 53 | 2 |
| Younger than 17 or older than 53 | 0 |
Language ability (Max 24 points)
Points for language proficiency will only be awarded where you have had your proficiency assessed by an agency designated by Immigration, Refugees, Citizenship Canada (IRCC). You can find more about language tests and Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) here.
| First Official Language | Listening | Speaking | Writing | Reading | Maximum |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLB8 or more | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 16 points |
| CLB6 or CLB7 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| CLB4 or CLB5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| CLB3 or less | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Second Official Language | Listening | Speaking | Writing | Reading | Maximum |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLB8 or more | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| CLB6 or CLB7 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| CLB4 or CLB5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| CLB3 or less | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Adaptability (Max 6 points)
| Adaptability | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| Level of education of spouse/partner | Min 17 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Master’s or PhD | 5 |
| Min 14 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 2-year diploma, certificate (outside university) or university degree | 4 | |
| Min 12 years of full-time (or equivalent) education AND Min 1-year diploma or certificate (outside university) | 3 | |
| Work in Canada | Min one-year full-time work experience in Canada for you or your spouse/partner | 5 |
| Studies in Canada | Min two-year full-time program of studies in Canada (diploma or degree is optional for getting the 5 points) | 5 |
| Relatives in Canada | You or your spouse/partner have a relative, permanent resident or Canadian citizen, living in Canada. The relative can be a (i) parent, (ii) grandparent, (iii) child, (iv) grandchild, (v) child of a parent (sibling), (vi) child of a grandparent (uncle or aunt), (vii) grandchild of a parent (nephew or niece). | 5 |
Self-Employed Persons Program – Biometrics Requirements
Self-Employed Persons Program – Medical Exam Requirements
Self-Employed Persons Program – Application Fees
For the Self-Employed Persons Program, the fees are $1,810 for the Business Immigration Application Fee and $575 for Right of Permanent Residence Fee (RPRF), making a total of $2,385 for a single applicant.
For a spouse/partner, the fees are $950 for the application fee and $575 for the RPRF. There’s an additional $260 fee for each dependent child.
The processing fees are not refundable if the application processing started. The RPRF is refundable if the application is rejected, if you decide to cancel your application, or if you decide not to come to Canada.
Self-Employed Persons Program – Processing Times
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) does not have a target service standard of processing for Self-Employed Persons Program applications.
Check here for current average processing times. Choose “Economic Class”, then “Self-Employed Persons (Federal)”.
Quebec Self-Employed Worker Program
The eligibility requirements are completely different from those of the federal program. You can learn more about the Quebec program, how to apply and processing times here.
