The Owner/Operator LMIA is basically for those candidates who want to purchase and existing business in Canada or participate in the daily activities. Under Owner/Operator work permit candidate will get the LMIA approval without any advertisement but they should have a attractive business plan which have a positive impact on the labour market and economy of Canada.

Minimum Eligibility criteria

1. Applicant need to make sure that the Business will create jobs for Canadian citizens.
2. Sufficient language abilities in either English or French;
3. Applicant should have 51% share of the business.
4. Need to be on the higher position in business.
5. Must show a proper business plan along with the action taken.
6. Applicant need to be sure that will be for the long run and has a very good
7. impact on Canada’s economy.

What is the LMIA processing time?

When you apply for LMIA Canada, you can expect the result in 10 working day average. It can be positive or it can be negative as well. Once a positive LMIA opinion is issued, the foreign investor applies for 12-24 months, renewable temporary works permit.At a later stage can apply for PR through Express Entry or a suitable provincial business immigration stream.The following categories will now be processed with 10-business days

1. All LMIA applications for the highest-demand occupations (skilled trades)
2. Highest-paid (top 10%) occupations
3. Short-duration work periods (120 days or less)

Intra-Company Transfer

The Intra-Company Transfer work permit is for entrepreneurs who want to expand their existing foreign business into Canada. This program is usually used by multinational corporations to move management and key staff between international branches, but it can also be an option for entrepreneurs who want to move to Canada.

Entrepreneurs/self-employed

This category include people owns 50% of seasonal Canadian business. Entrepreneurs who are investing in a Canadian business that is not related to an existing foreign business may consider a work permit under either the Entrepreneurs/self-employed candidates seeking to operate a business category or a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)-based work permit for owner operators.

How to define LMIA Owner/Operator Program?

To meet the minimum criteria of owner/ operator program applicant has to show his 51% of share and he should have the control on all the activities in the business. Investors who do not meet these criteria will not be qualify for this business. Ownership of shares does not by itself guarantee that a foreign national qualifies as an owner-operator. Under Owner/Operator program there can be completed purchases, pending purchases, partial purchases by the foreign worker.

1. Complete Purchases: when the business is purchased 100% by the foreign worker and the evidence has been shown such as purchase agreement. But it is mandatory for the new owner has he provides jobs to at least one or two Canadians.
2. Pending Purchase: when the purchase is pending, in this the immigration authorities will check whether the initial transaction is authentic and intention of the new owner to start the business and hiring a Canadian worker.
3. Partial Purchase: when a foreign worker purchases a business in Canada partially that is called partial purchase. immigration authorities will  assess the business if the project is genuine or not, what is the percentage of business has been transferred and whether the new owner has intention to hire a Canadian worker.

Owner/Operator Program Step by Step process:

Step1: Plan to buy a business in Canada (As per interest or experience).

Step2: Get a purchase agreement of the business.

Step3: Put an application for LMIA.

Step4: Once LMIA approved, apply for work permit in Canada.

Step5: Apply for Work permit visa.

What is the total processing time for LMIA Owner/Operator Program?

It minimum takes 4 to 6 months to process owner/operator visa, depends how fast an applicant provide the required documents.

Can I get Permanent Residence with this Program?

The answer is “yes”. You can apply for Canada PR visa under Owner/Operator work permit. It can be under Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) or Express Entry Program or Canada provincial immigration program as well.

For Express Entry Profile, this program will give your additional CRS 50-200 points (normally CRS 200 points) for the job offer. This can add significant CRS points to get an Invitation to Apply (ITA), once an ITA is received the candidate can then apply for Permanent Residence.