The NAFTA Investor provisions allow American and Mexican citizens who control Canadian businesses the ability to obtain work permits to develop and direct those businesses. These provisions can be used for new businesses, as well as for existing ones, and allow much flexibility. As such, they are some of the most useful provisions available to American and Mexican businesspeople.

To apply for a work permit as a NAFTA Investor:

• The applicant must be an American or Mexican citizen;
• The Canadian enterprise must have majority ownership by Americans or Mexicans;
• “Substantial investment” in Canada has been made or is actively being made; and
• The applicant must be coming to Canada solely for the purpose of developing and directing the Canadian business.

There is no minimum investment under NAFTA, and Americans or Mexicans can often qualify with an investment of less than $100,000. This is often the quickest way for Americans and Mexicans to come to Canada to establish their businesses, as many applications are processed in less than one month, and often much faster than that.

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