Trusted by fast-growing teams
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- Best for: Founders with an innovative business idea who can secure backing from a designated Canadian VC, angel group, or incubator.
- What it unlocks: Permanent residency for you and your family while you build your company in Canada.
- Key advantage: Direct path to PR without needing a temporary work permit first, one of the few founder-friendly immigration programmes globally.
- Note: The classic SUV closed to new applications on Dec 31, 2025. A redesigned Entrepreneur Pilot targeting AI, cleantech, and life sciences is expected later in 2026.
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- Best for: International students who have completed a programme of 8+ months at an eligible Canadian designated learning institution.
- What it unlocks: An open work permit, work for any employer, in any occupation, anywhere in Canada.
- Key advantage: No job offer required. It's the most flexible work permit available and a direct stepping stone to permanent residency.
- Canadian work experience gained on PGWP counts toward Express Entry CRS points and Canadian Experience Class eligibility.
- Best for: Early and immediate hires.
- What it unlocks: An open work permit. Work for almost any employer, in any occupation, anywhere in Canada for 12-24 months.
- Key advantage: No job offer required. Full and unrestricted mobility within Canada.
- Considerations: Age and nationality-specific, quota-limited, and usually once per lifetime per category.
- Best for: Innovative Canadian tech firms hiring or retaining in-demand, highly skilled tech roles.
- What it unlocks: A fast-tracked LMIA (labour market impact assessment) plus priority work-permit processing; roughly two weeks of processing for each.
- Key advantage: Expedited processing of the GTS and the work permit, far faster than a standard LMIA.
- Considerations: Employer-driven, the applicant cannot apply for a work permit until GTS is approved. It's a fast LMIA, not an LMIA exemption. Spouses and children in most cases are eligible for dependent visas and accompany you to Canada.
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- Best for: Canadian employers hiring or retaining foreign workers for a specific role when no exemption applies.
- What it unlocks: Authorization to hire or retain the worker for that role for 3 years.
- Key advantage: The worker's work permit is tied to your company only, helping with employee retention, high turnover, and filling key positions.
- Considerations: Employers must conduct a 4-week active recruitment effort to prove there are no available Canadian citizens or permanent residents with the same skills as the foreign worker. Spouses and children can be eligible for dependent visas and accompany you to Canada.
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- Best for: Citizens of a free-trade partner (US, Mexico, UK, Colombia, Korea, member countries of the EU and CPTPP) coming to work in Canada in a listed profession.
- What it unlocks: An LMIA-exempt work permit for pre-approved professional occupations under the relevant trade agreement.
- Key advantage: No LMIA and no labour market test. Your citizenship and credentials get you in quickly.
- Considerations: Your occupation must be on the agreement's list and you must meet its credential requirements. Spouses and children can be eligible for dependent visas and accompany you to Canada.
- Best for: Citizens of a free-trade partner (US, Mexico, UK, Colombia, Korea, member countries of the EU and CPTPP) making a qualifying investment in Canada and taking an active role in establishing, developing, or administering it.
- What it unlocks: An LMIA-exempt, employer-specific work permit under an applicable international trade agreement, allowing you to carry out the investment-related activities authorized by that agreement.
- Key advantage: No LMIA and no labour market test; your citizenship speeds up entry.
- Considerations: Eligibility varies by trade agreement and may require a substantial investment and an active managerial, supervisory, specialist, or investment-related role. Spouses and children are eligible for dependent visas and can accompany you to Canada.
- Best for: Entrepreneurs and founders who want to establish, purchase, or actively operate a business in Canada and can demonstrate that their work will create a significant economic, social, or cultural benefit to Canada.
- What it unlocks: An LMIA-exempt work permit to operate your own business.
- Key advantage: C11 is not restricted to citizens of particular countries. Eligibility is based primarily on the strength of the business proposal, your role in the venture, and the significant benefit the business is expected to create in Canada.
- Considerations: C11 is temporary and tied to your role in the Canadian business. A strong application requires credible evidence that the business is viable and that your presence in Canada is necessary. Spouses and children are eligible for dependent visas and can accompany you to Canada.
- Best for: Executives, managers, or specialized-knowledge staff transferring into a related Canadian entity. Also applies to founders coming to Canada to open and set up the Canadian branch.
- What it unlocks: An LMIA-exempt work permit to move a key employee to a parent, subsidiary, branch, or affiliate in Canada.
- Key advantage: Relocate leadership and expertise quickly, without going through a labour market test.
- Considerations: Needs 1 year of employment with the company abroad in the last 3 years. Spouses and children can be eligible for dependent visas and accompany you to Canada in most cases.
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- Best for: Individuals whose work brings clear social, cultural, or economic benefit to Canada.
- What it unlocks: A discretionary, LMIA-exempt work permit based on the benefits you can bring to Canadian society.
- Key advantage: A flexible route for exceptional or hard-to-categorize talent, and a direct pathway to a work permit without needing an LMIA.
- Considerations: Highly discretionary. You must present clear evidence of the significant benefit to the Canadian economy or industry. Spouses and children can be eligible for dependent visas and accompany you to Canada.
- Best for: Foreign workers entering Canada under exchange or reciprocal arrangements where Canadians gain comparable opportunities abroad.
- What it unlocks: An LMIA-exempt work permit where the exchange keeps a reciprocal balance of opportunity.
- Key advantage: No LMIA. Supports international exchanges, secondments, and organizational reciprocity.
- Considerations: There must be clear evidence of reciprocity, showing Canadians benefit from similar opportunities abroad. Spouses and children can be eligible for dependent visas and accompany you to Canada.
- Best for: French-speaking foreign workers with a job offer for a position outside Quebec.
- What it unlocks: An LMIA-exempt work permit for skilled roles, supporting French-speaking communities outside Quebec.
- Key advantage: No LMIA, a broad range of occupations, and no limits on renewals.
- Considerations: Requires proof of French proficiency and a work destination outside Quebec. Employers must submit an online offer of employment to support the work permit. Spouses and children can be eligible for dependent visas and accompany you to Canada.
- Best for: People entering Canada short-term for business meetings, negotiations, training or conferences.
- What it unlocks: Entry to conduct international business without requiring a work permit.
- Key advantage: Fast, low-friction entry for setup trips and client or investor meetings.
- Considerations: This is short-term entry status, not work authorization.
- Best for: Skilled professionals with qualifying work experience seeking permanent residence in Canada.
- What it unlocks: A path to PR, including your spouse and children.
- Key advantage: Fast, many applications are finalized within 6 months of an invitation.
- Considerations: Express Entry is a points-based system. To be invited to apply, you need a competitive score above the cut-off.
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- Best for: Skilled workers, graduates, or entrepreneurs who want to settle in a specific province.
- What it unlocks: A provincial nomination toward PR, plus an interim work permit to work in Canada while PR is processed.
- Key advantage: A direct pathway for permanent residence if Express Entry draws are too high.
- Considerations: You must intend to live in the nominating province and show significant ties to the province through past education or employment.
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What sets us apart
The Concord difference:
1
Filed in 14 days, not 14 weeks.
From strategy call to filing, we move at your pace. No drawn-out timelines, no chasing documents for months. Your next opportunity shouldn't wait on paperwork.
2
AI-powered. Attorney-led.
Our platform uses AI to accelerate evidence review, draft letters, and flag gaps, but every critical step is checked by your dedicated attorney. You get the speed of automation with the judgment of an experienced immigration lawyer. No 100-email chains, no details slipping through.
3
AI efficiency, faster turnaround.
AI-gained efficiency means fewer billable hours and faster turnaround. Your attorney spends that time strengthening your case instead of chasing paperwork, so you move from strategy call to filing in weeks, not months.
4
99% success rate.
We know how to build a winning narrative. Most firms file what you give them. We build the case from the ground up, filling evidence gaps before they're flagged, and challenge-proofing every petition. 3,250+ successful visas across five countries and counting.
Begin your visa journey with Concord
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