Is the Start-Up Visa still open? What the December 2025 closure means for your business plan

If you are asking whether the Start-Up Visa is still open, the short answer is that it is closed to new applicants. On December 19, 2025, IRCC announced it would stop accepting new Start-Up Visa permanent residence applications after December 31, 2025, and the Canada.ca program page now states that the program is "closed to all other applications" except holders of a valid 2025 commitment certificate. This guide covers exactly what closed, who can still file, what is replacing it (and what is not yet confirmed), and what to do with a SUV business plan that is now half-built against a program that no longer accepts new files.

Is the Start-Up Visa still open in 2026?

No, not for new applicants. The change came in two steps announced together on December 19, 2025:

• Optional work permit — closed December 19, 2025. Effective that day, IRCC stopped accepting applications for the optional work permit available to SUV applicants, except for applicants already in Canada extending an existing SUV-specific work permit.
• Permanent residence intake — closed December 31, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. After that cutoff, IRCC will not accept new SUV applications, with one exception below.

The exception is narrow. The only applicants who can still file are those who hold a valid 2025 commitment certificate from a designated organization and have not yet applied. December 31, 2025 was also the last day a designated organization could submit a new commitment certificate, so no new certificates are being issued.

The rule is binary: if you do not hold a 2025 commitment certificate, the SUV is closed to you. There is no waitlist, no exception for files already in progress, and no grace period for new applicants.

Who can still apply, and by when?

If a designated organization issued you a valid 2025 commitment certificate, you can still file — but on a deadline. The Canada.ca Start-Up Visa page sets out the current requirements precisely:

• You must have a valid 2025 commitment certificate.
• You must apply by June 30, 2026.
• "The program is closed to all other applications."

That leaves a closing window for the existing queue. If you are in it, the only sensible move is to file a complete, well-evidenced application well before the June 30, 2026 cutoff rather than risk a late or incomplete submission against a hard deadline. A commitment certificate that expires unused, or an application that misses the date, cannot be revived once the window closes.

Is there a new entrepreneur program replacing it?

IRCC has signalled one, but the details do not exist yet. The December 19, 2025 notice states the measures "will set the foundation for the transition to a new, targeted pilot program for immigrant entrepreneurs," and that more information "will be communicated in 2026."

As of mid-2026, that is the full extent of what is official. There is:

• No published eligibility criteria
• No launch date
• No intake quota or application process

What the government has published is the 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan, which gives the only hard number available for the federal business stream:

Immigrant category	2026 target	2027 target	2028 target	Range (each year)
Federal Business	500	500	500	250 – 1,000

For scale, the same plan targets 500 Federal Business admissions per year against 109,000–111,000 for Federal High Skilled and 91,500–92,500 for the Provincial Nominee Program. The word "targeted" in IRCC's language and the 500-admission figure both point to a deliberately small program — not a broad replacement for the SUV at its former volume.

Treat any pilot eligibility rules, dollar thresholds, or launch dates circulating before an official Canada.ca announcement as unconfirmed. Building a plan against unpublished criteria is building against a guess.

What happened to the Self-Employed Persons Program?

It is not an alternative. In the same December 19, 2025 announcement, IRCC extended the existing pause on accepting Self-Employed Persons Program applications "until further notice." That program was already paused before the announcement; the December measure confirmed the pause continues with no reopening date.

As of mid-2026, the Self-Employed Persons Program is not a live federal pathway and should not anchor a new business or immigration plan. Confirm its current status on Canada.ca before relying on it for any purpose.

Where does the pivot go from here?

With the SUV closed to new applicants, the Self-Employed Persons Program paused, and the entrepreneur pilot unpublished, the live options for an entrepreneur are mainly two — and they assess different things than the SUV did. (For the full state of every entrepreneur lane in 2026, see the Canadian entrepreneur immigration pathways overview.)

Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) entrepreneur streams. Several provinces run their own entrepreneur or business-immigration streams with their own criteria, investment thresholds, net-worth requirements, and job-creation expectations. A PNP entrepreneur plan emphasizes local job creation, provincial economic impact, and the applicant's active management role rather than the global-scalability framing the SUV rewarded. British Columbia runs the most prominent stream, where a 200-point business concept controls much of the score. Streams open, close, and get redesigned frequently, and not every province has a live stream at any given time — verify the specific province's current intake before committing.

C11 owner-operator work permit. The C11 route is a Labour Market Impact Assessment-exempt work permit under the significant-benefit provision — not permanent residence on its own. It allows an entrepreneur who owns and actively operates a Canadian business to work in Canada, and it can later support a PR application through other streams. The eligibility rules for this route changed in 2025, so the controlling-ownership requirement, time limits, and supporting-evidence expectations should be confirmed against live IRCC guidance before a plan is built toward it.

Both pathways require a business plan that does a different job than a SUV plan. The structure overlaps; the emphasis and the reader do not.

What do I do with a half-finished Start-Up Visa plan?

Most of the work carries over. A SUV plan is built around innovation, global market potential, job creation in Canada, and the designated organization's commitment. Strip away the SUV-specific framing and the reusable core is substantial:

• Market analysis — the industry sizing, competitor map, and customer evidence transfer directly
• Financial model — the revenue build, cost structure, and projections are the most portable asset of all
• Team narrative — operating experience and track record matter to every pathway
• Operating plan — how the business actually runs is pathway-agnostic

What changes is the framing and the intended reader:

Element	Start-Up Visa emphasis	PNP entrepreneur emphasis	C11 owner-operator emphasis
Core question	Is this innovative and globally scalable?	Does this benefit the province's economy?	Does the applicant control and operate the business, and does it benefit Canada?
Job creation	Jobs for Canadians, future-facing	Local jobs in the province, often committed	Jobs and economic benefit supporting significant-benefit case
Ownership	Founder among a qualifying team	Applicant's stake per provincial rules	Controlling ownership and active operation
Investment	Designated organization's commitment	Provincial net-worth / investment thresholds	Applicant's own capital into the business
Outcome sought	Permanent residence	Provincial nomination toward PR	LMIA-exempt work permit (PR via other streams later)

The practical sequence is: confirm which live pathway fits the applicant's profile and province, then reframe the existing plan to answer that pathway's core question, then rebuild the financial model's assumptions to match the new operating reality. The model rarely survives untouched, but it rarely starts from zero either.

The bottom line

The Start-Up Visa is closed to new applicants as of January 1, 2026. Only holders of a valid 2025 commitment certificate can still file, and only until June 30, 2026. The Self-Employed Persons Program remains paused until further notice, and the replacement entrepreneur pilot has been signalled but not defined — no criteria, no date, no quota beyond a Federal Business target of 500 admissions a year. For an entrepreneur without a 2025 commitment certificate, the realistic routes are a provincial entrepreneur stream or a C11 owner-operator work permit, each of which asks a different question than the SUV did. Bridge Note rebuilds the business plan and financial model so it answers the new pathway's question rather than the closed program's — we write the plan; IRCC, the province, or the designated organization decides the outcome. We never promise an approval, because that decision is never ours to make.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Canada Start-Up Visa still open in 2026?

No, not for new applicants. On December 19, 2025, IRCC announced it would stop accepting new Start-Up Visa permanent residence applications after December 31, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. The only people who can still file are applicants who hold a valid 2025 commitment certificate from a designated organization, and they must apply by June 30, 2026. The Canada.ca program page states plainly: "The program is closed to all other applications." If you do not hold a 2025 commitment certificate, the SUV is closed to you.

Can I still apply to the Start-Up Visa if I have a 2025 commitment certificate?

Yes, but only within a narrow window. If a designated organization issued you a valid 2025 commitment certificate, IRCC will still accept your permanent residence application until June 30, 2026. December 31, 2025 was the last day designated organizations could submit new commitment certificates, so no new certificates are being issued. If you hold one, the priority is filing a complete, lender-grade application before the June 30, 2026 cutoff rather than waiting.

Is there a new Canada entrepreneur immigration program replacing the Start-Up Visa in 2026?

IRCC has signalled that the closure "will set the foundation for the transition to a new, targeted pilot program for immigrant entrepreneurs," with more information to be communicated in 2026. As of mid-2026, no eligibility criteria, launch date, or intake quota has been published. The 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan sets the Federal Business category at a target of 500 admissions per year (range 250 to 1,000), which signals a deliberately small program. Treat any pilot details circulating before an official Canada.ca announcement as unconfirmed.

What happened to the Self-Employed Persons Program?

In the same December 19, 2025 announcement, IRCC extended the existing pause on accepting Self-Employed Persons Program applications "until further notice." That program was already paused before the announcement, and the December measure confirmed the pause continues with no reopening date. As of mid-2026 it is not a live federal pathway, so it should not be the basis of a new business plan or immigration strategy. Confirm current status on Canada.ca before relying on it.

I have a half-finished Start-Up Visa business plan. Is the work wasted?

Mostly no. A SUV plan is built around innovation, global market potential, job creation in Canada, and the designated organization's support, and most of that core content carries over to other pathways. The market analysis, financial model, team narrative, and operating plan are reusable. What changes is the framing and the audience: a Provincial Nominee Program entrepreneur plan emphasizes local job creation and provincial economic impact, while a C11 owner-operator work-permit application emphasizes the applicant's controlling ownership and the benefit to Canada. The financial model is the most portable asset.

What is the difference between the Start-Up Visa and the C11 owner-operator pathway?

The Start-Up Visa was a direct route to permanent residence built around a designated organization's investment commitment. The C11 owner-operator route is a Labour Market Impact Assessment-exempt work permit under the significant-benefit provision, not permanent residence on its own. It lets an entrepreneur who owns and actively operates a Canadian business work here, and it can later support a PR application through other streams. The two pathways assess different things, so a plan written for one needs reframing for the other. Verify current C11 criteria against live IRCC guidance before building toward it.

Will Bridge Note get my immigration application approved?

No. Bridge Note writes the business plan and financial model that supports an application. We do not file immigration applications, give legal advice, or influence an officer's decision. IRCC, a provincial nominee program, or a designated organization assesses the application and decides the outcome. For the immigration filing itself, work with a licensed immigration consultant or lawyer. We build the plan; the program decides.

Sources

1. Update on Immigration Measures for Entrepreneurs — Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, December 19, 2025
2. Start-up Visa Program — Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 2026
3. Supplementary Information for the 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan — Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 2025
4. 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan — Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 2025
5. CIMM — 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan: Permanent Resident Targets — Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, December 4, 2025
6. Start-up Visa Program: Send us a commitment certificate — Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 2026
7. Self-employed Persons Program: Immigrate as a self-employed person — Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 2026