18
UGLOBAL IMMIGRATION MAGAZINE
“ Quebec remained the only
immigrant program in Canada
leading to permanent residency
by a passive investment. ”
good educational opportunities and quality of life. Often,
the choice can be driven by the country in which the
children are studying, but there are several other factors.
Leaving aside all personal factors such as quality of life,
opportunities, climate and such, let’s have a look at the
main selection criteria of both programs. Under EB-5, the
investor’s money is injected “at-risk” and before submitting
the application. If the investment does not create the jobs,
the green card is at-risk and the family could be asked to
leave the U.S. promptly. On the other end of the spectrum,
QIIP requires the investment only after the approval of
the application, and the investment is fully guaranteed by
the government. The permanent residency status is given
without conditions, hence there is no risk of a family being
asked to leave Canada.
Both EB-5 and QIIP remain programs that share several
similarities but offers different objectives. The so-called
“best program” may not be the same for two different
families for many reasons. Each program having its pros
and cons, both would continue to attract high net worth
individuals from all over the world. Let’s just hope that
Canada — through the Quebec Immigrant Investor Program
as the last RBI program through passive investment for the
country — can remain an option in years to come.
JULIEN TÉTRAULT
Julien Tétrault started his career in business immigration for
Canada in Hong Kong in 2002, working exclusively with the
Quebec Immigrant Investor Program (QIIP). In 2013, Tétrault
founded the law firm JTH Lawyers Inc. Based in Montreal,
Tétrault has represented more than 1,000 immigrant investors
from 75 countries. As an administrator of the association Québec
Lawyers Abroad, Tétrault founded and acted as president of the
immigrant investor section of Québec Lawyers Abroad. Tétrault
obtained his accreditation of president, directors and officers of
Canadian financial institutions in 2014.