Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

THE countdown to the G-20 summit has begun, in less than two weeks Toronto, Canada will be hosting the world’s most prominent financial summit.

Canada stands in a unique position as not only the hosts of the event, but also as one of the strongest economies in the world. The financial crisis that has crippled most of Europe, Asia, and North America, has been relatively kind to the host country.

Canada currently leads the more exclusive group of G-7 countries, bragging a strong financial system, low debt, and high levels of immigration. Chief economist at CIBC, one of Canada’s largest Banks, Avery Shenfeld, notes "Canada’s rich resources, resilient financial system and favorable demographics relative to other G7 nations make it an economic contender looking out over the next five to ten years."

Canada is the place to be, with high levels of immigration illustrating the desirability of the world’s second largest country. The preliminary data released from Citizenship and Immigration Canada illustrates this point well. In 2009, a staggering amount of immigrants were admitted into Canada. The data shows that over 500,000 newcomers were welcomed into Canada. The numbers are doubly impressive when you consider that Canada only has a population of 34 million people.

The time to invest in Canada is now. Shenfeld notes "where economic growth goes, corporate earnings, dividends and other rewards for investors are likely to follow." The Government of Canada is encouraging investment in Canada by offering Permanent Residency to those who are willing to contribute to the Canadian economy.

Two popular investment programs in Canada are the Federal Investor Program and the Quebec Investor program.

There are three essential requirements for the investor programs in Canada.

The investor must be willing to make an investment in Canada. There are two ways the investor can go about this:

A.) The investor can invest $400,000CAD into the Canadian Government. They are guaranteed to receive the entire $400,000 back after five years. There is no risk and this approach is completely passive. The funds are guaranteed by the Canadian Government; OR

B.) The investor can go through a designated Canadian bank. The investor pays the bank $120,000CAD, and the bank in turn makes an investment in Canada. With this option, none of the investor’s money will be returned.

The investor must also have a net worth of $800,000CAD.

The investor must either have two years of business experience or two years of managerial experience.

Upon approval of applications, foreign investors are granted Canadian Permanent Residency status. Permanent residents are offered an abundance of opportunities and benefits in Canada. Permanent residents have access to most of the social welfare programs in Canada, including free health care. Permanent Residents can also live and work anywhere in Canada with minor exceptions, this means that the applicant is not tied to a specific employer. Permanent Residents can also apply for full Canadian Citizenship after three years of living full time in Canada.