What does it mean “Qualifying Relationship”?

Before starting the process of applying for an Intra-Company work permit there are qualifications you should determine that match your current situation.

There are a few qualification that you must have such as you must be a citizen of North America (Canada, the United States, and Mexico). You must hold the position of either a manager or an executive or have proven that you have specialized knowledge. The position must have been held for at least one continuous year. Your plans in Canada do not go outside the time frame of how long your work permit is valid for.

One of the most important qualifications is that the company you current work for must have a relationship with the company you are transferring into. It must be a qualifying relationship. This means that both companies have a connect somewhere in the ways of doing business with each other. There are a few different ways that both companies can have a qualifying relationship.

Both your company and the Canadian company must be legal businesses and be in connect by way of either one company is Parent, Subsidiary, Branch or Affiliate. To be considered as two companies doing business with each other both your company and the Canadian company must have evidence of business transactions, such as offices with actual employees, supplies being transferred, and tax returns. All communications between both companies must on regular and continuous.

In better detail the following types of business are considered to be qualifying:

Parent:

One of the companies own more than one company. They have multiple subsidiaries.

Subsidiary:

means that one of the companies is owned by the parent company either directly, 50-50, or less than half but still has control over the other company.

Branch:

both are the same company just with different offices in different locations

Affiliate:

companies are own and operated under the same parent company or own by multiple individuals who each have about the same amount of control and ownership in the business.

If the relationship changes between your company and the one in Canada it may change in regards to whether it remains qualifying.

Qualifying relationships are focused most with the Intra-Company work permit. There are other options available if this particular work permit does not work. Under the North American Free Trade Agreement there are three other work permits you may qualify. There is the Professional work permit, Trader Status, and Investors permit. Take note, that both the Trader Status and the Investor work permits are complicated, are limited in their use, and are complex.

Contact us here at Akrami and Associates today and we will assist you in finding out which option is best for you.