When it comes to doing business, Canada is an excellent country. The country provides potential investors with stable, independent governments and courts. Investors will also find strategic investments in terms of education, training and literacy along with an innovative R&D environment and a workforce that is driven by technology. Business owners are welcomed by Canada and those with entrepreneurial interests are provided with a range of opportunities.
Before you start
There are important considerations that you need to evaluate before you start your business in Canada. These considerations are:
- Does your legal status allow you to own and operate a business in Canada?
- Does your business activity require regulation or does it require certain licences or certifications?
- What is the status of your skills and qualifications in your province or city?
Understand your legal status in Canada
For those of you who are uncertain about their legal status in Canada and have questions regarding the same, you can contact Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to get a better understanding about your legal status. Prowse Chowne can help individuals and organizations identify whether they can own or operate a business in Canada.
Getting started
Before you move ahead with your business in Canada, there are several issues that you need to consider. These include regulations, financing, and taxation. To deal with these, start by writing a business plan, which you can use to:
• Have business goals that are realistic
• Make decisions about running your business in an informed manner
• Forecast your business earnings
• Demonstrate to potential investors your business plans and goals
Now in order to plan and start, you will have to choose a business structure, business name along with a business location.
Business structure
The business structure includes four types of businesses. This might be a little different depending on which province you are situated in, but generally this includes:
- Sole-Proprietorships and Partnerships
This is the easiest and most common way of starting a business. One of the drawbacks of this kind of business is that the whole responsibility rests on your shoulder.
- Corporations
A corporation is considered a legal entity. This separates the business from its owner/operator. Depending on what options suit your needs, you can choose to incorporate federally or provincially. Each of the options comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.
- Co-operatives (For Profit and Not for Profit)
Corporations that are controlled and organized by its members are known as co-operatives. These co-operatives can be set up to operate as for-profit or not-for-profit. Very much like a corporation, they can be registered provincially or federally and each option comes with own advantages and disadvantages.
Regulations
Your business might be needing licences and permits either from the federal, provincial and municipal levels of government. In addition to the information you will find in this article, you can use the Canada Business Permits and Licenses Search, to look for regulations that might affect your business.
If you are having legal questions, get in touch with a lawyer with experience in business regulations.