Stream 3 allows you to immigrate to Quebec by acquiring control of a business that has been operating for at least five years. An organization specializing in business takeovers must support you. In 2026 applications are accepted with no maximum number, but the certificates set aside for business people remain limited.
Where the stream stands in 2026
The official page states that an application may be submitted at any time and that there is no maximum number of applications. The stream being open says nothing, however, about the volume of selections.
The 2026 immigration plan provides for 100 to 200 Selection Certificates for business people as a whole. That volume is shared with the other business programs, including the Start a business stream and the Investor Program. A takeover project therefore has to be solid from the moment it is filed.
The two profiles in the stream
Stream 3 distinguishes a takeover still to come from one already completed. The Business being acquired profile leads to a notice of intent to select, then to the certificate. The Business already acquired profile leads directly to the certificate.
| Condition | Business being acquired | Business already acquired |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum net worth | $600,000 | $300,000 |
| Stay in Quebec | Not required | At least 2 years, authorized to work |
| Control | Alone or with the included spouse | Alone or with the included spouse |
| Support organization | Mandatory | Mandatory, throughout the takeover |
| Outcome | Notice of intent, then certificate | Certificate and letter of support |
The target business and net worth
The business to be acquired must have been operating for at least five years. It must not have been acquired in the past five years by someone selected under the Entrepreneur Program. Both points are checked before any offer, in the target’s records and filings: see due diligence before a takeover.
Gifts received in the six months preceding the application are excluded from net worth. The lawful origin of the assets must be established, including for the spouse. That exercise is covered in our piece on net worth in business immigration. Who may be included in the application is the subject of a separate piece: spouse and children in a business immigration application.
Control and partners
Stream 3 requires you to acquire control of the business, alone or with your spouse included in the application. Partners may take part in the financing or in the capital. They may not, however, apply under this program or hold control.
That requirement shapes the structure of the acquisition. The number of votes, the veto rights and the clauses of the shareholders’ agreement must preserve your real control. A clause handing decision-making power to a partner can weaken the application.
The support organization and its service offer
You must be supported by an organization specializing in business takeovers with an establishment in Quebec. Its principal activity must consist of support services, such as training, mentoring or brokerage. Its resources must be sufficient and suited to your takeover project.
The organization completes the Service offer in business takeover form, which you file with your application. The official form has six headings.
| Heading | What the form asks for |
|---|---|
| Identification | The entrepreneur, the organization with its Quebec enterprise number, and its contact person |
| Project | A brief description of the project and of why the organization agrees to support it, without naming the entrepreneur |
| Expertise | The organization’s expertise in business transfers, its track record, its services and its partners |
| Support plan | The services proposed, the people involved and the timetable |
| Cost | The cost of the services, itemized, and the fees charged |
| Declaration | A declaration signed by the contact person attesting that the information is accurate |
The form requires a handwritten signature or an accepted handwritten electronic signature. The Ministry pays particular attention to this offer and to the succession plan. The organization’s actual expertise is therefore worth verifying before you commit and pay support fees.
The succession plan and the acquisition offer
Your project must be set out in a succession plan drafted on the official stream 3 form. If the takeover has not started, the planned spending must appear in it. It must reach $300,000 in the Montreal metropolitan community, or $150,000 elsewhere in Quebec.
Within two years of your application, you must submit an acquisition offer consistent with the succession plan and with the service offer. You must also show that the planned spending has been incurred. We devote a separate piece to the acquisition offer.
The steps in the process
The Business being acquired profile runs as follows.
Filing
The complete application is filed by mail, with the succession plan, the service offer and the narrative document.
The documents must match one another from the outset.
The notice of intent
A notice of intent to select is issued if every condition is met except the acquisition offer and the spending.
It is not a final selection.
The work permit
A work permit application is then made to the Government of Canada, for you and the family included in the application.
Evidence and certificate
You establish the acquisition within the deadline and the takeover spending.
The Selection Certificate is issued after that.
General conditions and fees
The general conditions are those of stream 2: age, diploma, oral French at level 7, financial self-sufficiency, ineligible sectors and values. They are set out in our guide to the Start a business stream.
The 2026 fees are $1,272 for the principal applicant and $201 for each family member. They are not refundable, whatever the outcome of the application.
Points to watch in a takeover
A takeover carries risks a start-up does not. The seller may change their mind, the price may move and the target may prove less solid than expected. Before filing your application, check the following.
- Five years of operation: the target must genuinely have them, as its records and filings must establish.
- Ownership history: it must not have been acquired in the past five years by someone selected under the Entrepreneur Program.
- Sector of activity: its activity must not fall within any ineligible sector, including real estate.
- The support organization: its expertise in business transfers must be verifiable.
- The budget: the cost of the support must be known and planned for, on top of the minimum spending.
The two-year deadline for submitting the acquisition offer runs from your application. If no target has been identified at filing, that deadline can become tight. An application resting on a target already found is generally more consistent with the succession plan.
How MEKA AVOCAT works on this
In a takeover, the legal quality of the transaction bears directly on the immigration file. We carry out due diligence on the target, including its operating history and its corporate compliance. We draft or review the purchase offer so that it stays consistent with the succession plan, and the choice between a share purchase and an asset purchase is made with the control condition in mind.
We structure the acquisition to secure your control: articles, share classes and shareholders’ agreement. The contributed capital is documented in the minute book. We also prepare the notice required by the Investment Canada Act for the acquisition of control by a non-Canadian, under its sections 11 and 12.
The tax structure of the purchase is coordinated with our accounting and tax partners. We will tell you plainly if the target, the price or your profile compromises the application: walking away from a target is better than filing a file that does not hold. The Ministry also points out that using a representative brings no priority processing.
Texts and sources
This article draws on the official stream 3 pages of the Entrepreneur Program published by Quebec’s immigration ministry, namely the stream conditions, how to apply and how the application is examined, on the Service offer in business takeover and Succession plan forms, on the 2026 immigration plan and on the Investment Canada Act.
Frequently asked questions
Is stream 3 open to applications in 2026?
Yes, at any time and with no maximum number of applications. The 2026 immigration plan nonetheless provides for only 100 to 200 certificates for business people as a whole.
Can the support organization be a business broker?
Brokerage is among the accepted services, provided support is the organization’s principal activity and it has an establishment in Quebec.
Can I take over a business with a foreign partner?
Yes, but that partner may neither apply under the program nor hold control of the business.
What happens if I do not find a business within two years?
Without an acquisition offer within that period the condition is not met, and the application is likely to be refused.
Thinking of taking over a business in Quebec?
The target, the support organization and the structure of the acquisition are chosen together. A meeting lets us check the business in question, align the acquisition offer with the succession plan and protect your control.
Next: due diligence before a takeover, the acquisition offer, and our work on buying a business.
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Lawyer, member of the Barreau du Québec since 2014, founder of MEKA AVOCAT. This text sets out general legal information: it describes rules that apply broadly, not the answer to a particular case, and does not replace advice on your own situation.
