Updated
GL-I-09
01 / In 30 seconds
The short answer
- What it is
- A business plan submitted under a business immigration programme
- How it differs
- It is read by an official assessing the benefit to the country, not by an investor looking for returns
- What is assessed
- Realism, jobs, contribution to the economy, the applicant’s competence
- The main mistake
- Attractive inflated forecasts instead of justified calculations
- What to remember
- Delivery of the plan will be checked when status is renewed
02 / In plain words
What Immigration business plan means
An immigration business plan is a document submitted under programmes where status is granted for setting up or developing a business. Outwardly it resembles an ordinary business plan, but its audience is different, and that changes everything.
An investor reads a business plan to understand whether they will make money. An official reads it to understand whether the country will benefit and whether the idea is realistic: will jobs be created, does the applicant have competence and experience in the field, where is the money for the launch coming from, will the model stand up to a common-sense check. Inflated forecasts work against you here: they look like a failure to understand the market.
A separate point that is underestimated: delivery of the plan will be checked. When status is renewed or on moving to the next stage, you will be asked what has been done of what was declared — whether jobs have been created, whether the business is operating, whether the turnover matches. That is why the plan includes what you are actually prepared to deliver, not what looks better at filing.
A case from practice
A client had been offered a template business plan with impressive forecasts. We reworked the document for the criteria of the particular programme and the client’s real experience — with more modest but justified figures that the client could substantiate on renewal.
When it is needed
- Business immigration programmes
- Start-up visas
- A residence permit through setting up a company
- Programmes for the self-employed
- Renewing entrepreneur status
- Justifying the source of income
03 / What it covers
What is assessed in the plan
Model
- What the business is
- Market and customers
- Realism of the model
Declarant
- Experience in the field
- Competence
- Role in the project
Money
- Size of the investment
- Source of funds
- Financial model
Benefit to the country
- Jobs
- Tax revenue
- Contribution to the economy
04 / How it works
How it is prepared
Study the programme’s criteria
Work out a real model
Justify the figures
Prepare the appendices
Deliver what was declared
05 / Key facts
What you need to know
01
The plan is assessed by an official, not an investor
02
Jobs are one of the key criteria
03
The applicant’s experience in the field matters a great deal
04
Inflated forecasts reduce trust in the document
05
Delivery of the plan is checked when status is renewed
Common mistakes
- Ordering a template plan not tied to the programme
- Inflating forecasts to impress
- Not explaining the source of the funds for the launch
- Declaring a field in which you have no experience
- Promising more than you are prepared to deliver
06 / Expert advice
How to prepare in advance
Start with the criteria of the particular programme: what exactly it assesses and which indicators it considers material. The plan is built around a real model and your own experience, and the figures are justified. And assess in advance whether you will be able to deliver what is declared — that is exactly what will be checked in a year or two.
What we do for you. We prepare the business plan for the criteria of the particular programme and for what you actually intend to do. An attractive template document fares worse than a realistic one — and creates problems later, when delivery is checked.
Robert HaasHead of Company Formation
07 / Questions
Frequently asked questions
In its audience. It is read by an official assessing the benefit to the country and the realism of the idea, not by an investor looking for returns.
The realism of the model, job creation, the applicant’s experience and competence, and the source of the funds for the launch.
No. Inflated figures reduce trust in the document and create problems when delivery is checked a year or two later.
Yes, usually when status is renewed: you are asked what has been done, whether jobs have been created and whether the business is operating.
Poorly. It does not take into account the criteria of the particular programme or your real experience, and that is exactly what is assessed.
It significantly increases the chances. A declared activity unrelated to your past raises legitimate questions.
INITIAL ASSESSMENT
Tell us what outcome your family needs
We will design a solution for your case, choose the country and the right status, and take the whole process through to the result.
