Can an international student buy a business in Canada?

Buying a business and working in it are different things for an international student. The sources read for this page speak to work, not ownership. IRCC’s pages, read 25 October 2026, set conditions on work by study permit holders and say how self-employed hours are counted. Nothing read addresses a student owning shares or buying a business off campus as an owner who does not work in it, so confirm that point with IRCC.

The base rule on work

Section 196 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations says a foreign national must not work in Canada unless authorized by a work permit or the Regulations. Section 186 lists situations where a foreign national may work without a work permit. Paragraph 186(v) covers a study permit holder who meets all its conditions: full-time enrolment at a designated learning institution, in a post-secondary academic, vocational or professional training program (or a secondary-level vocational program in Quebec) of six months or more leading to a degree, diploma or certificate, and, under paragraph 186(v)(iii), no more than 24 hours of work per week during a regular academic session, though full-time work is permitted during a regularly scheduled break. If a student would run the business day to day, ask IRCC or an authorized representative how that time is counted.

Off-campus work and self-employment

IRCC’s off-campus page, read 25 October 2026, says a student can work off campus without a work permit if they meet all its requirements, including a valid study permit (or an extension applied for before it expired), work conditions printed on the permit, full-time study at a designated learning institution (with a final-semester part-time exception it describes) and a started program. IRCC’s page currently gives a limit of up to 24 hours per week off campus, with unlimited hours during breaks scheduled by the school. For a self-employed student, IRCC says the student must track off-campus hours and prove compliance. It counts time spent earning wages or collecting a commission, and says working over the limit is a violation that can cost student status.

A business on campus

IRCC’s on-campus page, read 25 October 2026, lists yourself as a possible on-campus employer, if you run a business physically located on campus. Its example is owning a coffee shop located on campus. That page sets its own eligibility conditions, so read it in full. For the permit that follows graduation, see post-graduation work permit.

Getting advice

Deavo is not an immigration adviser. IRCC’s page on representatives, read 25 October 2026, says that anyone paid for immigration help must be an authorized representative, and that you need not hire one. Only licensed consultants (RCICs), lawyers or Quebec notaries, and paralegals who are members of a provincial or territorial law society, may give immigration advice for pay: IRCC lists these as the authorized paid representatives.