Program Overview
The Rural Entrepreneur Stream will allow The Town of Claresholm to offer a Community Letter of Support to entrepreneurs who want to start a new business or purchase/invest in an existing business and gain permanent residency. The Rural Entrepreneur Stream will promote economic growth by attracting newcomers who can start new ventures or assist with succession planning for businesses with owners looking to retire/sell.
We strongly suggest candidates interested in the Rural Entrepreneur Stream read thoroughly through the Government of Alberta AAIP pages and utilize the self-assessment tool before they contact our office. The qualifications required to participate in the RES are involved and the process is primarily the candidates responsibility to complete.
Once you have read through the requirements and believe you are eligible for the program, you can submit your business proposal, resume, language test, and education credential assessment to the Town of Claresholm (eda@claresholm.ca, applications that do not include these four documents will not be considered). Click here to view the AAIP Business Plan Guidelines, which can help you prepare you business plan. The Claresholm Rural Entrepreneur Team will review your business proposal and if you meet all the requirements and the Team feels your business will be an asset to Claresholm, we will agree to meet with you as part of your Exploratory Visit. It is up to the Team's discretion on who will be invited for an Exploratory Visit meeting. Once this meeting has occurred the Team will review your Rural Entrepreneur Stream Business Proposal Summary, and make a decision on whether you and your business proposal is a benefit to the community, if you are approved we will issue a Community Letter of Support.
Exploratory Visit
The purpose of the exploratory visit is to assist the entrepreneur in making an informed decision about operating and managing a business in a rural Alberta community. It is the entrepreneur's responsibility to research current market opportunities in the community, licensing and registration requirements, available land or buildings, and steps involved in establishing a business in Alberta. It is also the entrepreneur's responsibility to arrange their own meetings with local business contacts and settlement services as well as any other prospective contacts to learn and understand the local business environment, and requirements to build a successful business and life in the community.
As part of your exploratory visit the entrepreneur will meet with the Town of Claresholm's Rural Entrepreneur Team, where the entrepreneur will provide information on their business proposal, why they have chosen Claresholm and their interest in doing business and living in Claresholm long term.
Community Support Letter
After the exploratory visit, the entrepreneur will provide a copy of the Business Proposal Summary to the community contact person for review and consideration. The Business Proposal Summary should reaffirm the discussions on the business venture in the community during the exploratory visit. If the community deems that the entrepreneur and their business proposal is a benefit to the community, the community representative will endorse the Business Proposal Summary and issue the Community Support Letter to the entrepreneur.
Expression of Interest
Once the entrepreneur receives the endorsed Business Proposal Summary and Community Support Letter, the entrepreneur can submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) to the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program Portal pending they meet all Rural Entrepreneur Stream eligibility criteria. To rad more about the steps you must complete to submit your application to AAIP, visit the AAIP Rural Entrepreneur Stream pages.
Click here to view the Rural Entrepreneur Stream Community Guide, which clearly describes the entire process.