Proud Sponsor
Go North:
Strategies for International Businesses to Come to Canada
Meet key representatives from all levels of government
Understand the incentives available
What is this conference about?
Immigration strategies & pitfalls.
Talent strategies:
Accessing the local talent pool
Moving skilled workers across the border
Employment & immigration audit issues
Tax considerations
Canadian government incentives
Putting it all together:
Practical issues round table.
Who Should Attend
You are expanding your business to Canada
You will no longer be able to employ some of your key foreign workers in the U.S.
Understand the costs and risks associated with relocating your business & employees, and how to deal with them.
The key business and legal requirements.
Agenda
8:00 am — Coffee
8:45 am — Setting the stage
Nathalie Bechamp, Chief, Investor Services,
Invest in Canada
David Brezer, V.P. Investment Growth Ontario Investment Office Ministry of Economic Development
Canada is open to international workers and the companies that rely on them.
Canadian advantages - open immigration policies, geographic proximity, similar business cultural, common language, tax incentives and programs to help businesses and workers establish in Canada.
9:15 am — Immigration strategies for work permits and permanent residence
Panel Chair
Elizabeth Long, Partner, Long Mangalji LLP (Toronto),
Ari Farkas, Partner, Pearl Cohen Zedek Latzer Baratz LLP (New York)
Saima Chaudhry, Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Ernest Wheeler, Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program
Understand Canadian Immigration landscape with regard to short- term work permits and long-term permanent residency strategies for moving employees to Canada.
The current immigration situation in the U.S. and what is happening with H1B, L visas, and DACA.
The Canadian and Ontario government's policies and outlook on the immigration system for skilled workers and entrepreneurs.
10:15 am — Break
10:30 am — Employment law for hiring international workers, immigration audits, and the global talent stream
Panel Chair
Ziah Sumar, Long Mangalji LLP(Toronto);
Sharaf Sultan, Sultan Lawyers (Toronto);
Gabriela Ramo, KPMG Law (Toronto)
ESDC - Global Talent Stream (TBC)
Key Provisions in employment agreements for foreign workers.
What kind of things do employers need to keep track of in order to meet compliance requirements for immigration audits?
What do officers in the Global Talent Stream look for in Labour Market Benefit Plans?
11:15 am — Talent Strategies
Panel Chair
Sischa Maharaj, University of Toronto, Career Centre
Susan Brown, Community Development Officer,
Toronto Newcomer Office, City of Toronto
Valerie Fox, Chief Innovation Consultant,
The Pivotal Point
Janet Bomza, Partner, PwC Law
Aneela Zaib, Founder & CEO, emergiTEL
How can we do a better job of matching talent pools and requirements.
Developing a talent strategy. Accessing the pool of local talent.
Moving skilled workers across the border. U of T Incubators. What's working, What's not.
12:00 pm — Lunch
Paul Thompson, Associate Deputy Minister, Innovation, Science and Economic Development
Incentives available to companies and skilled workers relocating to Canada
1:00 pm — How Canadian cities support businesses and entrepreneurs
Panel Chair
Peggy Van de Plassche, Board Member, Invest in Canada
Sarah Wayland, Hamilton Immigration Partnership Council, City of Hamilton
Dan Silverman, Toronto Global Canada City Alliance
Blair Patacairk, President & CEO, Consider Canada City Alliance
Mark Maclean, Senior Director, West Coast, Latin America & Entrepreneurship, Montreal International
What kind of policies and actions do cities in Canada have to support international businesses in Canada? How can you access the available services?
1:30 pm — Practical Issues Roundtable
Panel Chair
Rajeeve Perera, Co-Founder, Investor Quotient Canada
Elizabeth Chak, Ontario Centres of Excellence
Blair Patacairk, President & CEO, Consider Canada City Alliance
Lisa Fulford-Roy, SVP Client Strategy Workplace National Occupier Services Group
CBRE (TBC)
Practical challenges arising from relocating your business and employees and how to deal with them.
How to access government services and support that are available to businesses.
What to keep in mind when searching for commercial real estate in Canada.
2:00 pm — Break
2:15 pm — Tax Considerations for relocating your business - U.S. and Canada
Panel Chair
Natasha Miklaucic, Partner, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (Toronto)
Clayton Cartwright, The Cartwright Law firm (Atlanta)
CRA - SR&ED (TBC)
What kind of considerations have to be taken into account when structuring your subsidiary business in Canada?
The tax implications and key steps to take before you relocate.
What kind of small business and corporate tax incentives can you access when expanding your business and undertaking R&D work in Canada?
3:00 pm — Break
3:15 pm — Crossing the border with the new Cannabis and DUI laws
Panel Chair
Aadil Mangalji, Long Mangalji LLP
Annamaria Enenajor, Ruby Shiller Enenajor DiGiuseppe, Barristers (Toronto)
Will the admission of possession of Cannabis be an impediment to crossing the border?
What happens if you wish to cross the border for business purposes in the Cannabis industry?
The Canadian government has dramatically increased the penalty for DUI to one of “serious criminality”. How will this affect those who wish to cross the border to Canada?
4:00 pm — Reception
Speakers
Elizabeth Long
Elizabeth is a leading immigration lawyer in Canada. She specializes in the economic immigration categories. She is an active advocate of immigrant and refugee rights in Canada and frequently presents and advises on immigration issues to organizations, universities, Members of Parliament, unions, and the media. She has also testified several times before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration on various immigration policies.
Elizabeth holds a Juris Doctor law degree from the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honours in Psychology from Memorial University of Newfoundland. She also holds a Master of Law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School, York University where she focused on the intersection between Immigration and Labour & Employment Law for foreign workers.
Nathalie Béchamp
Nathalie Béchamp brings over 20 years of economic diplomacy, foreign investment expertise and strategic partnerships to her role. Before joining Invest in Canada, she was a career diplomat at Global Affairs Canada (GAC), most recently as Director General of the Innovation and Investment Bureau.
Since joining GAC in 1995, she has held significant assignments abroad, including as Minister Counselor (Commercial) in Moscow, as Senior Trade Commissioner in New York City, as second secretary in Santiago, Chile and third secretary in Bangkok, Thailand. In Canada, she has held the role of Director of the Investor Outreach Division and Deputy Director of the Regional Trade Negotiations Division.
In 2018, Ms. Béchamp was nominated to the federal government’s senior Executive Leadership Program and is the recipient of two Minister of Foreign Affairs Awards and two Minister for International Trade Awards. She has a Bachelor of Commerce degree (Accounting Major) from the University of Ottawa, 1993.
She lives in Ottawa with her two sons.
Aneela Zaib
Aneela Zaib is a 12-year veteran in the recruitment industry with a Masters in Electrical & Computer Engineering from the University of Toronto. She is currently the CEO at emergiTEL, an ace recruitment agency, recognized as one of Canada’s Best Managed companies. emergiTEL has continuously served the telecommunications and the IT industries with hard-to-find skilled talent. Her exemplary prowess as an inclusive leader demonstrating courage to help advance women and create inclusive workspace cultures in Canada titled her the 2018 Catalyst Canada Honours Champion. Under her leadership, emergiTEL also ranked twice in PROFIT 500 as one of Canada’s fastest growing companies and named her as among the Top 100 female entrepreneurs, from 2014 to 2016. She also got recognized in 2015 with the prestigious Ernst & Young “EY Entrepreneurial Winning WomenTM” award.
Meet key representatives from all levels of government
Understand the incentives available
Janet Bomza
Janet Bomza is a partner, Co-Chair of PwC Law LLP and the National Practice Leader of the firm’s Immigration Law division. Janet has over two decades of experience managing one of Canada’s largest and leading North American immigration law practices. Having practiced exclusively in the field of immigration law since commencing her legal career, Janet is certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a Specialist in Citizenship and Immigration Law and is considered an expert on Canadian immigration and cross-border matters. Specializing in corporate immigration issues, Janet provides immigration advice to multi-national companies, small businesses and professionals seeking to relocate skilled individuals and key employees to Canada, the United States and other countries around the world. Janet also advises clients on various aspects of international mobility ranging from obtaining global immigration visas to internal immigration policy creation and compliance guidance.
Paul Thompson
Mr. Paul Thompson was appointed as Associate Deputy Minister at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada in November 2017.
He has held executive positons in various departments including the Privy Council Office, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Treasury Board Secretariat.
Prior to his current role, he held several Assistant Deputy Minister positions at Employment and Social Development Canada and most recently as the Senior Assistant Deputy Minister for the Skills and Employment Branch.
Natasha Miklaucic
Natasha Miklaucic is a partner at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP working exclusively in tax matters. Her practice includes structuring company reorganizations, cross-border and domestic mergers and acquisitions, international tax planning including cross-border and international structuring, tax planning for non-resident corporations establishing or carrying on business in Canada and their employees working in Canada. She provides advice on internal structuring and employee/contractor remuneration issues, tax issues related to professional corporations including advice with respect to taxation of employee remuneration. Her practice also includes advising clients on family business tax and succession planning, non-resident trust (NRT) advice, insurance planning, wealth management, personal and estate tax planning. In addition, Natasha represents clients in tax assessment disputes, tax litigation including tax, CPP and EI, and voluntary disclosures (tax amnesty or tax pardons).
Paul Peggy Van De Plassche
Peggy is the Managing Partner of Roar Ventures, an early-stage VC fund focusing on data/AI startups targeting the financial services industry. Prior to starting Roar Ventures, Peggy was Senior Advisor at Portag3 Ventures, VP Innovation at CIBC, launched a couple of Fintech ventures, invested in the space, consulted for large and small financial institutions, and worked at CGI and BMO on their strategic technology investments. A Finance professional by trade, Peggy started working in technology 15 years ago. She is a board member of Invest in Canada, Zoom.ai, FrontFundr, and Hackergal.
Ari Farkas
Ari Farkas is a Partner and Chair of the U.S. Business Immigration Group at Pearl Cohen’s New York office. Ari advises clients on business immigration matters as well as employment authorization compliance. Ari’s practice also includes advice and audits focused on immigration law issues in mergers, acquisitions, and / or restructuring transactions. Ari’s clients include domestic and foreign financial institutions, companies in the hospitality industry, pharmaceuticals, high-tech startups, software developers, manufacturers and non-profits. Additionally, Ari has represented internationally acclaimed artists, performers, and performance groups, and individual investors.
Understand the costs and risks associated with relocating your business & employees, and how to deal with them.
Sharaf Sultan
Sharaf Sultan is the Principal and founder of Sultan Lawyers PC, a firm specializing in employment and immigration law.
Sharaf advises employers on a wide range of immigration matters for companies involved in the relocation or hiring of foreigners into the Canadian labour market. He has extensive experience preparing and providing advice with respect to visitor applications, intra-company transfers and Labour Market Impact Assessment applications.
Sharaf’s clients include large American and multinational corporations. Sharaf regularly writes and speaks on workplace immigration matters. He has also taught at the university and college levels as an adjunct professor on advocacy, employment and immigration law.
Sischa Maharaj
Sischa is passionate about empowering students to reach their full potential and to find a meaningful career with top global firms. Her mission is to find and create global employment opportunities that make our world a better place. At UofT, she has worked in career services and student life for over 8 years, supporting over 3000 Graduate and Undergraduate students. As theAssociate Director of Business Development and Client Relations she leads an outstanding team who build and deepen strategic relationships with employers who match and market MBAs for internships and FT roles. Previous to joining UFT, Sischa had a 12 year career in financial services at BMO and CIBC. At CIBC, she led leadership development programs, diversity recruitment and campus intake programs. Sischa received the first ever Canadian HR Reporter individual achievement award as part of TRIEC’s Immigrant Success Awards. She is a U of T grad with an Honours BA and a Specialist in Management. She grew up in Canada and the West Indies. She embraces world cultures, water sports and enjoys authentic spicy food.
Clayton E. Cartwright, Jr.
Clayton E. Cartwright, Jr. is the founding member of The Cartwright Law Firm, LLC, which specializes in the areas of international taxation and employee benefits.
He advises businesses, financial institutions, accountants and other financial professionals, and individuals on international taxation matters, emphasizing the intersection between immigration and taxation law. Such matters include expatriate taxation, cross-border employee transfers, withholding and reporting requirements, and permanent establishments.
Mr Cartwright is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)’s National Bylaws Committee. He also currently is Immediate Past Chair of the Steering Committee of the AILA’s Global Migration Section (GMS). He is Vice-Chair of the Immigration and Nationality Law Commission of the Union Internationale des Avocats.
Aadil Mangalji
Aadil is an active advocate of immigration and refugee rights in Canada and appears regularly at Federal Court, the Immigration Appeal Division and the Refugee Board.
He has also presented cases at the Federal Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. He is a member of the Law Society of Ontario; Canadian Bar Association; and the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers.
Aadil graduated with a Juris Doctor law degree from the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law. He also holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree with Dean’s list distinction from McGill University.
Aadil has been Certified by the Law Society of Ontario as a Specialist in Citizenship and Immigration Law as well as a Specialist in Refugee Protection Law, a prestigious list of which only approximately 15 lawyers in all of Canada belong.
Understand the costs and risks associated with relocating your business & employees, and how to deal with them.
Elizabeth Chak
Elizabeth is a Business Development Manager in the Central Ontario team at the Ontario Centres of Excellence. In her role at OCE, she focuses on growing the fintech ecosystem and fostering partnerships between fintechs and financial institutions to collaborate on developing and commercializing innovative solutions. She was the Business Development Lead for the Fintech Customer Demonstration and Talent programs that resulted in 3 international partnerships and over 30 provincial partnerships. Prior to joining OCE, Elizabeth held various leadership roles in the financial services sector developing financial technology services and products for financial institutions. Elizabeth’s 12 years of financial services industry experience spans across various financial institutions such as CIBC and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. Elizabeth holds a Bachelor of Technology degree, Master of Applied Computing degree and Master of Bachelor Administration degree.
Ziah Sumar
Ziah’s practice encompasses all areas of economic immigration through temporary and permanent residence applications in addition to Citizenship. She assists a broad array of clientele in the economic streams. She specializes in providing immigration planning strategies to multinational organizations and corporations.
Ziah has argued in Federal Court, the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, and is the Citizenship and Immigration Lead and Subject Matter Expert for the National Settlement Portfolio of the Ismaili Council for Canada. She is also an Executive Committee Member of the Citizenship and Immigration section of the Ontario Bar Association.
Ziah received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Law from Carleton University. She graduated with a Juris Doctor law degree from the University of Ottawa.
Blair Patacairk
With over 20 years of experience and a unique blend of industry and government expertise supporting diverse objectives for City Hall, start-ups and Fortune 500 companies, Blair Patacairk has successfully brought in hundreds of millions of dollars of investment and facilitated thousands of jobs for the Ottawa region. Blair is the current President and CEO of Telecom Gateway Services Inc., a full service international business development consulting firm and government specialists and is also the President of the Consider Canada City Alliance (CCCA). A recipient of Ottawa’s Top 40 Under 40 award in 2008, as a special advisor to companies, government departments and economic development agencies, Blair has consulted on foreign direct investment, local and global partnerships, trade, government relations and the international spokesperson on marketing Ottawa and Canada to the world. Bringing a wealth of knowledge on strategic partnerships and growing both SMEs and Fortune 500 companies, Blair also builds in time to share his experience as a business and marketing/communications mentor to students at local universities, colleges and high schools.
Rajeeve Perera
As a self-motivated Finance professional, Rajeeve has over 20 years of professional finance experience ranging from investment banking to financial planning, analysis and governance. Over the past 15 years, he has held numerous leadership positions across multiple industry verticals from big retail (Loblaw, Grand & Toy) to financial services (TD Bank Group, Foresters Financial).
Rajeeve holds a Master of Business Administration from Boston University and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management and Finance from the University of Houston.
In addition to Rajeeve’s strong track record in operational finance, he also has experience in vendor management. He is also an adjunct faculty member at the University of Toronto where he teaches a course in Corporate Finance.
Lisa Fulford-Roy
Lisa Fulford-Roy, SVP Client Strategy of CBRE Canada is responsible for leading business solutions for CBRE clients and managing CBRE’s Workplace Strategy practice in Central and Eastern Canada. Lisa also contributes to CBRE’s corporate initiatives serving on CBRE’s Canadian Management Team. Lisa’s wide-ranging experience working with global firms, provides her with the insight and perspective of both Global and local context, guiding solutions for our customers. Her perspective is also sought after by the broader industry in which she serves through speaking engagements, leadership in various real estate member organization, masters educational mentoring, vocational curriculum review and sessional teaching.
Go North:
Strategies for International Businesses to Come to Canada
Sarah Wayland
Sarah Wayland is Senior Project Manager for the Hamilton Immigration Partnership Council. Until March 2018, she was the creator and leader of Global Hamilton, the City’s immigrant attraction and retention initiative.
A dual US-Canadian citizen, she earned her PhD in political science from the University of Maryland.
She has worked as an independent researcher focusing on various social issues, especially immigration-related, and her clients have included CIC/IRCC, Government of Ontario, Region of Peel, Maytree, Metcalf, and Community Foundations of Canada.
From 2005 to 2014, she served on the board of Hamilton’s largest settlement agency, including as Secretary and President.
Dan Silverman
In 2005, Dan Silverman joined ROI Research On Investment, a lead prospecting and consulting firm. As Senior Vice President, Mr. Silverman consulted numerous foreign investment agencies on best practices in investment attraction and FDI strategies. Mr. Silverman joined Toronto Global in July 2017 as Executive Vice President, Investment Attraction. Toronto Global is a not-for-profit investment attraction agency that supports the expansion of foreign-owned businesses to the Toronto Region. Representing the Cities of Toronto, Mississauga and Brampton, as well as the Regions of Durham, Halton and York - Toronto Global works with the Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario, and municipal partners to offer complimentary and customized services to growing international companies. Mr. Silverman leads a team of 12 investment attraction professionals who are responsible for identifying, qualifying and servicing foreign owned businesses on their expansion initiatives to the Toronto Region. Mr. Silverman is the Vice-Chair of the International Advisory Committee for the International Economic Development Council.
Gabriela Ramo
Gabriela is a Senior Manager/Senior Associate in the Canadian Immigration Department of KPMG Law LLP. Gabriela possesses over 25 years of experience practicing exclusively in the field of corporate immigration and citizenship law, advising multinational corporations in strategic immigration planning, global workforce mobility, and immigration-related issues during mergers and acquisitions. She also developed and leads KPMG Law’s Canadian immigration compliance consulting practice. Gabriela is a member of the Canadian Bar Association Citizenship and Immigration National Section Executive, and will serve as the Submission Coordinator for 2018-2019. She has also served for many years as a member of the OBA’s Citizenship and Immigration Section Executive in many capacities, and is currently the Vice-Chair for 2018-2019. She is also a member of the Ontario Bar Association Women Lawyers Forum Executive, a member of the OBA Institute 2018 Planning Committee, and a Board member for the Jewish Refugee Action Network. Gabriela was also a member of the International Who’s Who of Corporate Immigration Lawyers (1st, 2nd, and 3rd editions), published by Business Law Research.
Mark Maclean
Mark Maclean is the Senior Director of Business Development for the West Coast, Latin America and Entrepreneurship at Montréal International. His role is to promote the Montréal business environment to foreign companies, supporting their set up or expansion in Greater Montréal. Since joining Montréal International in 2016, Mark has supported multiple international AI expansions; including Maluuba (Microsoft), Google Brain, and Facebook AI Research—in addition to supporting startups establish a presence in Montréal. Previously, Mark was a senior manager at EY in the tax incentive group for small to medium companies, with a focus on tech startups. He is a volunteer and mentor at the Foundation Montréal inc. and actively participates in mentoring events at Concordia University.
David Brezer
David is an experienced leader in Ontario’s public service, having held senior positions in a number of ministries. In his current role, David is responsible for leading new business development, attracting high value foreign direct investment to Ontario, helping existing businesses grow, and inspiring business leaders – both at home and abroad. With nearly 30 years spent in leadership positions with the Province of Ontario, the City of Toronto, and the private sector, David has amassed a wealth of experience in business strategy and policy. His previous assignments include Executive Coordinator within Cabinet Office, where he was responsible for overseeing economic, transportation and infrastructure policy, serving as Ontario’s Chief Building Official, and various executive roles in the areas of corporate law, consumer protection, public safety, and developing, launching and overseeing new agencies and administrative authorities.
What’s Included
Conference fee includes conference information kit including speakers notes, lunch and cocktail reception.