$18m Withheld From Investor Immigrants In Prince Edward Island

Investor immigrants to Prince Edward Island had $18 million withheld by the provincial government for failed to meet the requirements of the program by which they entered Canada.

Some 177 candidates for the province's 100 per cent ownership stream had up to $200,000 withheld under the terms of the agreement signed with the province.

The vast majority of those P.E.I. immigration candidates failed to open a business, despite it being the central requirement of the stream.

Despite the failure to open businesses, provincial officials say most of the candidates were still living on the island. Heath MacDonald, Economic Development and Tourism Minister, says that in this way the program is working.