Exclusive: Canada plans forensic audits of millionaire migrants’ finances

Applicants to Canada’s new millionaire migration scheme will have their finances subjected to an intensive forensic audit by private-sector accountants, government tendering documents have revealed.

The auditors will also be required to investigate whether applicants have any criminal past or whether they are “politically exposed”.

The unprecedented scrutiny could act as a deterrent to some wealthy mainland Chinese, who made up a large majority of applicants to the now-defunct Immigrant Investor Programme, which is soon to be replaced by the Immigrant Investor Venture Capital (IIVC) scheme.

Among the mandatory requirements of those seeking the auditing tender, which closed on Friday, the documents list “expertise in conducting integrity and due diligence checks on individuals”, and “expertise in accounting (including forensic) and business/asset valuation”.

The auditors will also have to confirm whether an applicant has any history of criminal activity and whether they are a “politically exposed person”. The documents did not elaborate on who this might include.