9. Assumptions and Open Inputs
The idea arrived as one catalog row (D6) with six candidate professions. Team, location, hours, budget and buyer access were not supplied. Here's what was assumed, and how the verdict changes if each assumption is wrong.
9.1 Assumptions made
| Input | Assumption used | If actually different… |
|---|---|---|
| Profession | Canadian RCICs, chosen on the scoring in 02 | If you have deep access to independent insurance agents or mortgage brokers (you worked in one for years), re-score. Access can move a 19 above a 22. Photographers, planners and recruiters stay out either way. |
| RCIC access | None today | With a licensed RCIC co-founder, the recommended odds hold. With none and no plan to get one, multiply by ~0.4. |
| Hours per week available | Two plans: ~15 hrs/week and full-time | Under ~10 hrs/week, the $5k+ rungs are unrealistic: migrations and calls alone take that time. |
| Founder location | Possibly outside Canada (for example India) | Calls must be in Canadian business hours. That's evenings or nights from India. If you're in Canada, add ~5 points at $1k–5k. |
| Stage | Idea. No code, no users, no revenue. | Any paying RCIC firm changes the conversation. Send the numbers. |
| Budget | Bootstrapped, with enough to cover ~CA$300/month of hosting and tools, plus an RCIC advisor retainer | If you can't pay an advisor, offer equity. If neither, don't start. |
| Prices | Solo CA$89, Practice CA$179, Firm CA$349; ~US$95 blended; ~US$0.72 per CA$1 | Every ladder row moves with price. Verify with 15 consultants. |
| Firm count | ~8,000 firms from 11,994 licensees at ~1.5 licensees per firm | If most licensees are solos (firm count near 10,000), the Solo plan dominates and blended price falls toward US$70. That needs ~30% more firms at every rung. |
| Competitor gaps | Rivals don't visibly enforce the 30-day client-account rule or check section-24 completeness | The biggest assumption. If they do, the main point of difference is gone. The day-45 kill test is designed to find out. |
9.2 Inputs that would change the verdict most (please supply)
- Do you, or someone you can sign, hold an RCIC licence? Name and years in practice.
- Hours per week available, and how many fall in Canadian business hours.
- Any background in the other five professions. Real access can change the choice.
- Your location and whether you can invoice Canadian firms (GST/HST registration may apply, not verified).
- Budget and runway: how many months you can run at ~15 hrs/week or full-time before revenue.
- What 5 RCICs say about Officio, RCIC App and Clio in your first calls.
9.3 Open research questions (not answered in this run)
- Does Officio (or any rival) enforce the section-32 30-day rule and section-24 completeness? Check in demos and trials.
- What do the College's by-laws under the 2026 Regulations (SOR/2026-68) require for record retention, practice reviews and client accounts?
- How many RCIC firms exist, how many are solo, and what share use paid software?
- Are RCIC practices shrinking after the 2026 temporary-resident cuts? Look at the register count in the College's next annual report.
- Which associations and CPD providers reach RCICs, and would they partner?
- Can outreach to register contacts be done within CASL? Get one legal opinion.
- Do IRCC terms prohibit representatives or their software from holding clients' GCKey credentials?
9.4 Definitions used throughout
- Tier A: $1M ARR within 36 months, ≥70% gross margin, ≥50% month-12 logo retention.
- Tier B: $20k+ MRR (≈ $250k ARR) within 24 months, profitable, ≥80% gross margin, ≥70% month-3 retention.
- RCIC: Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant, licensed by the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants.
- Firm: one paying account, with 1–8 licensees and any number of assistants.
- Churn benchmark: SMB B2B SaaS about 3–5% a month (Recurly ~3.5%). Target here ≤2%.
- MRR: in US dollars for comparison across the portfolio. Prices are quoted in Canadian dollars.