The gap in scientific and technological talents is huge, and Canada has opened up these special channels for scientific and technological talents!
Canadian tech industry employers continue to face labor shortages, which is why the Canadian Council of Innovators (CCI) calls on the federal government to pilot high-potential talent visas.
According to the "2023 Digital Talent Foresight Analysis Report" released by the Canadian Information and Communication Technology Council (ICTC) shows that with the continuous development of technologies such as AI, 5G, and blockchain, Canada may have a gap of 305,000 jobs in 2023.
Canadian government recognizes the importance of the technology industry to economic development, so the federal and provincial governments have provided a lot of help for enterprises to recruit scientific and technological talents, and there are also many ways to help scientific and technological talents come to Canada. Let’s take a look together!
Global Technology Talent Program
Canada launched the Global Technology Talent Program (GTS for short) to solve the challenges faced by companies in the Canadian technology industry, provide assistance to their growth and growth, and solve the problem of shortage of skilled talents in these companies.
The program is designed to process 80% of applications in two weeks or less, and Canadian employers can recruit suitable foreign employees as soon as possible. However, only employers who meet Class A or Class B can apply.
A class is suitable for companies that have received recommendations from GTS partners, which are usually government or semi-government agencies that are commissioned to support the local economy. The
B class is suitable for employers who are looking for certain skilled workers whose occupations can be found in the global talent occupation list. Eligible occupations include computer engineers, software engineers, designers, and information systems analysts. Employers in both categories of employers who recruit foreign workers through the Global Talent Program must pay or give them higher wages at the current salary level.
CUSMA
Canada-US-Mexico Agreement CUSMA has provisions to promote the flow of talents between three countries.
In 1994, the United States, Mexico and Canada created the world's largest free trade zone through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which promoted economic growth and helped improve the living standards of the people of the three member states. By strengthening the rules and procedures for managing trade and investment, the agreement has proven to be a solid foundation for Canada’s prosperity and set a valuable example for trade liberalization. The new Canada-US-Mexico Agreement will strengthen Canada's strong economic ties with the United States and Mexico.
CUSMA has identified 63 occupations that meet the professional category qualifications, including computer system analysts, etc.
Company Internal Transfer (non-CUSMA)
can apply for an ICT visa from a country outside Mexico or the United States. For example, the free trade agreement between EU and Canada (CETA) has provisions on ICT, and the agreement with the United Kingdom also has provisions.
Employers do not need to conduct a Labor Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) for employees who come to Canada through ICT.
Ways for scientific and technological talents to obtain permanent residence status
When foreign workers obtain Canadian maple leaf card , they can work in Canada without continuing to update any work visas. Science and technology talents can choose common immigration programs, or they can choose policies specially formulated for science and technology talents to apply for maple leaf card.
federal fast track
fast track is one of the main ways to immigrate to Canada in technology.According to the 2020 Fast Track Annual Report, applicants for technical professions dominate among applicants invited to apply for permanent residence .
Province nominated immigration
Canada provinces also have immigration projects for applying for maple leaf cards for science and technology talents. The following are some provincial nomination projects for science and technology talents to choose.
1, Alberta Accelerated Tech Pathway
Alberta nominated for eligible fast-track applicants provides an optional option. In order to obtain the expedited processing of the application under this path, applicants need to meet the qualification criteria: currently working in Alberta, or obtain job opportunities in one of the 23 eligible occupations, including graphic designers, mechanical engineers, and user support technicians.
2, BC Province BC Tech
BC Province nomination provides priority channels for 29 computer technology-related occupations. If you want to participate in the BC Tech lottery, applicants need to have at least one year of work experience.
4, Quebec
Quebec launched the Immigration Pilot Program for the Information Technology and Visual Effects Industry in April 2021 to develop its technology industry. This plan has two main categories:
·Artificial Intelligence (AI)
·This category has two subcategories, one is for applicants who graduated from Quebec College or University, and the other is for applicants who receive training abroad.
In special cases, foreign workers do not require applicants to have job offers, but both require applicants to have at least relevant education equivalent to Quebec bachelor's degree .
·Information Technology (IT) and Visual Effects
Applicants who apply for this project must have at least two years of working experience in 10 related occupations in the past five years.
5, Saharan Science and Technology Talent Pathway Tech TalentPathway Tech TalentPathway
In March 2022, Canada's Saskatchewan nominated a new immigration channel for scientific and technological talents - Tech Talent Pathway. There are 11 occupations that can be applied for in this category, which are basically IT occupations.
In addition to the requirements of the occupation, applicants also need LIMA to apply. They need at least one year of work experience in the profession within the past five years, or six months of work experience in Saskatchewan. At the same time, the applicant's language level needs to reach CLB5. If you apply for a fast track, you need to reach CLB7. The education level requires a college degree or above, and some occupations may require a professional license from Saskatchewan.
