Canada’s Global Skills Strategy Welcomes 24,000 Skilled Workers In 2 Years

June 13, 2019 – Canada’s Global Skills Strategy has attracted 24,000 new skilled workers since it came into effect two years ago.

Including accompanying family members, the GSS, which includes the successful Global Talent Stream, has seen 40,000 people move to Canada over the last 24 months.

A quarter of those brought in, or 13,000, have come from the U.S. – mainly disgruntled non-Americans unhappy with the immigration policies of President Donald Trump’s administration. India is the top source country in terms of citizenship.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada reports that 1,100 Canadian employers have used the GTS.

Those employers have committed to creating nearly 50,000 jobs and more than 12,500 paid co-op positions, while spending $113 million on skills development and training.

The foremost occupations to receive work permits are:

1. Computer Programmers.
2. Information System Analysts.
3. Software Engineers.

IRCC describes these as “the type of talent the program was designed to attract to Canada”.

The GSS and GTS provide two-week Canada work permit processing for applicants with skills and experience in some of Canada’s most in-demand occupations.

Work permit exemptions are also provided for managers and researchers here in the shorter term.

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The launch of the GSS in June 2017 could not have been better timed in terms of events in the U.S.

As the Trump administration ramps up red tape for the equivalent H-1B visa, some of the best and brightest talent has been pushed to look north to Canada for career opportunities.

Canada is in the midst of a surge in immigration levels, attracting 321,065 newcomers in 2018 and planning to boost immigration levels to 350,000 per year by 2021.

The numbers in non-permanent categories are also on the increase, including work permit and study permit holders.

Canada’s federal government launched the GTS to help high-growth companies bring in the talent they need quickly by cutting processing times for a Canada visa application from six months to just 10 business days.

A key element of the Global Talent Stream is that registered employers will need to commit to creating jobs for Canadians and transferring knowledge to Canadian workers, under a Labour Market Benefits Plan.

What Are The Key Elements Of The Global Talent Stream?

• Two-week standard for processing Canada work permit applications (and Canada visa applications when applicable) for highly skilled talent.
• Dedicated service for companies looking to make significant job-creating investments in Canada.
• Dropping of the work permit requirement for short-term highly skilled work (30 days or less in a 12-month period), and brief academic stays.
• Companies applying for workers through the Global Talent Stream will have access to the new streamlined application process that will provide:
  • Client-focused service to help guide eligible employers through the application process and the development of the Labour Market Benefits Plan, with a service standard of 10 business days.
  • Eligibility for workers to have their work permit applications processed in 10 business days.

What Jobs Are Covered By The Global Talent Stream?

* Quebec sets its own minimum wage floors for applications from within Quebec. Consult the Quebec immigration website for more information

Interested employers: Kindly contact us here to receive further information.

Interested candidates: Find out whether you qualify to Canada by completing our free on-line evaluation. We will provide you with our evaluation within 1-2 business days.

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