Global Courant
Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Sean Fraser, has introduced a new strategy for attracting digital talent, including a digital nomad program, allowing more foreigners to work and live in Canada.
In a special announcement at the Collision Conference in Toronto on Tuesday, Fraser said the digital nomad strategy would allow people with a foreign employer to work in Canada for up to six months.
“And if they get a job offer while they’re here, then we allow them to continue working in Canada,” Fraser said.
Fraser said it’s all part of a strategy to attract the most talented professionals from around the world to work in Canada.
Fraser also announced a “new and special path” for permanent residents who specifically employ workers or work in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) sectors.
Also, a global skills strategy, originally launched five years ago to attract talent but hampered by processing delays, would be new and improved, Fraser said. The improvements would accelerate work permit processing to just two weeks, “so companies can access the talent they need, when they need it,” Fraser said.
The minister also announced another increase in the number of places in Canada’s visa program from 1,000 places per year to 3,500, creating “a pathway to permanent residency for entrepreneurs establishing businesses that employ Canadians”.
On that last point, Fraser said Canada would prioritize applications within that system by focusing on attributes such as whether a company has committed capital, or whether it has received approval from a “trusted partner.”
“But for those in line,” Fraser added, “we will also be issuing three-year open work permits so that they and their families can be in Canada while they wait for their application to be completed.”
Fraser said Canada will also develop a specific stream for “the most talented people in the world” to be able to come to Canada to work for technology companies – whether they have a job or not.
Finally, in response to what’s going on in the tech sector in the US, “where we’ve seen the public narrative around layoffs,” Fraser said Canada will have a way to attract workers from south of the border.
“As of July 16, we have a stream that allows 10,000 H-1B visa holders in the United States to work in Canada,” said Fraser.
“The reality, people, you have the ideas, but you need the talent. You told us that and we listened,” said Fraser.
@SeanFraserMPCanada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, had a very exciting announcement for tech entrepreneurs and enthusiasts at Center Stage this morning… pic.twitter.com/LQajIhWZDS
— Collision Conf (@CollisionHQ) June 27, 2023
