(This editorial first appeared exclusively for thelawyersdaily on July 26, 2018)

July 27, 2018 – Rewind to 2016 and Canada’s technology industry was struggling to hire the best skilled workers to help start-up businesses grow. Then along came the Global Talent Stream.

The all-too common story saw businesses identify international skilled workers, start the paperwork, but the processing would take so long, the in-demand talent would be lured elsewhere.

The business community asked the federal government to do some thing about it.

Fast-forward to 2018 and a year since the Global Talent Stream launched, work permits for the most in-demand technology positions are processed in two weeks.

Why Does Canada Have a Technology Talent Shortage?

Canada’s has several renowned universities offering highly marketable degrees in technology-based programs.

However, many of the top graduates have traditionally been lured away to Silicon Valley to work for U.S. technology giants.

With Donald Trump cracking down on immigration and renegotiating NAFTA, this is changing. 

But for the time being the shortage exists, with a labour market gap running into hundreds of thousands of jobs forecasted by 2020.

Canada is working to plug this gap using skilled worker immigration policies.

What Was the Problem with The Old System?

Previously, and with few exceptions, technology talent came in through the same general streams as other skilled workers.

For work permits, that meant the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the cumbersome Labour Market Impact Assessment process.

The LMIA is the document that proves the lack of a suitable Canadian candidate at the going rates, for a position.

Processing could take more than a year, often too long for in-demand skilled workers to hang around.

Even the LMIA-exempt positions covered under the International Mobility Program could see lengthy processing times for a number of reasons.

What Did the Global Talent Stream Change?

The launch of the Global Talent Stream in June 2017 saw government policies committed to processing applications inside Canada in two weeks for the most in-demand positions.

It also saw commitment to a more client-focused approach by the federal government, guiding employers through the application process.

Operating as part of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, the GTS has two distinct streams:

• Category A, featuring a list of designated partners who refer businesses for access to the GTS
• Category B, featuring a list of target occupations covered under the GTS.

The GTS is part of the broader Global Skills Strategy, under which two more important work permit changes were made:

• Access to two-week processing for certain LMIA-exempt work permits issued through the International Mobility Program.
• Short-term work permit exemptions for 15, 30 or 120 days for managers, professionals and researchers.

What Are the Global Talent Stream Target Occupations?

National Occupations Classification (NOC) code	Occupation
0211	Engineering managers
0212	Architecture and science managers
0213	Computer and information systems managers
2147	Computer engineers (except software engineers and designers)
Sub-set of 2161*	Mathematicians and statisticians * Positions for actuaries or related occupations are excluded from this subset.
2171	Information systems analysts and consultants
2172	Database analysts and data administrators
2173	Software engineers and designers
2174	Computer programmers and interactive media developers
2175	Web designers and developers
2283*	Information systems testing technicians
Sub-set of 5131*	Producer, technical, creative and artistic director and project manager – Visual effects and video game Position requires a minimum of five years of experience in the visual effects, video game or animation industries in one or a combination of the following roles: producer, technical director, creative director, artistic director or project manager, with experience in at least one or more of the following skills relevant to the visual effects, video game or animation industries: surfacing and look development; character or simulation rigging; matte painting; or technical pipeline development and application for visual effects, video games, or animation production.
Sub-set of 5241*	Digital Media and Design Position requires a minimum of five years of experience in at least one of the following digital media design skills: 3D modeling, virtual reality, augmented reality, digital media animation, levels editing for digital media design, software editing for digital media design, pipeline software development or applications relevant for digital media design.

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

Why Was the Launch of The Global Talent Stream Particularly Well Timed?

Just as Canada launched the Global Talent Stream, Trump stepped up his immigration crackdown in the U.S.

There have been no formal changes to the H-1B visa for skilled workers, but U.S. officials have made it much more difficult to obtain this visa.

Paperwork requirements are more onerous and processing times lengthy. It appears U.S. officials are following instructions to create hurdles and delay the process of issuing visas.

For skilled worker candidates considering their options, they now have Canada with its newly-launched two-week work permit processing, or the U.S. with an anti-immigration president and a deliberately bogged down system.

Has the Global Talent Stream Been Successful?

Businesses hailed the arrival of the GTS and are calling for it to be extended beyond the current two-year pilot, which expires in June 2019.

It was recently expanded to include three new occupations on its one-year anniversary.

Near 2000 workers have been approved to Canada since the program launched in Q3 2017. Thousands of workers are expected to come to Canada under the program with their families, who also qualify for two-week processing.

Most will make the transition to permanent residence once they are here.

This can be done relatively quickly through the Express Entry system for workers with such in-demand skills.

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.

Read more news about Canada Immigration by clicking here.