The coronavirus pandemic has closed borders and slowed immigration around the world, drastically impacting global economies. But despite COVID-19, The Global Talent Stream (GTS) program in Canada continues to operate. The goal of the GTS program is to expedite and ease the processing time for visa and work permit applications for foreign nationals who possess unique talents or are highly skilled.
The typical timelines are 10 business days to assess applications and 14 business days to process work permits for qualified workers, though COVID-19 has significantly impacted these quick turnaround times.
Overall, GTS has given Canadian employers increased access to global talent. Despite many industries taking a hit due to COVID-19, some of Canada’s talent needs have become even more pressing during this pandemic. And while overall immigration has slowed, the efficiency and flexibility of the GTS program have allowed Canada to respond to urgent global talent needs during its fight against COVID-19.
So the quick overview is that while immigration has suffered overall due to COVID, GTS has enabled Canada to continue hiring in-demand jobs, particularly those aimed at fighting the pandemic. How has this compared to the GTS counterpart in the US, the H-1B visa?
Understanding the US H-1B visa process
Almost 1.8 million H-1B visas have been distributed from 2001 through 2015, and demand for the visa has boomed in recent years.
Indeed, the H-1B cap — 65,000 H-1B visas a year plus an additional 20,000 visas for foreigners with a graduate degree from a US university — has been reached within a week of the application period opening almost every year since 2012, including the FY2020 lottery which took place in April 2019. About two-thirds of H-1B visa requests are for jobs in the STEM fields — science, technology, engineering, and math.
This year, the H-1B visa process was slightly different. Under the new H-1B application system, companies registered their H-1B hopefuls through a brand new electronic system, and only those companies whose registrations were chosen in the lottery were able to prepare and submit H-1B applications to U.s. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Due to COVID-19, employers are facing serious workforce-related issues, but, history provides a guide to the current situation: as the economy slows down, demand for H-1B visas declines. When economic conditions are good, demand increases.
Considering the current state of the U.s. economy, some companies whose registrations for H-1B professionals were selected may decide not to submit H-1B applications.
However, while this prediction is based on economic factors and visa application history, it is important to consider the sectors hardest hit by the coronavirus.
For example, airlines, hotels, and restaurants have been heavily impacted, but these are not traditionally significant employers of H-1B professionals. It is entirely possible that companies will follow through with their H-1B applications.
But if you’re one of the unlucky H-1B applicants suddenly out of a job, where can you turn? Look across America’s northern border for a better job market — US unemployment rate is currently at 23.9% while Canada’s unemployment rate is 13% — and a more favorable immigration process.
Canada doubles down on its commitment to immigration
As Canada struggles to overcome its shrinking workforce and aging population — a serious problem in all Western nations — the number of people immigrating into the country is expected to rise.
New data show immigration to Canada increased by 26% between 2015 and 2019. In stark contrast, legal immigration to the United States fell by 7% between 2016 and 2018. These numbers are expected to decline even more as the Trump administration continues to enforce its immigration policy changes. Trump-supported bills in Congress could reduce legal immigration to the US considerably.
While Canada admits approximately three times as many immigrants as America, the United States is headed in the opposite direction. Trump’s travel ban and rapidly lowering numbers of refugees admitted to the US are expected to greatly reduce legal immigration.
These weak numbers will slow the growth of the U.s. labor force and could do long-term damage to America’s economy. A suffering economy leads to higher unemployment and lower hiring rates, all spelling disaster for H-1B hopefuls.
The United States was once the most desired destination for highly skilled global talent. But in recent years, Canada’s economy is expected to be one of the fastest-growing countries in the Group of Seven (G7) — an international organization consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Despite the fact that Canada’s borders have been closed since March and may be slow to reopen for fear of triggering a second wave of COVID-19 infections, America’s neighbor to the north is still actively seeking to expand its workforce through immigration. The same cannot be said about the US.
Even now, as the US cracks down on student visas and work permits as well as some immigration from China, Canada is allowing foreign students to study remotely and is already slowly starting to issue more visas and travel authorizations.
Should you consider Canada over the US?
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in late April “temporarily suspending immigration into the United States.” And while that EO was mostly toothless, it did create significant delays in the issuance of US green cards for many people outside the US Additionally, across the globe, US consulates and embassies have stopped almost all visa processing.
Throughout this COVID crisis, it seems that a debate between the US and Canadian immigration systems has been rekindled. In years past, the US was often the winner, but it seems that now, in terms of commitment to continued immigration growth and flexibility — Canada is coming out on top.
If you’re a US employer, Syndesus can walk you through the logistics of hiring a remote worker in Canada. Relying on Syndesus to hire Canadian talent is actually easier, cheaper, and faster than bringing a foreign national into the US on an H-1B or even a TN visa.
And if you’re an employee in Canada and want to either immigrate to Canada and continue to work, or if you’re a Canadian national, and want to come back home and take your US job with you, Syndesus can walk you through that process.
Want to hear more? Book a consultation to chat about your hiring situation. Syndesus can help you expand your team with the world’s most talented technology professionals but without the world’s most frustrating immigration system.
