Canada’s immigration policies focusing on AI talent

The Immigration Policies of Canada are concentrating on the various immigration pathways to attract Artificial Intelligence talent from abroad. Thus, people with professional experience in information technology and artificial intelligence can consider immigrating to Canada. Canada provides many job opportunities and an easier route to permanent residence for AI talent. The Center for Security and Emerging Technology has released a study that explores the immigration policies for the sector of Artificial Intelligence in five countries: the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Canada, and the United States. The study analyzes the competitive edge in the Artificial Intelligence sector among the five countries. As per the research, it has surfaced that the immigration system of Canada is the most flexible, receptive, and versatile as compared to the immigration systems of the other four countries. And Canada’s immigration system is highly accomplished to fascinate highly talented foreign workers and compete for attracting AI talent.

Why does AI talent prefer Canada?

The study has examined the immigration policies of all five countries: Canada, France, the U.S., Australia, and the United Kingdom. According to the survey, Canada stands in the best position among all the five countries to attract new skilled talent and become a leader in artificial intelligence in the coming times.

Let’s compare the immigration policies of Canada with that of other countries:

Australia, the United States, France, and the United Kingdom all have a fixed length of time for a work visa. The duration limit for a work visa can be between three and six years. Also, the number of work visa renewals has a limit. However, in Canada, temporary foreign workers are allowed to stay in the country according to the duration of their work permit, which is set by the employer.
In all the other four countries, the processing times for temporary work visas are quite high. It takes a lot of time to complete the processing of a work visa application. Whereas, in Canada, the processing time is about two to eight weeks. It depends on the position the worker holds and the country from which he or she is applying.

Moreover, an individual can apply for a work permit in Canada at any time of the year, unlike in the United States where the H1-B visa has a system of an annual lottery.

Canada allows foreign workers with work visas to apply for PR directly. While in the other four countries, people have to wait for three to five years before applying for Permanent Residence.
Canada has a plethora of immigration pathways for highly skilled people. It boasts of over 100 immigration programs for economic class immigrants.

Thus, looking at the above-mentioned points, it is evident that Canada is more accessible to foreign AI talent than the U.S, France, Australia, and the United Kingdom.

Canadian Immigration Policies for Artificial Intelligence Talent

People with a background in Artificial Intelligence can immigrate to Canada through some of the major immigration programs. Some of the main programs are:

Express Entry System

It is the most popular Canadian immigration system for economic immigrants. The Government of Canada launched this system in 2015 to fast-track the immigration process and reduce processing time for Canadian immigration. AI and tech candidates can create an Express Entry profile and secure an ITA for permanent residence based on their CRS scores.

Provincial Nominee Programs

Provincial Nominee Programs allow the different provinces across Canada to select immigrants depending upon their skills, education, and work experience appropriate for their economy and labor market needs. A person who wants to become a permanent resident of Canada can apply to different provincial programs as per their respective requirements. AI experts can move to Ontario or British Columbia through the PNP. These provinces are the hubs of the technology sector, and conduct tech draws regularly.

Global Talent Stream

The federal government started the Global Talent Stream immigration program in 2017. Through this stream, eligible talented workers can get work visas in two weeks only. Canada has one of the most advanced Artificial Intelligence companies. The country is assuming leadership in the field of AI. Besides, the immigration policies of Canada help to attract new AI talent as compared to the other major countries.