In the near future, Americans with H-1B specialty visas will have another option to live and work in Canada. Commencing from July 16, H-1B visa holders can now apply for a fresh Canadian Open Work Permit (OWP) alongside existing permanent and temporary options. This new work visa enables eligible H-1B professionals to work in any Canadian company for up to three years, accompanied by their immediate family members. Applications for the new OWP will be accepted by IRCC for one year or until the program’s 2023 quota of 10,000 applications is reached, whichever occurs first. In case you have an H-1B visa, you might wonder if you can apply for both a Canadian work permit and permanent residency simultaneously. Basically, yes, and there are a few good reasons for it. Understand the H-1B visa holder’s ability for open work permits & Express Entry below.
Advantages of applying for H-1B OWP and Express Entry
Although an application for a work permit outside of Canada is usually processed within 60 days. Some service standards, like those for the Global Talent Stream, are more lenient.
Applicants who are already eligible for permanent residence may choose to submit their applications through the Express Entry system. The Canadian government processes applicants for skilled worker immigration through Express Entry. In the Express Entry pool, evaluators assess candidates based on various human capital parameters to determine their CRS score. Increasing your test score increases your chances of receiving a permanent residency ITA.
When applying for Canadian permanent residence through Express Entry, you will have to determine whether you qualify for the FSWP if you have never lived or worked in Canada.
Express Entry Benefits & Strategies
One of the key benefits of Express Entry is that it guarantees permanent residency within six months of submitting an application. H1-B OWP allows you to reside and work in Canada while applying for permanent residency and uploading your Express Entry profile to the Canadian government’s website.
Additionally advantageous is applying for the OWP first and Express Entry after arriving in Canada. A better CRS score may increase your likelihood of receiving an ITA by producing at least 12 months of admissible work experience in Canada.
Having at least one year of admissible Canadian work experience offers the benefit of qualifying for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) program through Express Entry. This qualification grants an exemption from the requirement of demonstrating sufficient settlement funds, which the FSWP mandates.
H-1B visa holders possess advantageous qualifications for utilizing Express Entry to pursue permanent residency. They demonstrate high levels of human capital, including postsecondary education, specialized work experience, and excellent English language proficiency. The IRCC year-end report on Express Entry for 2021 highlights that the United States ranked among the top five countries of residency for Express Entry ITA holders from 2019 to 2021, showcasing their favorable position.
Leveraging Express Entry for STEM professionals
The goal of Canada’s tech talent strategy, unveiled recently by Immigration Minister Sean Fraser, is to increase the country’s appeal as a desirable location for qualified computer employees. The H-1B OWP is one element of this plan, and the introduction of category-based selection draws for Express Entry candidates with certain, in-demand jobs is another essential element.
The category-based Express Entry rounds of invitations place more emphasis on choosing candidates for economic immigration who can successfully close significant labor shortages in Canada’s economy rather than awarding ITAs purely based on a high CRS score. In order to identify urgent job openings and skill shortages, the categories were chosen through conversations between IRCC, provinces, territories, partners, and stakeholders. There are 82 suitable jobs divided into six new groups.
A total of 35 occupations qualify for Express Entry as STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). In the first round of STEM job invitations, they invited 500 applicants who had to meet a minimum CRS score of 486.4 to qualify.
In the IRCC’s 2021 Express Entry report, software engineers, designers, analysts, consultants, and computer programmers regularly ranked among the top jobs for ITA recipients between 2019 and 2021. Express Entry STEM applicants are eligible for all of these jobs.
H-1B visa holder’s ability for open work permits & Express Entry – Alternative routes for tech talent
Among the new technology talent strategies of Canada are a new innovation stream under the International Mobility Program, a promotion of Canada as an attractive destination for digital nomads, and improvements to current tech immigration programs such as the Global Talent Stream and the Startup Visa Program.
A tech stream of the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) can still nominate H-1B holders even if they are not in the Express Entry application pool. When seeking permanent residency, a province nomination strengthens a non-Express Entry application. Your CRS score might increase by 600 points if you obtain a provincial nomination. A CRS point total of 600 almost assures you an Express Entry ITA for permanent residence.
The majority of Canadian provinces and territories, with the exception of Quebec and Nunavut. They have the authority to select candidates they deem most suitable for the job market in their respective locations. Several provinces offer PNPs with specialized tech streams. British Columbia holds multiple tech candidate draws each month. For example, Ontario just held a drawing for tech candidates in the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program.
When H-1B visa holders participate in the new OWP, they are able to register for Express Entry once they arrive in Canada, and there are numerous ways to become permanent residents. It is now possible to use the STEM category-based Express Entry rounds of invitation for H-1B OWP holders due to their high human resource base.
