Canadian Beat: U.S. visa changes might benefit Canadian industries

Some countries, such as India and China, are going to feel the effects of visa changes in the U.S. program for skilled workers. President Donald Trump last week bumped the fee for the H-1B visas to $100,000, blaming the program for job losses in the U.S. For Canada, there are questions about just how much of an impact the change will make.
 
The change ordered by President Trump went into effect on Sunday. Skilled workers from India make up about 71% of H-1B visa holders, China just under 12% and Canada around 1%. Some analysts said there is an opportunity here for Canada to open its doors for more highly skilled workers. Ilya Brotzky is a Canadian tech recruiter.
 
“If we can bring in ten thousand people who are making one hundred thousand dollars each, that’s a billion dollars, U.S. dollars, coming from the U.S. economy into the Canadian economy,” Brotzky said.
 
Others said Trump’s move could also be a boon in stopping Canada’s brain drain, of the best and brightest heading south for higher wages. That means it could be a silver lining for Canada’s tech industry, which has often been critical that Canada has struggled with investing in its own industries, thereby making it more difficult to attract skilled workers. Often, Canada is seen as a holding tank for foreign skilled workers, just waiting to enter the U.S.
Even Prime Minister Mark Carney has taken note, saying earlier this week that, in the past, most of his country’s homegrown research and AI talent, unfortunately, went to the U.S.