The Essence of the Global Talent Stream Program
As Russian Toronto notes, the Global Talent Stream is not an immigration program in the traditional sense. Formally, it is a program to attract temporary workers from abroad to work for Canadian companies that have an acute need for highly skilled specialists in innovative fields. That is, the program allows Canadian companies to quickly obtain the necessary worker from abroad.
Generally speaking, hiring foreign workers in Canada is a complex and time-consuming endeavor for employers, as Canada very strictly protects its labor market from foreign workers. Therefore, Canadian companies take this step only when they really need a particular worker and are willing to deal with Canadian bureaucracy.
The biggest headache for Canadian employers is that they must prove they cannot find the needed worker among Canadians. This entire process takes a long time, up to six months or more, and there is no guarantee that after all the effort, the employer will be given permission to bring in a foreign specialist. As mentioned, protecting the local labor market is a priority for the Canadian government.
The importance of the Global Talent Stream program lies precisely in the fact that companies do not need to obtain a permit to hire a worker from abroad and demonstrate that they cannot find such a specialist in Canada. As a result, obtaining a work permit for Canada for foreigners happens in a very short time, which is a key factor.
Why the Global Talent Stream Is Interesting from an Immigration Perspective
Now, what participation in this program gives workers in terms of immigration. Clearly, they gain the opportunity to work in Canada, which is good in itself, but this is not immigration—only a temporary work permit. Most workers would still like to obtain permanent resident status in Canada. Thanks to participation in this program, such workers have at least two options.
• First, having a job offer allows them to immigrate through the federal Federal Skilled Worker Program or the corresponding provincial program of the province where their employer is located.
• The second path is that the worker must work for one year, after which they can apply for immigration under the Canadian Experience Class.
In both cases, the chances of success are very high, and within a fairly short time. That is, we are talking about a two-step immigration process, where you first go through the Global Talent Stream program and then apply under one of the immigration programs.
It should be noted that currently, the immigration process to Canada has essentially become a two-step process, so the scheme described above is quite standard. The old approaches, where you could choose a program, submit an application, and wait for it to be processed, have long ceased to work. Now, to qualify for a particular program, you must first spend time and effort meeting certain conditions.
For example, to immigrate as a skilled worker, you must first either complete your education in Canada and find a job in Canada, or find a job in Canada and work under a program like the Global Talent Stream. To go through business immigration, you must first have your business project approved by immigration authorities, work for two years, and only then apply for permanent resident status.
Therefore, the Global Talent Stream program, although not an immigration program in the traditional sense, is nevertheless the first and most important step toward obtaining permanent resident status in Canada.
How the Global Talent Stream Program Works
Now, about the program itself: how it works, what are the prospects of going through it, and where to start.
The first and most important step is finding an employer. It is important to understand that certain requirements are imposed on employers in Canada. To be able to invite a foreigner to work, the company must show that it already has a certain number of employees, has been in business for a long time, can demonstrate sufficient turnover, and operates in innovative fields. Most importantly, when hiring a foreigner, they must additionally create jobs for local specialists.
Under this program, 13 occupations are designated as green-lighted, for which no permission from the Ministry of Labour is required (obtaining this permission is the main difficulty). If a company truly needs such a specialist and guarantees a salary no lower than the average for the occupation, it is sufficient to simply submit an application to immigration authorities under this program. If the immigration authorities consider the request justified, the hired worker is given a work permit for Canada.
If a company needs a specialist whose profession is not on the list of highly demanded occupations, the company must obtain a recommendation (expert opinion) from one of the authorized government organizations. There are 33 such organizations in total. Given that these organizations only provide an expert assessment, obtaining a recommendation from them is much easier and faster than getting permission from the Ministry of Labour.
Once the company's application is approved by immigration authorities, the hired worker can apply for a work permit for Canada and enter to work.
Results of the Global Talent Stream Program
Over two years, about 1,100 Canadian companies used the Global Talent Stream program, attracting over 4,000 highly skilled specialists in innovative technologies from abroad. In exchange for participating in the program, these companies committed to creating 40,000 job positions for Canadian residents, 10,000 paid internship positions for Canadian students, and investing more than $90 million in training and professional development programs for local workers.
Prospects for Applying Through the Global Talent Stream
Now, about how high the chances are of getting through this program and what you need to do to get hired by a Canadian company.
You must understand that to work in Canada, you need to be a very high-level specialist; otherwise, Canadian companies won't need you. The reason these companies look for specialists abroad is not a shortage of specialists in Canada, but a search for top-tier specialists who can help the company maintain a leading position globally.
Today, Canada and especially Toronto are leaders in high technology. In particular, Toronto is the second-largest region in North America by number of high-tech companies, after Silicon Valley. In 2018, more new jobs were created in high-tech sectors in Toronto than in San Francisco, New York, and Seattle combined. Canadian cities like Montreal, Vancouver, and Ottawa are also on the rise, and while they lag behind Toronto, they confidently hold high positions in global rankings. So specialists are needed, but we're talking about the best of the best.
The second point to consider is that the company must know you. Either you have worked with the company before, someone in the company can recommend you, or you have a reputation that the hiring company can rely on (for example, working on a high-profile project, publishing expert articles, etc.). So you need to start by building connections with companies that could potentially become your employer.
You should also keep in mind that the quotas for this program are still small—4,000 people over two years, which is not many. It is expected that quotas will increase, but it's unclear how radical that increase will be. And this is despite the high demand for this program from foreign specialists, which has grown even more since it was made permanent. In other words, this program is not for everyone; employers have choices, and competition is high.
Nevertheless, this program opens up additional opportunities for immigration, and if you are determined, you have a real chance.