色狐入口

Pour lire cet article en fran莽ais,聽cliquez ici.

Mezyad AlMasoud holds two master鈥檚 degrees and is the CEO of a company that manages money for professional athletes. He is also one of the highly skilled immigrants forced to leave America because of immigration reforms in 2017.

AlMasoud had wanted to go to America since he was a child growing up in Kuwait.

鈥淚 had been loving the U.S. [I watched] NFL football, and I鈥檓 a big fan of many of the musicians of course,鈥� he told 色狐入口.

In 2015 he moved to America with a temporary visa called the Optional Practical Training (OPT). He then started his company, Flair Inc. a year later in 2016.

At the time, AlMasoud could count on an Obama-era immigration program called the International Entrepreneur Rule (IER) to allow him to stay in the U.S.

However, in 2017, President Donald Trump鈥檚 administration moved to rescind the IER program. AlMasoud was told he would have to leave the country.

鈥淚t was a very sad moment for me,鈥� AlMasoud said. 鈥淚 was kind of confused and I didn鈥檛 know what to do next, and that鈥檚 when I started thinking about other opportunities.鈥�

Data from the 2016 U.S. presidential election onward also show that more and more temporary skilled worker petitions for new employment, known as the H-1B, are being denied to foreign workers in the U.S.

The rates have shot up from six per cent in 2015 to 32 per cent in the first quarter of 2019, according to the National Foundation for American Policy.

Meanwhile, it鈥檚 a different story in Canada, where federal and provincial programs are opening their doors to the international tech talent like AlMasoud.

The number of employees in the professional, scientific, and technological sector rose by 4.5 per cent between 2017 and 2018, according to Statistics Canada, and immigration is expected to be an important element of labour force growth over the next two decades.

It was a friend from business school who suggested that AlMasoud should move to Canada. He applied for the 聽and his application was processed in about a month, he said.

In February 2018 he landed in Vancouver, B.C., where he has been ever since.

鈥淚 am going hiking from time to time at least once per month,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd the food is amazing, and the community is very diverse 鈥� I have many new friends, so it鈥檚 great.鈥�

Canada taking in talent denied by U.S.

The friend who encouraged AlMasoud to consider Canada was Jake Tyler, co-founder and CEO of Finn AI, a Vancouver-based company offering artificial intelligence solutions to banks around the world.

The two knew each other from their studies聽at the IE Business School in Spain.

Tyler, who hails from Australia, co-founded Finn AI with fellow immigrant Guru Altu from India and Canadian entrepreneur Nathalie Cartwright, who serves as chief operating officer. Like AlMasoud, both Tyler and Altu were able to build their business in Canada via the Entrepreneur Start-up Visa Program.

Cartwright told 色狐入口 that immigrants make up a significant portion of the Finn AI talent pool and she recently hired someone who has a story similar to AlMasoud.

鈥淲e have hired someone who was kicked out of the U.S. who was an exceptionally talented data scientist,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e were able to take advantage of that opportunity and get them a position in Canada.鈥�

颁补苍补诲补鈥檚 has allowed the company to bring in skilled foreign workers in as little as two weeks. Cartwright got to see the process in action while hiring one of Finn AI鈥檚 most recent employees.

鈥淭hey got the approval within four days and were here within two weeks,鈥� Cartwright said. 鈥淭hat certainty of bringing people in means we can find international talent.鈥�

A spokesperson with Finn AI reports that 54 per cent of their Vancouver office is comprised of immigrants. The company鈥檚 Toronto office currently has one employee, and the New York location is made up of three salespeople who are either American or hold American work permits.

While Cartwright said she doesn鈥檛 have much experience hiring international workers via the American immigration process, she describes it as 鈥渓ong鈥� and 鈥渦ncertain.鈥�

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of uncertainty both for the individual and the company,鈥� Cartwright said. 鈥淲hen we鈥檙e looking to hire someone, six months [of processing] is too long.鈥�

American companies also report finding it easier to hire immigrants at their Canadian locations.

Thor Kallistad, the CEO of DataCloud, described 颁补苍补诲补鈥檚 immigration policies as more 鈥渟ane.鈥�

DataCloud offers tech solutions to the mining industry and operates in California鈥檚 Silicon Valley and in the Canadian province of British Columbia, which has a robust mining sector.

鈥淚t鈥檚 very convenient 鈥� that the biggest drivers for [our business] happen to be in B.C.,鈥� he told 色狐入口 from his office in California. 鈥淎nd on top of that, the immigration is a more predictable policy to get people in, which has worked out well for us.鈥�

U.S. losing talent to Canada before Trump

Emmanuel Delaporte moved to Boston, Massachusetts, from France in 1999. The company where he worked as an IT analyst was sponsoring his American permanent residency application.

Delaporte needed to be employed by this particular company until he obtained his U.S. Green Card, or permanent residency status.

In 2004, Delaporte realized the company was not doing well and the possibility of losing his job would put his Green Card application at risk. He would either need to start the process all over again with a different company, or leave the country.

鈥淚 was not kicked out of the country,鈥� Delaporte said. 鈥淚 knew that it would be difficult for me to stay so I decided to prepare my exit before I was in a difficult situation.鈥�

He started his application for a and one year later, in 2005, he moved to Montreal, Quebec.

鈥淚 had no job offer鈥� in Quebec, and Canada, you can apply just with your credentials and who you are and your resume,鈥� Delaporte said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 need a company.鈥�

Today Delaporte is still in Montreal, and working at CGI, a world-renowned IT consulting company.

鈥淚鈥檝e been here almost 15 years now,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 a local now.鈥�

Delaporte would not name his former U.S. employer but said that the company has since closed.

鈥楢 feeling of freedom鈥�

Andrei Charepka, from Belarus, is a software developer at a company that makes electrical systems for the aerospace industry. He and his wife, who is originally from Russia, live in Ottawa, Ontario, where they settled after eight years of working in the U.S.

Charepka met his wife at an American summer camp where they worked in 1998. Soon after they tried to get into Canada by applying for a student visa but at the time .

Instead, Charepka did his Bachelor of Science in the U.S., but the goal was always to come to Canada.

鈥淎fter staying in the States for several years it became clear that there was no future for us,鈥� Charepka said. 鈥淚 could renew the [temporary] visa again but it didn鈥檛 seem reasonable that I could get a [Green Card] there鈥� and [Canada] had an actual immigration program that we would qualify for and be able to come here.鈥�

After graduating he was on the H-1B temporary work permit, that he had to keep renewing every three years.

鈥淚f you stay with the same employer, the employer can apply for a Green Card,鈥� Charepka said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot of effort on the part of the employer to prove that the candidate can鈥檛 be found locally.鈥�

When he and his wife finally applied to 颁补苍补诲补鈥檚 Charepka said it took about a year and a half to process his application. With Charepka as the principal applicant they were able to come to Canada in 2006.

鈥淚t was a weird feeling because it was a feeling of freedom鈥� because we finally found a place where we belong,鈥� Charepka said. 鈥淲ith the PR status we could come and go in peace. We felt that we were full members of society.鈥�

Pour lire cet article en fran膰ais cliquez ici.

漏 2019 色狐入口 All Rights Reserved