Canada Eyes Indian Techies Amid US H-1B Crunch

With US President Donald Trump raising the fee for the H1B visa to make immigration tough for the professional skilled workers into the country, several other countries including China, Germany and Spain are trying to attract those rejected.

Canada also joined those countries with Canadian PM Mark Carney announcing that his country will welcome skilled professionals who will be affected by the $1,00,000 H-1B visa fee.

The announcement comes amid preparations for Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand’s first visit to India planned for mid-October.

The announcement and Anand’s visit are gain significance in the wake of the strained ties between Canada and India, under Justin Trudeau’s government, reflecting a change in the Canadian government’s approach towards India.

The relations between India and Canada thawed in September 2023 with the then Canadian PM alleging potential involvement of Indian government agents in the killing of Canada-based Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June 2023.

Carney said in London on Saturday: “What is clear is that the opportunity to attract people who previously would have got so-called H-1B visas and I am going to simplify it. One of the big cohorts is in the tech sector. Not as many of those people (H-1B visa holders) will get visas to the United States. These people are skilled, and this is an opportunity for Canada… We will soon bring a proposal on this,” he said.

Following Trump government’s announcement on sharp hike in the H-1B fee, panic and uncertainty has spread among Indian professionals who make up around 72% of the programme’s beneficiaries. To ease the situation, Delhi is in discussion with American interlocutors on the issue.