The Council of Canadian Innovators (CCI) wants Canada to introduce a High Potential Tech Talent Visa, to give in-demand professionals a pathway to Permanent Residency without a job offer in hand.

This visa is for people who have skills that are in high demand, such as software developers and data scientists. With this visa, you can work and change jobs in Canada, and it can also help you become a permanent resident of Canada.

People seeking work visas in Canada need a job offer to qualify, which was creating a barrier for highly skilled people. Also due to the pandemic, remote work has increased tremendously. As a result, CCI says the Canadian government should consult with the private sector to pilot allowing highly skilled foreign workers to come to Canada for a designated amount of time without a job offer.

The proposed tech visa aims to process work permit applications in as little as two weeks for in-demand roles. The CCI, however, is calling for a 48-hour visa processing time for this program.

The strategy report is divided into 4 sections where CCI has shared 13 suggestions.

The following are the details of the same:

• Co-ordination and Capacity Building
• Attracting Talent
• Generating Talent
• Retaining Talent

Looking at the above strategy details we can expect a quick rise in the selection of applicants. The need for skilled tech workers is most acute at scale-up companies, growth in the digital economy at large will set a demand for an additional 250,000 jobs. So, if you have high skills in a tech profile then you can get a Canada visa for sure.