Canada is the latest country to roll out the welcome mat to highly skilled workers and scientists as the United States restricts immigration and cuts research funding under President Donald Trump.
Canada on Tuesday announced a $1.2 billion, decade-long investment in salaries, infrastructure and grants aimed at recruiting more than 1,000 doctors, scientists and researchers in critical fields.
Although the release doesn’t explicitly mention the United States, the recruitment drive appears to target the kind of highly skilled foreign workers facing increased scrutiny under the Trump administration, including H-1B holders, and those affected or disenchanted by the administration’s sweeping actions targeting universities.
“As other countries constrain academic freedoms and undermine cutting-edge research, Canada is investing in — and doubling down on — science,” Mélanie Joly, Canada’s industry minister, said in a statement.
In its budget released in November, the Canadian government signaled plans for an “accelerated pathway” for H-1B visa holders.
The Canadian initiative comes as the Trump administration ramps up its efforts to restrict immigration, including legal pathways like the H-1B visa, which allows U.S. employers to temporarily hire skilled workers in the absence of American workers to fill those jobs. In September, the administration announced a steep $100,000 feefor applicants who are chosen for the high-skilled work visa.
Some outspoken members of Trump’s nationalist base have argued for years that the visas take jobs away from American workers. But the new restrictions and fees have created turmoil for rural health providers and tech companies reliant on a steady stream of foreign workers. Canada’s plan offers overseas doctors with at least one year of Canadian work experience an expedited path to permanent residency.Canada is not the only country attempting to lure top global talent as Trump’s policies put pressure on American universities and highly-competitive industries. Some European universities have offered funding for American scientists considering a relocation and promised a safe haven free from academic censorship. China is also attracting American scientific talent, especially in STEM fields.Several prominent U.S. academics have already made the move north, some of them in protest of Trump’s policies.
Canada for years has suffered from a “brain drain” of top talent to its larger neighbor — a trend it hopes to reverse with what it described in the statement as “one of the largest recruitment programs of its kind globally.”
“Today’s investment is about securing Canada’s place at the forefront of discovery and innovation and leveraging our strength in science to support our future well-being and prosperity for generations to come,” Joly said.
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