Turn America’s H-1B Shift into Canada’s Advantage

Summary

On Friday, September 19th, 2025, the US government announced an update to the H-1B visa – the most significant program for foreign high-skilled professionals working in the US – to add a $100,000 fee for new visa applicants*. This change creates risks and opportunities for Canada. 

Without action, U.S. companies will target Canadian engineers, scientists, and healthcare professionals to bypass the fee by recruiting under the TN visa. This would threaten our tech sector, drain tax revenues, and worsen shortages in critical fields like healthcare. Canada is an ideal target for this kind of poaching, with a deep pool of highly educated talent, shared cultural values, and native English fluency.

But it is also an opportunity. Hundreds of thousands of highly skilled and highly paid H-1B professionals – many graduates of the world’s best universities, part of the same pipeline that produced leaders like Sundar Pichai, Satya Nadella, and Elon Musk – are now seeking a new home. Canada, with its world-class research institutions, similar timezones, proximity to the US, and high quality of life, is the natural destination. 

To seize this chance, we must act quickly. We need to prioritize the world's top talent and create a pathway for H-1B workers to move to Canada. This will increase job opportunities for Canadians at home rather than incentivizing them to move to the United States.

Canada’s Opportunity

The US just made it much harder for talented foreigners to work in the country. On Friday, September 19th, President Trump signed an executive order to add a $100,000 fee to every new H-1B visa application. This change will fundamentally alter the global competition for talent. 

Think of it like a massive game of musical chairs. Top talent is looking for a place to sit and America just removed many of their options. Canada can either watch from the sidelines as skilled workers scramble for the remaining seats, or it can quickly add new chairs for the best players.

The U.S. government’s stated intent for this policy is to encourage employers to hire more Americans. But, in advanced technology, engineering, and healthcare, there simply are not enough qualified domestic workers available. Faced with these shortages, U.S. employers will turn to the next easiest and most cost-effective option — Canadian professionals. 

For most of the world, the H-1B is the primary way to work as a skilled professional in the US. But, unlike most foreign nationals, Canadian citizens can work in the country under TN status. Instead of needing an H-1B visa they simply present proof of employment and prior education at the border. Processing happens seamlessly, with a three-year renewable status¹. 

The risk for Canada is that the ease of the TN system and Canada’s highly talented population will incentivize American companies to recruit Canadian engineers, nurses, and tech workers as a way to retain access to foreign talent while avoiding the $100,000 fee they would otherwise need for an H-1B worker. 

However, the changes also represent an opportunity. U.S. companies will be searching for new locations where they can place the world’s most talented professionals. And many of the almost 800,000 H-1B holders² already in the United States will be looking for a new place to live and work because of uncertainty around future immigration policies.

This is a unique talent pool. H-1B holders are some of the most skilled workers in the world, often graduates from elite institutions like MIT, Stanford, IIT, and Tsinghua University. Previous examples of this talent pipeline include Sundar Pichai, Satya Nadella³ and Elon Musk⁴. Not only do they command high salaries but many are looking to take their own shot at building the next generational companies.

If Canada could attract 120,000 of these high-skilled workers earning C$200,000 or more, it would generate billions of dollars in direct income and up to $30 billion in total GDP economic activity (including multiplier effects). That's more than a 1% growth in Canada's entire economy from a single policy change. This growth in spending would create jobs for Canadians and bring more prosperity to Canada. 

But if, instead, the movement of immigrants flows in the opposite direction, it could cause serious harm. Perhaps the most pressing example is in healthcare. The Canadian healthcare system is already strained for key workers with almost 100,000 spots unfilled and 16,170 excess vacancies in nursing and therapy professions alone⁵.

Just like Canada, America faces healthcare shortages including over 300,000 nurses⁶. Before, US healthcare providers would recruit from India and the Philippines through H-1B programs. Now they'll turn to Canada through the TN visa, where healthcare workers earn less than their American counterparts. This threatens Canada's already strained healthcare system.

Canada has natural advantages compared to other countries competing for global talent. Geographic proximity and similar timezones to the US allow workers to maintain American client relationships while living in Canada. Shared language and similar corporate law and culture reduce adaptation barriers. High quality of life and strong economic opportunities create a desirable location.

Taking bold steps to invite highly skilled immigrants at this moment is not an easy move. But it is the right one. If we don’t act decisively, we will miss out on a once-in-a-generation opportunity and risk further damaging Canada’s economic position. 

What Must Be Done

To fully realize this opportunity, Canada can use two coordinated actions targeting different segments of this talent. With these new pathways no changes would be made to the total targets for new permanent residents and any temporary foreign workers would be restricted only to those doing work that otherwise wouldn’t happen in Canada. 

Establish an H-1B Worker Closed work permit to allow current and prospective H-1B US visa holders to live in Canada while working for their US employers. Requirements would include a minimum US$140K (C$200,000) salary and a three-year employment commitment. For this group, Canada will offer a visa with 30-day processing. To enact this, quickly re-open and tweak the 2023 H-1B Open Work Permit as a new public policy, making it a closed work permit tied to the sponsoring US company. This would allow both the H-1B workers and their employers a way to maintain their existing relationships without paying US$100K in visa fees.

Create a Global Top-100 University Express Track under Express Entry. This program would award 50 additional points as part of the Permanent Resident application to graduates from elite institutions, including MIT, Harvard, Stanford, IIT, and Tsinghua University. This targets the same talent pipeline that previously produced major tech executives in the US and will now be looking for alternatives. 

Common Questions

How do we ensure Canadian workers aren't displaced by foreign talent? This program is designed to bring highly skilled H-1B professionals not to compete for positions already available to Canadians. By setting high salary thresholds and tying permits to employment with U.S. companies, the program ensures these workers complement Canada’s economy rather than displace domestic talent.

What safeguards exist to prevent wage suppression in affected industries? The minimum salary thresholds and focus on high-skilled positions ensure these roles complement rather than compete with typical Canadian wages. The program targets occupations where Canada faces skills shortages, particularly in technology and healthcare, where demand exceeds domestic supply. Additionally, the Express Entry point system maintains merit-based selection that considers factors beyond just foreign education credentials.

Conclusion

America's $100,000 H-1B fee just created the biggest talent acquisition opportunity in Canadian history. The potential displacement of 800,000 skilled workers offers Canada access to graduates from the world's top universities who previously chose the US pathway. Two actions can capture this talent while protecting Canadian workers from southward migration. The government must act immediately before other countries seize this opportunity and Canada loses both the global talent and its own skilled workers to American recruitment.

* Note: As of publishing, the exact details of the new program are still being clarified

‍

If these ideas resonate and you want help to build Canada sign up to join the movement today to be the first to hear about events and volunteer opportunities.