While the United States is getting more restrictive in regards to processing visas, some countries are planning to take advantage of this trend. Last month, France announced a program to lure entrepreneurs and startups and now Canada has just launched a Global Skill Strategy, that will focus on highly-skilled workers and faster visa processing.
From the announcement:
As part of the Strategy, which includes four pillars, high-skilled workers coming to Canada on a temporary basis are now able to benefit from two-week processing of applications for work permits and, when necessary, temporary resident visas. Open work permits for spouses and study permits for dependents will also be processed in two weeks when applicable.
Employers can now benefit from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada's new dedicated service channel and the new Global Talent Stream. This will help them access temporary, high-skilled, global talent, scale up or expand their knowledge of specialized skills so that they can be more innovative and build their expertise.
Two new work permit exemptions have also taken effect today. Highly-skilled workers who need to come to Canada for a very short-term assignment and researchers taking part in short-duration research projects being conducted in Canada will not require a work permit.