As tensions flare between India and Canada, recruitment firms say interest from workers moving between the two countries has not dropped significantly B次元官网网址� even though anxiety is building.
The firms attribute the uneasiness some Indians now feel around relocating to Prime Minister Justin TrudeauB次元官网网址檚 mid-September announcement revealing B次元官网网址渁 potential linkB次元官网网址� between IndiaB次元官网网址檚 government and the killing of a Sikh leader in B.C. that Canada was investigating.
Canada later removed most of its diplomatic presence from India after New Delhi threatened to strip diplomatic immunities from them and their families.
The moves have made many nervous.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e definitely seen a large increase in people saying, B次元官网网址楬ey, why should I move to Canada?B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� said Ilya Brotzky, chief executive and co-founder of VanHack, a Vancouver-based firm connecting employers and tech professionals around the world.
Before the tensions, he estimated about 95 per cent of the conversations his company had with Indians interested in relocating to Canada were positive. These days, itB次元官网网址檚 dropped to about 80 per cent.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e never seen that before,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a bit of an alarming trend.B次元官网网址�
Of the 32,115 international tech workers who migrated to Canada between April 2022 and March 2023, nearly half B次元官网网址� 15,097 B次元官网网址� came from India, a July report from the Technology Councils of North America and CanadaB次元官网网址檚 Tech Network found.
Indians are often sought after by Canadian companies because of their skills, said Arif Khimani, the president and chief operating officer at MobSquad, a Calgary company that helps businesses with recruitment and visas.
A high proportion of the Indian population has work experience or degrees in engineering, software development and data science B次元官网网址� areas that are seeing tremendous growth in demand.
Many are keen to move because they see Canada as a place offering a good quality of life, relative safety, beautiful landscapes and a decent health-care system, Brotzky said.
Entry to Canada also tends to be easier to land than U.S. or European visas, he said: B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 not too many better alternatives out there.B次元官网网址�
But even before strife with India materialized, he noticed some were growing weary of coming to Canada because of how much it would cost them to buy a home.
The national average home price was $655,507 in September, up 2.5 per cent from September 2022, according to the latest data from the Canadian Real Estate Association.
B次元官网网址淭he political (aspect) is just one piece of the pie,B次元官网网址� Brotzky said.
Yet newly-strained relations between Canada and India donB次元官网网址檛 seem to have many thinking twice about immigration between the two countries, said Khimani.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e still seeing really, really strong demand if we look at the applications weB次元官网网址檙e getting and thereB次元官网网址檚 still a ton from India.B次元官网网址�
However, people who have already made the move but donB次元官网网址檛 have permanent residency or those who put in visa applications before the current geopolitical climate shifted are anxious.
B次元官网网址淲hat we are seeing, of course, is just the nervousness, the uncertainty of whether people can stay or how long things will take or if things escalate, what does that mean?B次元官网网址� Khimani said.
B次元官网网址淥bviously we donB次元官网网址檛 have full answers.B次元官网网址�
Kumar Erramilli has found staff who emigrated from India to work at his Toronto-based life sciences learning platform company ACTO are not worried about the ongoing tensions because they have Canadian citizenship.
However, Erramilli and his two co-founders, who each hail from India, are worried about how they will visit a team ACTO keeps in Hyderabad.
Erramilli usually visits the group every November or December but is currently restricted because he doesnB次元官网网址檛 have Overseas Citizenship of India status, which would allow him to travel between both countries more freely.
India has suspended much of its other visa services for Canadians.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 not able to go and get an Indian visa and go to India right now, which is hindering our workflow significantly,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淚n the same vein, IB次元官网网址檓 not able to get some of my key strategic folks to travel there and come to Canada without any friction, so itB次元官网网址檚 a bit of a struggle right now.B次元官网网址�
However, he is more hopeful of a return after news Wednesday that IndiaB次元官网网址檚 high commission in Canada would resume processing some types of visa applications for business, medical and conference travel as well as entry for people in India.
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