Hi Marcus,
I could shed some light on this being an LMIA based software job holder who was recruited from overseas. I work for a company which regularly hires people from all over the world. We have around 30% people recruited this way.
However, IT IS ONLY tied to very specialized IT experience. e.g. i work in multicore network processors - a specific family whose experience is important in my employer's business. For most other common IT roles, my employer hires locally.
Every thing mentioned about LMIA process by others is true. You have to advertise and prove that No qualified Canadians were available for the role. Plus more recently fee was increased as well as the requirements.
One important thing missed among other posts is that LMIA requirements, needs and processing times vary by province some what. In my case, the province is Quebec (although we have office in Ottawa as well).
Toronto in general is a bad place to look for any kind of job as a prospective / current immigrant. Opportunities in IT might be slightly better but there are scores of existing people on PR status looking for jobs with degrees and experience in IT.
So you must have
a) a special skill in IT which practically wont have issues proving to government that no suitable Canadians are available when it really is the truth
b) that is badly needed by an established employer
in order to consider the LMIA route.
The core of IT industry in Canada is around Vancouver, Ottawa or Kitchener / Waterloo region.
It is worth mentioning that LMIA is the biggest hurdle EVEN when you are in Canada already working - for switching jobs. It is a painful process which very few employers are willing to undergo. So the factor is elevated if you are remote.
Lastly, if you are skilled and have proven experience / expertise in either of Network function virtualization, Open stack or broad-com switch programming, ping me.
UPDATE:
Oh, and to the general audience ranting about EE preferring those with jobs and that being unfair, i don't have time for a long debate - but here is a quick key point.
Canada has more skilled people at the moment compared to jobs. On top of this, Canadian experience outweighs most other elements unless you really have a skill for which there are no Canadians. Reality is that it is easier to get immigration than to get a first decent job in your own profession.
There are too many horror stories - so CIC is attempting to prevent that from happening which i believe they should have done much earlier. Though it is true that having a Canadian education and being fresh out of university here makes it easier to find a job.
Ruining some one's life by bringing them here first, spending several years not getting a job in their exact domain / of equivalent experience is a much bigger problem compared to just not being selected for PR while sitting in home country.
And remember this is coming from some one who didn't have to face this at all luckily. But i am in no illusion about the ground realities around me otherwise.
I could shed some light on this being an LMIA based software job holder who was recruited from overseas. I work for a company which regularly hires people from all over the world. We have around 30% people recruited this way.
However, IT IS ONLY tied to very specialized IT experience. e.g. i work in multicore network processors - a specific family whose experience is important in my employer's business. For most other common IT roles, my employer hires locally.
Every thing mentioned about LMIA process by others is true. You have to advertise and prove that No qualified Canadians were available for the role. Plus more recently fee was increased as well as the requirements.
One important thing missed among other posts is that LMIA requirements, needs and processing times vary by province some what. In my case, the province is Quebec (although we have office in Ottawa as well).
Toronto in general is a bad place to look for any kind of job as a prospective / current immigrant. Opportunities in IT might be slightly better but there are scores of existing people on PR status looking for jobs with degrees and experience in IT.
So you must have
a) a special skill in IT which practically wont have issues proving to government that no suitable Canadians are available when it really is the truth
b) that is badly needed by an established employer
in order to consider the LMIA route.
The core of IT industry in Canada is around Vancouver, Ottawa or Kitchener / Waterloo region.
It is worth mentioning that LMIA is the biggest hurdle EVEN when you are in Canada already working - for switching jobs. It is a painful process which very few employers are willing to undergo. So the factor is elevated if you are remote.
Lastly, if you are skilled and have proven experience / expertise in either of Network function virtualization, Open stack or broad-com switch programming, ping me.
UPDATE:
Oh, and to the general audience ranting about EE preferring those with jobs and that being unfair, i don't have time for a long debate - but here is a quick key point.
Canada has more skilled people at the moment compared to jobs. On top of this, Canadian experience outweighs most other elements unless you really have a skill for which there are no Canadians. Reality is that it is easier to get immigration than to get a first decent job in your own profession.
There are too many horror stories - so CIC is attempting to prevent that from happening which i believe they should have done much earlier. Though it is true that having a Canadian education and being fresh out of university here makes it easier to find a job.
Ruining some one's life by bringing them here first, spending several years not getting a job in their exact domain / of equivalent experience is a much bigger problem compared to just not being selected for PR while sitting in home country.
And remember this is coming from some one who didn't have to face this at all luckily. But i am in no illusion about the ground realities around me otherwise.
