Dublin Session - Immigration, The Voice of the Experts

The goal of the session was to provide an update on news in the expert’s jurisdictions and discuss about two key points: best practices and IT impact on immigration process management.

- The experts and moderator represented not only key jurisdictions for immigration practitioners (USA, Canada, EU and Asia) but also the different types of providers managing the Global Mobility Practice: boutique law firms, multidisciplinary firm and Global immigration and Relocation Firms.

- In terms of news regarding the jurisdictions, the experts highlighted the following points:

USA – Pandemic backlogs unfortunately continue in the US, together with a political climate that is not terribly pro-immigrant. The big news currently is the oversubscription of the H-1B work visa category. The government employs a lottery system to select applicants whose H-1B applications will be processed. This year the government reports that 780,884 applications were received for just 85,000 quota slots. This is an increase of more than 60% over the prior year, likely due to the fact that applicants figured out how to submit multiple applications, even though this is not supposed to be allowed. The bottom line is that although there are some alternatives to the H-1B for work visas, employers in the US still struggle to access the immigrant talent that they need in a timely manner.

Canada – Post-pandemic some delays persist in in-country immigration adjudications but most consular backlogs have cleared. However, many government workers have recently gone on strike, so there are concerns that the backlogs may return if the strike continues for a significant amount of time. In substantive news, the government now requires that many types of foreign workers have employment contracts with their Canadian employers, which can be difficult for those who seek Canadian work permits for intermittent and/or client site work. Finally, in a welcome move the government has recently expanded post graduate work permits to allow many graduates to work in

Canada without sponsorship for longer.

UK. - Since the end of Freedom of Movement between the UK and the EU from 1 January 2021, the UK has greatly expanded the number of roles which are eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker visa. New routes were introduced for those looking to open new business in the UK and for existing business to expand into the UK. All routes were streamlined to reduce the amount of documentation required and to speed up processes.

However, the Investor route was closed in February 2023 and the UK government is tightening the rules on which family members can come to the UK – particularly for Student Visa holders. The UK remains a relatively quick and certain jurisdiction with greater emphasis on using digital technology to apply for and receive visas, but fees remain high.

The new immigration bill that is currently being discussed in the German Bundestag, was a proposed bill aimed at attracting international talent to Germany at the time of this year’s conference. The bill essentially opens an immigration route to Germany to a larger pool of individuals. Some of the most prominent points in it include: 1) lowering of the