Though it was over 10 years ago, I can still remember the day I met one of my best friends. She had been a judge in her home country and for some reason she decided to migrate to the U.S. to practice law. When I asked why, her response was that it had been a dream of hers since she was a child. Simple as that. Anyone who has ever worked with this person knows she is one of the most impressive people around. Knowledgeable, hard-working, charming... she just has a magnetic professional presence that pulls people in. Of course, our superiors were not blind and she has able to get promotions after promotions. Despite all of this, she was only able to permanently stay in the United States because she met, fell in love and married a U.S. citizen. Without that, she probably would have had to return to her home country at some point - and what an loss it would have been for the United States.
More recently, I came across a similar story from an immigrant from Europe who has been living and working here in New York City for a decade. Unlike my friend, he is still on an immigrant visa and though he want to explore other professional options, he is tethered to his employer. Why? Because that employer is sponsoring him for a permanent visa and there is no guarantee that a new employer would be willing to do this. Also, the U.S. has no visa options for immigrants who want to become entrepreneurs. So he also has to suppress those dreams.
For U.S. citizens like you and me, these are issues that never cross our minds. We take our freedom to change jobs or start our business for granted. However, for many smart, entrepreneurial minds out there, these are not options that are available. And according to Sara Ashley O'Brien this is all because of the very restrictive approach that the the U.S. has adopted a toward awarding visas. Compare this attitude with that of our neighbors to the North.
Last April, Canada launched a startup visa program that is designed to court entrepreneurs. Per Ms. O'Brien,
"The Canadian startup visa doesn't require employer sponsorship. Applicants need a minimum investment of $75,000 from a select Canadian angel investor or $200,000 from a select Canadian venture capital fund. (There are also a few additional requirements like language proficiency.) It grants a path to residency -- after three years, entrepreneurs can apply for citizenship."
So, what do you think... do you think this program is enough to lure immigrants who spent their lives dreaming about making it in the United States? Or do you think America needs to implement a similar program if we want to compete?
