In 2007, when Microsoft announced it was opening a software development center in Vancouver, the American tech giant explained it was making the move because of hassles getting H-1B visas for highly skilled employees from overseas, given the U.S. government’s recent reduction in national quotas on the hard-to-get work permits. Canada had no such caps.
The software maker, a longtime proponent of making more visas available for skilled foreigners because of a talent shortage stateside, said at the time that the Vancouver facility would “allow the company to continue to recruit and retain highly skilled people affected by the immigration issues in the U.S.” Seven years later, during another round of tightening of the H-1B program, Microsoft added an engineering hub in Vancouver, while other U.S. tech giants including Amazon, Facebook, and Salesforce opened facilities in the Pacific Coast city.
