Legal immigrants

Canada uses a merit based system for immigration. It favors youth, education, experience and fluency in English or French. If the US would use such a system those with experience and education in science and technology (STEM) would be given preference. The US currently suffers from a shortage in these areas and these jobs are highly skilled and highly paid. In 2016, 1.49 million foreign-born individuals moved to the United States, a 7 percent increase from the 1.38 million coming in 2015. India was the leading country of origin, with 175,100 arriving in 2016, followed by 160,200 from China. This represents 22% If the merit based system is used the numbers from Asia will rapidly increase.