This paper demonstrates that in Brazil at present there is an urgent need for public policies aimed at the attraction and retention of highly qualified professionals in areas that are strategic for national socio-economic policy. This does not involve seeking to increase of competition for workers in the Brazilian labor market, but to the contrary, promoting the development of strategic industries and advances in the area of science, technology and innovation (ST&I), recognizing immigration as a vector of development for human capital. It is fundamental that public policies aimed at attracting highly qualified immigrants as a form of promoting socio- economic development take into consideration other important axes of immigration policy, such as the analysis of factors which condition migratory flows, the need to guarantee human rights and the integration of migratory populations, and the imperative for the maintenance of national security. These policies should also take into account economic, social and political impacts, from the point of view of the populations from the countries of origin and the destination countries, as well as the migratory populations themselves, in order to contribute to responsible political action. The capacity to create, attract, and retain talents in accordance with a national development strategy is one of the principal factors which determines the success of countries, in terms of their social and economic development in the contemporary world. Most developed countries have specific policies aimed at the attraction and retention of highly skilled professionals in the international market. With the recent increase in governmental investment in education and the development of advanced research in Brazil, the country risks suffering the growth of the so-called brain drain. Moreover, Brazil is now going through a process of demographic transition and needs, in the space of a generation, to promote a process of exponential increase in its indices of productivity. The scarcity of human resources is one of the principal bottlenecks which threatens the economic development of the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). In Brazil specifically, the results of the lack of proper investment in education in recent decades are now appearing, since investment in education has an incremental nature and takes time to produce results. The attraction of highly skilled immigrants can allow the deficit of proper investment in the past to be overcome, so that better advantage can be taken of the 'demographic bonus.' Due to the recent Brazilian resilience to the cycle of global crises which began in 2008, the country has become an increasingly more attractive destination for migrants, which constitutes an unequalled opportunity to attract talents in the international market. Brazil has received an increasing quantity of immigrants with average levels of skills. Although this has increased the critical mass of the country and generated benefits for some industries, in some cases scarce positions are disputed with Brazilian labor. Nevertheless, as we will see, there are still very few highly skilled immigrants, apt to occupy positions for which there are no Brazilian workers and in this way to accelerate the development of new industries. Brazil should, thus, create policies concerned with immigration linked with national geopolitical and commercial strategies, since migratory flows produce significant ties and can improve relations between nations. However, for these policies to be successful, it is fundamental that institutional integration be expanded and effective tools are created for coordination, the alignment of information flows, the collection and analysis of data and the construction of consensus. In summary, it is necessary to break with the verticalization of bureaucratic structures and the narrow focus on the limits of jurisdiction of the different ministries and bodies involvement in the national policy of the monitoring, administration and control of immigrants. In fact, Brazil could benefit from the creation of a specific agency, capable of catalyzing initiatives, articulating the multiple institutional actors involved in immigration administration, and contributing to achieving its strategic visions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]