For a while now, Canada has been a top destination for people looking to further their studies. The Canadian study permit has been one of the most sought after in the world.
This because of the promise of post-graduate work permit and the possibility of getting Canadian permanent residence. But now, new rules that have been announced by the Canadian government are set to make it nearly impossible to get a study permit to study in Canada.
The new rules come after nationwide protest on the high number of international students who have been blamed for accelerating the ongoing housing crisis in the country.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced that the Canadian government will set an intake cap on international student permit applications to stabilize growth, for a period of two years.
“For 2024, the cap is expected to result in approximately 360,000 approved study permits, a decrease of 35% from 2023. Study permit renewals will not be impacted. Those pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees, and elementary and secondary education are not included in the cap. Current study permit holders will not be affected,” the minister said in a release by the Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
According to the new rules, you will now need an attestation letter to apply for a study permit effective January 22, 2024 unless you are one of the 3 categories of exemptions. Applications without an attestation will be returned. Currently, attestation letters are only available in Quebec.
Starting September 1, 2024, international students who begin a study program that is part of a curriculum licensing arrangement will no longer be eligible for a postgraduation work permit upon graduation.
Graduates of master’s and other short graduate-level programs will soon be eligible to apply for a 3-year work permit.
“In the weeks ahead, open work permits will only be available to spouses of international students in master’s and doctoral programs. The spouses of international students in other levels of study, including undergraduate and college programs, will no longer be eligible,” minister Miller announced.
Commenting on the announcement, popular Canadian immigration lawyer Tamara Mosher-Kuzcer clarified that the national cap will be allocated based on population by province.
“Some provinces can increase intake and others (Ontario and maybe BC) will have to decrease by 50 per cent decrease. Quebec, Alberta, Saskatchewan, the Northwest Territories, the Yukon and Nunavut will all have room to increase their number of students under the new provincial allocation,” said Tamara on her social platform.
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Apart from bringing the number of new international students down, the new rules are also expected to end Public Private Partnerships between public universities and private colleges, some of which have been accused by Minister Miller of churning out the diploma equivalent of puppy mills.
“I guess one key take away will be for applicants to do their due diligence and watch out for ‘too good to be true’ advice from those that stand to make commission/profit from shoving applicants towards Private or PPP/licensing arrangements,” said Canadian immigration lawyer Raj Sharma.