Ottawa (Jan 22) – To mitigate immigration fraud and the housing crisis, Canada is capping the number of international students coming to the country as well as decreasing allotments to provinces which have seen “unsustainable growth”.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced today that the federal govertment will set an intake cap on international student permit applications to stabilize new 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. Individual provincial and territorial caps have been also established, weighted by population, which will result in much more significant decreases in provinces where the international student population has seen the most unsustainable growth.
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.
“International students are vital to Canada and enrich our communities. As such, we have an obligation to ensure that they have access to the resources they need for an enriching academic experience,” Miller said in a statement. “In Canada, today, this isn’t always the case. Today, we are announcing additional measures to protect a system that has become so lucrative that it has opened a path for its abuse.”
Additionally, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will allocate a portion of the cap to each province and territory, who will then distribute the allocation among their designated learning institutions. To implement the cap, as of January 22, 2024, every study permit application submitted to IRCC will also require an attestation letter from a province or territory. Provinces and territories are expected to establish a process for issuing attestation letters to students by no later than March 31, 2024.
These temporary measures will be in place for two years, and the number of new study permit applications that will be accepted in 2025 will be re-assessed at the end of this year.
Miller says that the “decisive measures” announced today will ensure the integrity of Canada’s immigration system while setting students up for the success they hope for.
Eligibility for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program is also changing.
Starting September 1, 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. Under curriculum licensing agreements, students physically attend a private college that has been licensed to deliver the curriculum of an associated public college. These programs have seen significant growth in attracting international students in recent years, though they have less oversight than public colleges and they act as a loophole with regards to post-graduation work permit eligibility.
On the other hand, graduates of master’s and other short graduate-level programs will soon be eligible to apply for a 3-year work permit. Under current criteria, the length of a postgraduation work permit is based solely on the length of an individual’s study program, hindering master’s graduates by limiting the amount of time they have to gain work experience and potentially transition to permanent residence.
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.
