The Effects of Recent Policy Changes on International Students Studying in Canada

The last one year has seen the Canadian Government announce a series of measures aimed at restricting the number of international students enrolled in Canadian educational institutions.  After years of promoting Canada as a study destination for international students, these announcements came as a shock to many!

The trigger for these changes was the pandemic.  The border closures had led to a backlog of applications for student visas and temporary workers.  As soon as IRCC started issuing visas, there was a huge arrival of not just students but those seeking work permits and immigration status in Canada.  These arrivals overwhelmed the accommodation system which was not geared to handling such an increase.  The shortage of accommodation resulted in increased rentals for students and new immigrants.  Coupled with this was a rise in inflation due to global supply chain issues which began to hit the local population hard.  There were also not enough jobs to cater to everyone coming in to Canada.  This led to a backlash among Canadian citizens who were worried about their own futures.

Under these circumstances, the Canadian government was forced to take action. These included tightening of work permits for international students as well as reducing the number of study visas issued every year.  India has been particularly impacted by these policy changes since Indian students make up close to 40% of the total international student enrollments.  In 2023, there were close to 300,000 Indian students studying in Canada.

Let us understand some of the changes that have been announced:

1.       Increase in the cost-of-living fund requirement

With effect from January 2024, international students applying to study in Canada are now required to double the money that they need to show as proof of funds.  International students are now required to show C$ 20,635 instead of the earlier C$10,000 to apply for study permit.  This is in addition to the first year of tuition and travel costs.  This adjustment was done after almost twenty years and needed to take into account the increase in cost-of-living over the years.  This policy change will impact a number of students who may not be able to afford studying in Canada and could limit the number of students applying from India to study in Canada.

2.       Off Campus Working Hours

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the Canadian government had announced a temporary policy to allow international students to work off-campus for more than 20 hours a week while attending classes.  This policy was ended on April 30, 2024.  From May till September, international students were allowed to work for only 20 hours a week.  This was increased to 24 hours from September onwards.

3.       Cap on enrollment of international students

In January 2024, the government announced a cap on the number of international students that would be issued study permits.  With international student numbers hitting over a million in December 2023, the IRCC set a cap for 2024 at 360,000 approved study permits, a decline of 35% from 2023.  For 2025, the number was further reduced by another 10%.  As part of the cap on study permits, the government also allocated provincial and territorial caps based on population.  The provincial governments were given the flexibility of deciding how to allocate the caps among its approved educational institutions. In addition to the cap, every study permit application is also required to be accompanied with an attestation letter from a province verifying the admission to the educational institution.

4.      Restriction on post-graduate work permits

With effect from September 2024, another restriction was added for international students taking study programs that are part of a curriculum licensing arrangement.  They are no longer eligible for a post-graduation work permit after completing their program. These programs are run by private institutions and have seen a significant growth in attracting international students.  These programs are also considered to have been misused by students

5.      Open work permits for spouses restricted

In January 2024, the government announced that open work permits will only be available to spouses of international students in master’s and doctoral programs.  It will no longer be eligible for undergraduate and college programs.

6.      Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) changes

The temporary resident population had grown rapidly over the last few years, reaching up to 2.5 million people.  While acknowledging the importance of temporary workers in key segments like construction and healthcare, it was felt that the system needed to be more sustainable and efficient.  From September 2024, limits were placed on the number of temporary residents that Canada will admit.  India had the second highest number of temporary foreign workers in 2023 with 26,495.  The changes to the TFWP include: No processing of LMIA applications for low-wage streams for metro areas with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher.  This would impact cities like Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton which employ many of the temporary foreign workers.  Exceptions will be granted for season and non-seasonal jobs in agriculture, food processing and fish processing.  Employers will not be able to hire more than 10% of their total workforce through the TFW Program. The maximum duration of employment for workers hired through the low-wage stream will be reduced to one –year instead of two-years.

The consequences of these restrictions are already being felt in Canada.  According to ApplyBoard’s report in September 2024, new study permits were expected  to sharply decline by almost 50% from 436,000 in 2023 to just over 231,000 in 2024.  Overall, the report highlights that there will be a 39% drop in global applications for Canadian study permits compared to the previous year.  This also indicates that the Canadian government’s target of approving 364,000 study permits in 2024 is not likely to be met. The upcoming General Elections will determine if there is any shift in the immigration or education policies that will impact international students in the coming years!

Contact CanadianXperience for guidance on understanding the new changes in the study permit process and requirements to confidently decide on your next step. CanadianXperience is an Education Consultancy specializing in study in Canada.