Canada has officially implemented a two-year cap on the issuance of new study permits.

Do you find yourself in a rush? Presented below are the key highlights:

• Canada has made the decision to enforce a two-year restriction on the issuance of new study permits to international students.
• The cap will be applicable for the years 2024 and 2025, and has been characterized as a provisional measure.
• Canadian immigration officials are expecting that the imposed cap will lead to a 35% decrease in the issuance of new study permits in 2024, in comparison to the levels seen in 2023.
• Furthermore, the government has declared today that starting from 1 September 2024, students who are enrolled in programs facilitated through public-private partnerships will no longer qualify for post-graduate work permits.
• Additionally, the government will take steps to restrict the number of open work permits granted to spouses of international students.
• However, post-graduate work rights will be expanded for students completing graduate studies in Canada, with such students soon being able to apply for a three-year post-graduate work permit.

Canada’s Immigration Minister, Marc Miller, has announced a two-year cap on the issuance of new study permits to international students. This decision represents the government’s continued efforts to enhance integrity controls within the student visa program.

Speaking in Montréal on 22 January, Minister Miller said, “These measures are designed to ensure that when future students arrive in Canada, they will receive the quality of education they signed up for and the hope they had in their home countries.” It would be unfair to welcome international students to Canada without ensuring they all receive the necessary resources to succeed. “Allowing bad actors to continue to operate would be a disservice to all the reputable institutions that pride themselves on providing a first-class academic experience.”

“It is unacceptable that some private institutions have taken advantage of international students by operating under-resourced campuses, lacking support for students, and charging high tuition fees, all the while significantly increasing their intake of international students,” he emphasized, signaling the government’s key concerns.

The government is announcing three principal measures today, most notably a temporary two-year cap on new international study permits.

“This is the latest in a series of measures to improve program integrity and to set international students up for success in maintaining a sustainable level of temporary residence in Canada,” said Mr. Miller. For 2024, the cap is expected to result in approximately 364,000 approved study permits, reflecting a 35% decrease from the number issued in 2023.

In the interest of fairness, we will also allocate the cap space to each province based on its population. As a result, some provinces will experience more significant reductions. “Some provinces will actually have room to grow if they choose to, but the provinces that have been most heavily affected will have to decrease by about 50% or even more when it comes to new incoming students.”