Canada: Updated guidance on international student enrolment cap
- Canada’s immigration ministry has provided additional details on its new requirements for provincial attestation letters, along with new provisions for post-study work rights for master’s and doctoral students and the new restrictions on work rights for students in public-private partnerships
A 5 February statement from Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) offers some additional detail on the hard cap on study permits announced on 22 January.
The provincial attestation letter
The specifies that as of 8:30 am ET on 22 January 2024, "most new post-secondary international students at the college or undergraduate level must provide a provincial attestation letter (PAL)…with their study permit application." It also clearly indicates that, as of that effective date, IRCC will "will return any application received that does not include a PAL, unless otherwise exempt."
The exemptions for the new PAL requirement are as follows:
- International students whose study permit applications were filed in advance of the 22 January effective date
- International students whose study permit applications have already been approved
And the new PAL requirement does not apply at all to the following student groups:
- Primary and secondary school students
- Master's or doctoral students (note, however, that those applying to non-degree granting graduate programmes [for example, certificates and graduate diplomas] will require a PAL)
- Visiting or exchange students
- Those students already in Canada with a valid study permit
- In-Canada family members of study permit holders
Post-study work rights for graduate students
IRCC has now specified that, "Starting on 15 February 2024, a longer, three-year post-graduation work permit will be available to those who are graduating from a master’s degree programme that is less than two years and who meet all other PGWP [post-graduation work permit] eligibility criteria."
Post-study work rights for PPP students
IRCC has clarified as well that international students currently enrolled in college programmes delivered via public-private partnerships will continue to be eligible for post-graduation work permits. However, new students enrolling in such programmes after 1 September 2024, will not be eligible for a PGWP.
For additional background, please see:
