New Immigration Policies for International Students
March 17, 2021International students enrolled in Canada have to access the outstanding quality of education to experience a work-study balance that accommodates the costs while anticipating permanent residence. Over 650,000 applicants registered for post-secondary education while 58,000 alumni became permanent residents in Canada in 2019.
This plays a crucial role in the country’s economic growth, hence, the $22 billion annual contributions that support around 170,000 jobs.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) creates temporary policies for Canadian Designated Learning Institutions (DLI) for students who wish to pursue their education.
Students must undergo the two-stage approval process as required by the new policy. The first and second stages are approval-in-principle and eligibility/ admissibility.
For the approval-in-principle, the requirements include acceptance at a DLI, sufficient funds, and a student permit are needed. Once approved, online learning can commence and is eligible for a post-graduate work permit (PGWP).
The second stage requires a police certificate, immigration medical exam, and biometrics, along with eligibility and admissibility. This time, the student is eligible for travel to Canada once the study permit is fully approved.
The new measures for the IRCC include prioritizing complete online applications for students and reinstating PGWP as long as there is a study permit application and renders at least 50 percent of their program in the country.
The submission for a study permit application is on September 15, 2020.