Canada imposes new curbs on int'l students
Canada imposes new curbs on int’l students
Starting this fall semester, international students in Canada will face a new limit on off-campus work hours during the academic year. Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced that temporary measures allowing international students to work unlimited hours while class is in session will not be renewed.
“Working off campus helps international students gain work experience and offset some of their expenses. As international students arrive in Canada, we want them to be prepared for life here and have the support they need to succeed. However, first and foremost, people coming to Canada as students must be here to study, not work. We will continue working to protect the integrity of our student program,” Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, said.
In October 2022, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) had temporarily allowed international students with off-campus work authorization on their study permits to work more than 20 hours per week while attending classes. This change was introduced to help ease financial burdens and provide additional work opportunities during the pandemic.
However, beginning with the upcoming academic semester, international students will be permitted to work up to 24 hours per week while classes are in session. Minister Miller noted that allowing more hours could negatively affect students’ academic performance. He added that “limiting the number of off-campus hours a student can work would help deter those international students who might apply for a study permit with the primary objective of working in Canada.”
While the new 24-hour limit represents an increase from the pre-2022 rule of 20 hours per week, it is a significant reduction from the recent temporary policy that allowed unlimited off-campus work hours. Minister Miller suggested that the new limit should be sufficient, citing last December’s increased cost-of-living requirement for international students, which mandates that a single study permit applicant must have $20,635 saved in addition to the cost of tuition.
Further changes are underway for Canada’s international student program. IRCC has added a new requirement for obtaining a study permit: students must obtain a Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) from the province where their designated learning institution (DLI) is located. This is part of a broader effort to cap the number of study permits IRCC will process in 2024.
The department is also working on implementing the Trusted Institutions Framework for DLIs, which aims to ensure that institutions have a proven record of providing adequate support to international students.
To be eligible to work off-campus during the academic year, international students must meet specific requirements, including holding a valid study permit, studying full-time at a DLI, maintaining satisfactory academic standing, pursuing a program that is at least six months long and leads to a degree, diploma, or certificate, and having a valid Social Insurance Number (SIN). Students on academic breaks can still work unlimited hours, provided they are enrolled to return to full-time studies in the following semester.
These changes reflect the government’s ongoing efforts to maintain the integrity of Canada’s international student program while ensuring students can manage their studies and work commitments effectively.
Recent studies in the US and Canada have highlighted the risks of students working excessive hours. It has been found that students working more than 28 hours per week experience a noticeable decline in academic performance. Additionally, working over 24 hours per week significantly increases the likelihood of students dropping out of their programs.
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