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The Honorable Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, has announced changes to the International Students Study Permit program. His statement below also indicates international students’ vital socio-economic contribution to Canada.
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“International students provide significant cultural, social and economic benefits to their communities but have faced challenges navigating life in Canada. We are revising the cost-of-living threshold so international students understand the true cost of living here. This measure is key to their success in Canada. We are also exploring options to ensure that students find adequate housing. These long-overdue changes will protect international students from financially vulnerable situations and exploitation.”
The exemption on the 20-hour-per-week (full-time off-campus jobs) limit for current international students and those who applied until Dec. 7th, 2023, with full-time classes will be extended to April 30, 2024. The government is also looking at options for this policy in the future expansion to 30 hours per week while class is in session.
The policy changes done during COVID-19 have allowed international students to count time spent studying online towards the length of a future post-graduation work permit, as long as it constitutes less than 50% of the program of study. This will continue to be in place for students who begin a study program before September 1, 2024.
The public policy was introduced on three occasions to provide an additional 18-month work permit to post-graduation work permit holders as their initial work permit was expiring. These changes addressed the labour market disruptions during the pandemic and post-pandemic recovery. This temporary policy for foreign nationals with a post-graduation work permit expiring on December 31, 2023, remains eligible to apply. This program will not be extended any further, as per the notification.
To put into perspective, the contribution that International Students bring to the Canadian economy can be gauged by the following data:
“International education accounts for more than $22 billion in economic activity annually, more significant than Canada’s exports of auto parts, lumber or aircraft, and supports more than 200,000 jobs in Canada”.
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