Canada: Significant Temporary Cap Introduced for International Students and New Guidelines for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program

April 1, 2024

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Country / Territory

At a Glance

  • The Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has announced a temporary two-year cap on the issuance of certain new international student permits.
  • To implement the cap, every study permit application submitted to IRCC from January 22, 2024 will require an attestation letter issued by a province or territory.
  • The cap will cut the number of new, approved study permits in 2024 to 360,000 – a 35% decrease from 2023.
  • The government will be allocating the cap among provinces and territories based on their population.
  • Concurrently, the government has also announced new guidelines under the Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) Program and restricted the work permit eligibility for spouses of study permit holders. The changes include restrictions on work permit eligibility for students of certain types of institutions and spouses of students in certain programs; and extended validity of PGWP for graduates of master’s and doctoral programs in Canada.

The situation

The Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has announced a temporary two-year cap on new international student permits, effective immediately, new guidelines under the Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) Program, and restrictions for spouses of students. 

Change Details Impact
Cap on new international student permits
  • Cap numbers. According to the Minister, Canada will cap the number of approved study permits for international students in 2024 at 360,000 – a decrease of 35% from 2023. The 2025 cap will be determined later this year.
  • Allocation of the cap. The government will be allocating the cap among provinces and territories based on their population. Each province will determine how the spots will be split among authorized post-secondary institutions within their jurisdictions.
  • Additional requirements for study permit applications. To implement the cap, every study permit application submitted to IRCC from January 22, 2024 will require an attestation letter issued by that institution’s province or territory. The government has set a deadline of March 2024 for provinces and territories to establish a process for issuing attestation letters to students.
  • Unaffected applications and exemptions. The cap will not apply to current study permit holders seeking to renew their permit. Additionally, students applying to study at the primary or secondary level, or master’s and PhD programs in Canada, will be exempt from the cap.
  • International students may face hurdles to the study permit process and to being able to study in Canada since they may be subject to this restrictive cap.
  • This change also means that learning institutions in Canada may have access to a smaller pool of international students due to the implementation of caps – particularly those in provinces or territories with larger populations. To note, IRCC adjudicated over 1,000,000 study permit applications in 2023 (including extensions).
New guidelines for the PGWP program and restrictions for spouses of students

  • Update April 1, 2024: The government has announced that the PGWP restriction for international students in curriculum licensing arrangements will start earlier than planned on May 15, 2024.

  • PGWP restriction for certain students. Starting September 1, 2024, international students who begin a study program that is part of a “curriculum licensing arrangement” (where students physically attend a private college that is licensed to deliver the curriculum of a public college) will no longer be eligible for a PGWP upon graduation. Currently, this restriction does not exist.

  • Update March 22, 2024: As of March 19, 2024, open work permits are only available to spouses of international students in master’s and doctoral programs and certain professional degree programs (Doctor of Dental Surgery, Medicine, Optometry, or Veterinary Medicine; Bachelor of Law or Juris Doctor; Pharmacy; Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Education, or Engineering).

  • Work permit restriction for spouses of international students. Effective in the weeks ahead (the exact date has not yet been announced), open work permits (which typically allow holders to work anywhere in Canada) will only be available to spouses of international students in master’s and doctoral programs and will no longer be available to spouses of students in other levels of study like undergraduate and college programs, as is the case currently. However, existing spousal work permit holders will be able to apply to renew their work permits, if eligible.
  • UPDATE  February 9, 2024: Extension of PGWP for graduates of master’s programs. Graduates of master’s and other short graduate-level programs (less than two years) will be eligible to apply for a PGWP valid for up to three years, starting on February 15, 2024. Currently, these permits are issued with a validity commensurate with the length of the study program.
    • According to the government, curriculum licensing programs have seen significant growth of international students in recent years but have less oversight than public colleges on students’ work permit eligibility. International students in these programs will need to find other available pathways to remain and work in Canada after graduation as the PGWP option will no longer be available to them.

    • Affected spouses of international students will also need to find other available pathways to work in Canada during their stay.

    • On the other hand, graduates of master’s and other short graduate-level programs will benefit from a longer work permit validity and more time to qualify for and obtain permanent residence.
  • Goal of the cap. According to the government, the number of international students in Canada has tripled in the last 10 years, in part due to some schools increasing the number of international students they are accepting.
  • Canadian international student program background. The cap is the latest in a series of measures aimed at improving student program integrity and ensuring that learning institutions set a higher standard of support for international students. It follows other recently announced policy updates for international students and enhancements to the International Student Program with similar aims.
  • Immigration growth balance. The measure is also in line with Canada’s 2024-2026 Immigration Levels Plan, which aims to balance economic growth (in this case making Canada a leading destination of choice for students around the world) with the pressure that immigration growth presents in areas such as housing, health care services, and infrastructure.

The cap will be reassessed in two years, by which time the government plans to adopt the previously-announced Recognized Institutions Framework for Canadian colleges and universities, under which institutions that meet certain criteria could be accredited and benefit from priority processing of study permits.

IRCC also announced that in 2024, it intends to implement targeted pilot programs to help international students pursue their studies in Canada.

Fragomen will report on relevant details and updates.

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].

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