Auditor General reports
International Student Program reforms controlled growth, fell short on improving integrity
International Student Program Reforms
Report metadata
- Tabling date:
- Audited entities:
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
- Topics:
- Education and training
- Report type
- Auditor General reports
At a glance
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada reduced the number of new study permits issued to control the growth of the International Student Program. The reduction in new study permits disproportionately affected smaller provinces. The department also introduced a tool to strengthen application processing but did not effectively respond to other weaknesses in integrity controls.
After applications for study permits increased by 121% between 2019 and 2023, the federal government announced a limit on study permit applications in January 2024. While the department’s implementation of these limits successfully reduced the number of new study permits issued, the combined effect of fewer applications and lower‑than‑projected approval rates led to a sharper decline than forecasted. In 2024, the department approved fewer than half the forecasted number of new study permits. This continued into 2025, with just over 50,000 of the 255,360 forecasted number of new study permits approved by September. The department did not know why approval rates were lower than projected.
As part of the reforms, the department committed to strengthening the program’s integrity controls. The department successfully implemented a tool to verify the authenticity of school acceptance letters, an important step in processing study permit applications. However, we found weaknesses in how the department responded to suspected cases of study permit non‑compliance and immigration fraud. Addressing these issues promptly is important to make sure only genuine students are arriving in or remaining in Canada.
Key facts and findings
- Although reforms projected decreases in approved new study permits of 10% or less in Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—and increases in Newfoundland and Labrador and Saskatchewan—all experienced a 59% or greater decrease in approvals in 2024 compared with 2023.
- The department’s new letter‑of‑acceptance verification system successfully verified 97% of over 841,000 letters between December 2023 and September 2025. The remaining 3% were processed manually.
- Between 2023 and 2024, the department identified over 153,000 students as potentially non‑compliant with study permit conditions but had funding to investigate only 2,000 cases each year.
- In 2023 and 2024, the department launched 4,057 investigations into students potentially not complying with study permit conditions. Approximately 40% of cases (over 1,600 students) were not closed because students did not respond to requests for more information.
- In 3 investigations, the department identified 800 study permits issued between 2018 and 2023 for which applicants had either used fraudulent documentation or misrepresented information on their applications to gain entry into Canada. Most of these individuals later applied for other immigration permits once in Canada.
Why we did this audit
- Reducing the number of post‑secondary study permits issued by the department was a key objective of the reforms to the International Student Program.
- Immigration and Refugee Protection Act mandates Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada not only to manage immigration, but also to ensure its benefits are shared across Canada.
- Effective and timely action to identify and respond to potential immigration fraud reduces the likelihood of fraudulent applications being approved and non‑genuine students arriving in Canada.
Highlights of our recommendations
- In collaboration with provinces, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada should tailor its analysis for determining annual study permit allocations for each province.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada should determine how and when it will use mechanisms available to respond to cases in which the use of fraudulent documentation or misrepresentation is found by the department’s risk processes after permits are approved.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada should strengthen its controls for study permit extensions by reviewing and adjusting its risk assessment for applicants originally approved under the Student Direct Stream.
Exhibit Highlights
Exhibit 1—International post‑secondary study permit application process
Text version
This flow chart shows the international post‑secondary study permit application process in 4 parts.
The first part concerns the application requirements, which are as follows:
• Letter of acceptance—From a designated learning institution in Canada
• Proof of financial support—To cover tuition fees, living expenses, and return transportation
• Provincial attestation letter—Confirmation that the student has been allocated one of the study permit application spots by the province
• Valid travel and identity documents—Can include biometrics
The second part concerns the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada assessment, which consists of the following:
• Verify documents—Letter of acceptance, banking information, and identity documents
• Assess immigration admissibility—Does the student meet the immigration criteria to enter Canada?
• Assess program eligibility—Does the student meet program criteria? For example, do they meet the financial requirement and intend to leave Canada after their studies?
The third part concerns the study permit conditions, which are as follows:
• Actively pursue studies
• Stay enrolled—At a designated learning institution on permit
• Abide by work hour limits—For those with work permits
• Respect the permit expiry date—By applying for an extension or leaving before the permit expires
The fourth part concerns after graduation:
• Post‑graduate work permit—Eligible former students can also apply to work in Canada for up to 3 years
• Permanent residency—Eligible former students can also apply to stay in Canada permanently
Source: Based on information from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Exhibit 8—Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s new verification system indicated the majority of letters of acceptance were genuine
Text version
This flow chart shows the results of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s new verification system applied to the 841,403 applications that were received since December 2023. The system indicated that the majority of the letters of acceptance were genuine.
The system verified 841,403 applications received since December 2023. The results are as follows:
• 791,793, or 94.1%, of the letters of acceptance were verified as genuine
• 28,813, or 3.4%, of the letters of acceptance were processed manually (no designated learning institution response or technical issues)
• 12,131, or 1.4%, of the letters of acceptance were flagged for potential fraud
• 8,666, or 1.0%, of the letters of acceptance were cancelled by a designated learning institution
Notes:
• We did not examine the results of manually processed acceptance letters because these results existed only in each individual’s file.
• The percentages do not add up to 100% due to rounding.
Source: Based on data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Exhibit 10—Most of the 800 permit holders who either used fraudulent documentation or misrepresented information on their applications applied for other permits once in Canada
Text version
This donut chart shows the breakdown of 800 permit holders who either used fraudulent documentation or misrepresented information on their applications. It shows that 92% of the 800 permits holders had applied for other types of immigration permits.
The breakdown is as follows:
• 501 applied for a study permit extension or temporary permit to work or stay as a visitor (351 were approved)
• 124 applied for permanent residence (105 were approved)
• 110 submitted an asylum claim to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
• 63 had an unknown location and no immigration status
• 2 other individuals consisted of 1 who was deceased and 1 who had left Canada
Source: Based on information from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Exhibit 11—Most students flagged for potential non‑compliance were not being investigated
Text version
This flow chart shows the results of an investigation of 153,324 potentially non‑compliant students reported in 2023 and 2024. It shows that most of the students who were flagged for potential non‑compliance were not being investigated.
Out of the 153,324 potentially non‑compliant students, 4,057 investigations were launched.
Out of these 4,057 investigations, 3,105 were completed, 915 were cancelled, and 37 were still in progress. Note: Investigations are often cancelled when a study permit holder applies for another immigration permit since the processing officer will consider asking for more information on the non‑compliance as part of processing the new application.
Out of the 3,105 investigations that were completed, 1,401 students confirmed to be studying, 1,654 students did not respond to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, and 50 students were confirmed to be non‑compliant.
Source: Based on information from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada