CIMM - International Students - December 4, 2025

Key Messages

• International students enhance Canada’s social, cultural, and economic fabric, but unsustainable growth in the number of students arriving in Canada required action.
• The government has a mandate to return immigration to sustainable levels and reduce Canada's temporary population to less than 5%, to ease pressure on housing, infrastructure, and public services.
• The cap is working. Compared to the same period last year, Canada welcomed about 150,220 fewer international students.
• Going forward, targets will continue to be set with the objective of attracting the best and brightest international students to study at Canada’s world-class learning institutions in volumes aligned with community capacity and the economic needs of the country.

Key facts and figures

• For 2025, the government intends to issue up to 437,000 study permits (a 10% reduction from the 2024 target of 485,000). As of September 30, 2025, roughly 295,000 permits have been issued, including new arrivals and permit extensions.
  • By comparison, 701,714 study permits were confirmed in 2023. Targets for temporary residents, including international students, were included for the first time in the 2025‒2027 Immigration Levels Plan.
• Over the past nine months, the total number of international students in Canada decreased by 22%. As of September 30, 2025, there were roughly 725,000 study permit holders in Canada, compared to 929,000 at the end of 2024. And compared to the end of 2023, there are 27% fewer study permit holders.
• As of September 30 , 2025, demand for new study permits has decreased by 44% compared to the same period (January to September) in 2024.
• There has been a 20% decrease in the number of new Post-graduation work permit (PGWP) holders from 153,000 between January and September 2024, to 122,000 between January and September 2025.

Approval and Refusal rates

Refusal Rates

• Recent figures show that the refusal rate for new study permit applications has increased to 59% between January and September 2025, compared to 49% in the same period in 2024.
• The total percentage of refusals for misrepresentation reasons has increased since 2023:
  • January to September 2025: 1.9%
  • January to September 2024: 1.7%
  • January to September 2023: 1.4%
• A combination of recent program reforms and an enhanced focus on program integrity is increasing refusal rates. However, rates are expected to stabilize over time as prospective students and institutions adapt to the updated requirements, and non-genuine students are disincentivized from accessing the International Students Program (ISP).

Approval rates

• Approval rates are lower than last year (41% for new study permits and 93% for extensions, compared to 51% and 94% for the same period in 2024 (January‒September). However, these are expected to stabilize over time as applicants adjust to the new requirements and institutions adapt their recruitment strategies.

If pressed on IRCC’s processing timelines online:

• Current processing times posted on our website are backwards-looking and do not reflect actual processing times. The Department is exploring changes to the way processing times are posted online to better reflect what clients can expect at the time of application. This new approach is in line with our client service strategy to provide meaningful information for applicants to make informed decisions.

If pressed on processing timelines for study permit extensions:

• The intake of extensions is currently higher than expected, which affects processing times. However, the Department is currently expediting extension applications for transfer students moving between learning institutions.

If pressed on Department’s commitment to improving outcomes for study permit applicants from countries with lower approval rates:

• The Department continues to analyze data, fine-tune criteria and design tools to improve the decision-making process to ensure program integrity while improving processing efficiency. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is also committed to ensuring that each application is treated fairly and without discrimination. The Department:
  • Maintains a training curriculum to include further unconscious bias, cultural and anti-racism, diversity, equity and inclusion training;
  • Maintains quality assurance measures to achieve greater consistency in decision making on these applications;
  • Continues to work with partners to attract eligible, admissible applicants from a variety of source countries.

Program changes and updated requirements

• In January 2024, the government established an intake cap on most study permit applications to stabilize the international student population in Canada.
• For the first time in 2025, the Immigration Levels Plan included temporary resident admission targets.
• The 2025–2027 Levels Plan also reduced overall immigration targets to support the economy, while easing pressure on services and housing.
• In 2025, based on current trends of new arrivals of international students, IRCC expects fewer student arrivals than the 305,900 target in the Levels Plan. This target was reduced to 155,000 in 2026, per the 2026‒2028 Levels Plan.

Post-graduation work permit program

• On November 1, 2024, IRCC updated the PGWP program to better align with the government’s economic objectives and support better labour market outcomes for students.
• By introducing minimum language requirements, targeting in-demand fields of study, and focusing on degree programs, the PGWP is better positioned to create a pipeline of student graduates whose skills align with Canada’s long-term labour needs.

Updated financial requirements

• The Government of Canada is updating the financial requirements against the cost of living on a yearly basis to ensure that international students can pay for travel and tuition costs and live in Canada.
• As of September 2025, students are required to demonstrate that meet a financial threshold of $22,895 to cover their cost of living.
• The higher financial requirements help prevent student vulnerability and exploitation by ensuring that international students have the funds needed to take care of themselves while studying in Canada.

International Student Fraud

• IRCC has taken actions over the last several years to strengthen the integrity of the ISP and deploy a multi-layered approach to prevent, detect, and address fraud in study permit applications.
• When it comes to fraud, IRCC is primarily focused on two issues: (1) identifying organizers of coordinated fraud and (2) individuals who knowingly commit fraud or attempt to deceive IRCC.
• IRCC collaborates closely with domestic and international enforcement bodies, as well as provincial and territorial partners, to identify cases of concern and program integrity issues and to promote effective cross-jurisdictional information sharing. This integrated approach reinforces Canada’s overall fraud response capabilities.

Program Integrity Improvements

Regulatory amendments

• In addition to addressing unsustainable growth, the government has also introduced a number of integrity measures in November 2024, to strengthen the integrity of the International Student Program and to better protect students:
  • Setting a 24 hours per week limit international student can work off campus each week;
  • Requiring international students to attend the Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs)named on their permit. Students wishing to change learning institutions need to apply for and be approved for a new study permit;
  • Introducing consequences for DLIs that do not comply with reporting requirements and Letter of Acceptance verification procedures.

If pressed:

• Since December 2023, IRCC verifies Letters of Acceptance (LOA) directly with Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs) before issuing a study permit. This helps ensure only genuine students are approved.
  • In 2024, over 650,000 LOAs were verified. About 14,000 were flagged as “no-match”, i.e., not matching school records, prompting further review by officers.
    • All “no match” cases are further reviewed by an officer before a decision is made on the application.
    • In 2024, about 25% of “no match” cases were resolved as the applicant was able to produce a verifiable LOA through the procedural fairness process. In many cases, the initial “no match” was the result of applicant or DLI error.
    • The remainder of “no match” cases in 2024 were either withdrawn or refused, thereby preventing these applicants from entering Canada as students.
• Fewer LOA verifications in 2025 are producing “no-match” results than last year (1.3% compared to 2.2%).
• This suggests the system is not only catching fraud but may also be deterring it.

International Student Compliance Regime (ISCR)

• The ISCR was launched in 2014 to help identify students who may not be genuinely studying and to track trends in student compliance.
• DLIs report twice a year on whether international students are actively enrolled and studying.
• If a student is flagged as non-compliant, it can affect future immigration applications and may lead to enforcement action.
• In spring 2025, 655 out of 709 DLIs (93%) answered IRCC’s request to report on the enrolment status of 605 810 international students:
  • 93% of schools responded to IRCC’s request for data.
  • 91% of students were reported as likely compliant.
  • Around 47,000 (8%) were flagged as potentially non-compliant.
  • 1% had no data reported.
• IRCC is working with the Province of Quebec to onboard the DLIs in Quebec to the ISCR and include enrolment status of international students in Quebec.

If pressed on possible non-compliance of the 47,000:

• The number of 47,000 potentially non-compliant students is prepared based on initial compliance reporting from the respective DLIs and does not constitute confirmed non-compliance. A verification must be completed to determine non-compliance.
  • The enrolment statuses should only be considered an indication of potential compliance or non-compliance.
  • IRCC must still verify the study permit holders’ statuses, and procedural fairness may be undertaken to inform a final decision. Depending on the outcomes, the student may be subject to enforcement action.
• Once reporting of enrolment status is received, IRCC analyzes the set of students who are reported as potentially being non-compliant.
  • Procedural fairness (PF) is offered to all students who are suspected of being potentially non-compliant. Upon completion of the PF process, a student confirmed to be non-compliant is flagged in IRCC’s systems. This may inform future applications the student submits or notify border officers if the student attempts to re-enter Canada.
  • The Canada Border Services Agency may place removal orders on individuals who are found to no longer be admissible to Canada.
• IRCC is working with the Province of Quebec to onboard the DLIs in Quebec to the International Student Compliance Regime and include enrolment status of international students in Quebec.

DLI Compliance Regime

• DLIs must actively report to IRCC, including verifying LOAs and confirming students are studying.
• The new regulations impose consequences, including suspension of processing of associated study permit applications for certain DLIs, if those DLIs fail to comply with the reporting requirement.
• IRCC conducts verification activities when a DLI is non-responsive, or suspected of providing inaccurate information, improperly issuing LOAs, or failing to comply with departmental requests for student information.
• The process is fair and evidence-based. DLIs can respond before any decision is made. Outcomes range from guidance to suspension of DLI status for up to a year.
• This enhanced process will launch this fall, with findings available in spring 2026.

Francophone Minority Communities Student Pilot

• On August 26, 2024, IRCC launched the Francophone Minority Communities Student Pilot (FMCSP), in partnership with French-language and bilingual post-secondary DLIs outside Quebec.
• The two-year pilot aims to make access to the program fairer for French-speaking international students from regions where the study permit approval rate is generally lower, namely Africa, the Middle East, and the Americas.
• FMCSP participants are exempt from the requirement to have a provincial or territorial attestation letter and are not included in the overall cap. Participants are also eligible for a permanent resident pathway upon graduation.

Data—Study Permit Holders by Distribution

Primary and Secondary are captured as “not stated” in the administrative data sets. Data represents a cumulative count. Please note that all values are rounded to the closest multiple of 5, or numbering fewer than 5 are masked. This is done to prevent individuals from being identified when IRCC data is compiled and compared to other publicly available statistics. As a result of rounding, data may not sum to the totals indicated. Data are preliminary and subject to change. Source: IRCC, RDB Temporary Residents September 30, 2025 Data