CIMM – Study Permit Application Caps – February 28, 2024
Key Facts and Figures
On January 22, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) implemented a temporary national cap on most study permit applications.
Provinces and territories have been provided with allocations under the cap. Study permit applications, unless exempted, must now include a provincial or territorial attestation letter from the jurisdiction where the student is intending to study to confirm that the student has been assigned a space within the jurisdiction’s allocation.
The national cap will be in place for two years while IRCC looks to adopt a Recognized Institutions Framework and implement other program reforms that seek to recalibrate the pace of the program’s growth such that it benefits both Canadian communities and international students alike.
Key Messages
In recent years, the number of international students in Canada has significantly increased. At the end of 2023, there were over 1 million study permit holders in Canada, which represents an all-time high.
International students offer Canada significant social, cultural and economic benefits. For those benefits to continue, we must tackle issues that have made some students vulnerable and have challenged the integrity of the program.
Some institutions have significantly increased the number of international students they welcome to drive revenues, and more students have been arriving in Canada without the proper supports they need to succeed thereby making them more vulnerable for exploitation from bad actors.
The rapid and drastic increase in the number of international students arriving in Canada has also put pressure on housing, health care and other services.
To address these issues, IRCC has implemented a suite of measures, including an intake cap on most study permit applications for a period of two years, as announced this January 22.
IRCC has communicated to each province and territory how many study permits have been allocated for their jurisdiction for 2024.
Provinces and territories are expected to establish a process for issuing provincial attestation letters to students by no later than March 31, 2024.
While the cap may impact the finances of certain designated learning institutions, this is a pre-existing challenge in certain jurisdictions. The reality is that international student volume and tuition rates cannot continue to increase exponentially to compensate for underlying funding issues.
The study permit intake cap and other recent measures are necessary to protect the integrity of the International Student Program and maintain Canada’s reputation as a global leader in providing high quality education. In that sense, this measure reinforces the viability and currency of this important sector in Canada’s economy.
Supplementary Information
From December 31, 2022 to December 31, 2023, the number of international students in Canada grew by over 200,000, the largest one-year increase in the program’s history.
In 2023, IRCC received over 914,000 new study permits applications, which represents a 28% increase compared to 2022 (i.e. 713,000 applications).
Over the past five years, the number of study permit applications received by IRCC per year has more than doubled. In 2019, IRCC received 425,000 new study permit applications compared to 914,000 in 2023, which represents an increase of 115%.
Some international students have been exempted from the cap, including primary and secondary school students, master's or doctoral degree students, and in-Canada family members of study permit or work permit holders.
