Immigration Minister Marc Miller has announced a two-year cap on international student admissions. The minister hopes the cap will give the federal and provincial governments time to curb a system that he says is taking advantage of high international student tuition while providing, in some cases, poor education.
The number of foreign student visas has tripled in a decade in Canada to more than one million, exacerbating a severe housing shortage in the country.Miller says the government will also bar students that follow a private-public model from accessing postgraduate work permits as of September 1.and in a few weeks, open work permits will only be available for the spouses of students enrolled in masters and doctoral Programmes,as well as professional Programmes such as medicine and law.
The announcement comes after months of pressure on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government to take stronger action against colleges that are believed to be exploiting foreign students, who are charged an average of five times as much as Canadians.The number of international study permit holders reached 1,028,850 at the end of December, according to the Millers office.Miller has already pledged a designated-institution framework that will prioritize visas for post secondary schools that provide higher-quality education and adequate supports, including housing, which would come into effect this fall.
He has also doubled the financial requirements for new study permit applicants. Single applicants now have to show they have $20,635, in addition to their first year of tuition and travel costs.Miller said some provinces will be impacted more than others by the change.More than half of the existing one million students are located in Ontario, and his office has also previously pointed to Nova Scotia and British Columbia as seeing explosive increases.The cap will mean a 35 percent overall reduction in new study visas this year, though some provinces,including Ontario,will see a reduction of 50 percent or more.International education contributes more than $22 billion to the Canadian economy annually and supports more than 200,000 jobs,according to Miller’s office. But the influx of foreign students has aggravated housing shortages, leaving many without proper accommodations.
Canada’s immigration minister,Marc Miller,said the liberal government will introduce a temporary,two year cap on new students permits,which will result in the issue of about 364,000 permits in 2024.
The proposals will also set limits on work permits handed out after graduation to foreign students who attended some institutions.The permits have been seen as an easy path to securing permanent residency.people pursuing master’s or post-doctorate programs will be eligible for a three year work permit.
WHOM WILL THIS IMPACT
International students contribute about c$22 billion (&16.4 billion) annually to the Canadian economy. The move will hurt many educational institutions that had expanded their campuses in the hope of a continued inflow of students.
Ontario,the most populous province,received the biggest share of international students.Some businesses,including restaurants and retail sectors, have warned that a cap on foreign students will create a shortage of temporary workers.
Restaurants across Canada are grappling with labour shortages with nearly 100,000 vacancies, and international students made up 4.6% of 1.1 million workers in the food service industry in 2023,a lobby group told Reuters last week.
Canadian banks had benefited from the influx of new students,as each student is now required to have a Guaranteed Investment Certificates(GIC) of more than c$20,000,a prerequisite for international students to cover living expenses.
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