January 28th, 2024 at 05:08 am
Canada hosted more than 1 million international students in 2023
According to the Globe and Mail, Canada’s international student population currently surpasses one million. It gathered the necessary information from IRCC and discovered that over 1,028,850 international students were present in Canada in December 2023.
Canada’s international student population exceeds one million.
According to statistics, Ontario has 526,015 international students. In addition, there were 202,625 international students in British Columbia and 117,925 in Quebec. Other provinces have an increasing number of approved learning institutes.
Marc Miller told CTV News that the liberal DLI model in some provinces is causing an increase in the number of overseas students. Furthermore, he urged that provincial governments consult with DLIs to regulate the number of these students.
In 2022, Canada had 807,260 international students. Last year, in October, the immigration minister proposed welcoming more than 900,000 students by the end of 2023. However, the Globe and Mail reported that Canada would reach this statistic by September 2023. In addition, 1,015,744 people have a valid study permit in Canada.
Since the summer of 2023, there have been persistent discussions about limiting the number of study licenses for international students. This has put pressure on the Canadian federal government to reduce the number of incoming immigrants in the country. This is due to a severe lack of affordable housing and the strain on the healthcare system.
According to the IRCC, restricting their entrance will strengthen the integrity of Canada’s international student system. This is critical since a few colleges have expanded their admissions capacity for international students. The institutions intended to grow their earnings without aiding the pupils in need.
Notably, the IRCC claims that the forthcoming capacity would give stability to the increase while also protecting international students from fraudulent immigration agents. These could be fraud consultants providing bogus LOAs. Furthermore, some universities may accept more overseas students than the permitted capacity.
Canada set a limit on the number of international students this year.
In January 2022, Marc Miller said that the IRCC would only award 360,000 study visas in 2024. The cap represents a predictable 35% decrease in the number of overseas students. However, this does not apply to students pursuing postgraduate, master’s, or doctoral degrees.
The provinces will be allocated permits based on their populations. Canadian provinces with large populations will receive a greater number of study permits. As a result, it is a transitory effort that will remain in place for the next two years.
The proclamation coincided with significant changes to Canada’s overseas student program. Once the candidates have received a Letter of Acceptance, they must get an attestation letter from the province or territory authority indicating a DLI location.
This is a new initiative in the application procedure for study permits. As a result, the provincial or territorial governments have set a deadline of March 31 this year. This will result in the establishment of a mechanism for issuing letters. No study permits will be provided until the stated date.
The PGWP eligibility criteria will undergo certain adjustments.
In addition, the IRCC has modified some of the eligibility standards for overseas students. These students intend to stay in the country on a PGWP after completing their academic degree.
Students who enroll in programs at private institutions under a curriculum licensing arrangement with a public college will no longer be eligible for a PGWP.
International students, on the other hand, will be eligible to apply for PGWP after completing a graduate-level program lasting less than 8 months. This is the minimal PGWP duration for a qualified program in Canada.
Finally, IRCC declared that undergraduate students’ wives would no longer be eligible for a Spousal Open Work Permit. The department has yet to provide additional details regarding this measure.
Canada intends to reduce the number of incoming international students
Canada is witnessing record-breaking population expansion. On October 1, 2023, the number of Canadian residents was expected to be 40.5 million, with an annual growth rate of 3.2%, the highest since the 1950s. Non-permanent residents, such as foreign workers and international students, are driving the expansion. For example:
- International students now make up 2.5% of all residents in the country, more than doubling their percentage from just five years ago. In Ontario, overseas students account for an even larger proportion: 3.5% of the province’s population.
- Between 2021/22 and 2022/23, the number of non-permanent residents (students and temporary foreign workers) surged by 256%, despite a 6% drop in net migration.
The influx of new international students is exacerbating the shortage of affordable housing. Canada’s healthcare system is also struggling to deliver enough care to patients. A rising number of economists believe the government’s immigration targets are too high, and a Nanos Research public opinion poll done in September 2023 revealed that 55% of Canadians would prefer to see their government accept fewer international students.
Research shows that up to one in every five study visa holders in Canada are not actually studying at the institutions to which they have been accepted, bolstering the need for a more carefully managed approach to international student enrollment growth. “An analysis by Statistics Canada in November found that around 19% of international students with study permits did not have a record of studying at college or university here,” according to The Globe and Mail. “Most of the colleges on IRCC’s top ten list of schools with the highest potential non-compliance rates are privately run and in Ontario, catering heavily to students from India.”
Comparison to Other Destinations
Canada has experienced faster growth in its foreign student population (+30% in 2022 and +27% in 2023). For example:
- US (2022): 1,362,160 on F-1 or M-1 visas, up 10.1% year on year.
- UK (2021/22): 679,970 in higher education, a 12.4% year-on-year growth.
- Australia (2022): 619,370, up 8% year on year.
It would be fascinating to observe if more stringent immigration regulations implemented this year in the UK and Australia limit the increase of overseas enrolments in 2024. Real-time data shows that the flow of applications in the UK is already softening.
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