Foreign students are requesting study permits at an astonishing rate, according to Immigration, IRCC. As global pandemic limitations are loosened and individuals are back to Canada to start or finish their post-secondary education, the statistics are reportedly rising.
Discussions at a recent online conference hosted by the Canadian Bureau for International Education focused on the rise in applications for study permits. In order to explain the number of proposals they have received as students leave the online program and return to Canadian classrooms, representatives from IRCC were present.
Although COVID had a significant impact on IRCC’s immigration program, Cynthia Ralickas, director of IRCC, noted that things had improved significantly. Over 500,000 study permits were obtained in 2021, and by the end of that calendar year, nearly 600,000 study permits were registered in Canada, exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
India, Nigeria, Columbia, and the Philippines submitted the most applications throughout the first four months of 2022. Two of the most prominent countries from which immigrants come to Canada are the Philippines and India.
International students frequently choose Canada as their preferred study destination. According to CBIE’s most current report on international students, foreign students frequently choose Canada because of its reputation for stability and safety.
Study permit processing backlog
A total of 175,000 applications for study permits were submitted in the first quarter of 2022 alone, according to the IRCC, which also reported a 56% rise in applications for study permits over 2020. As a result, applications for study permits are now being processed slowly. Nevertheless, according to ICEF Monitor’s most recent IRCC data report, overseas students enrolled in at least a six-month program in 2021 possessed a total of 621,565 study permits, which remain well below pre-pandemic norms.
Nearly 200,000 people were still awaiting the processing of their initial study visa application as of July 17. The IRCC processing time calculator estimates that applications from outside of Canada will take an average of 12 weeks to process if they do not use the Student Direct Stream.
Legislative Suggestions
35 important recommendations are included in a report by the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration that has been presented to the House of Commons in Ottawa in an effort to reduce processing times and enhance immigration policy.
Intensify the Student Direct Stream
The Student Direct Stream, which could also serve as an accelerated application procedure for applicants who already are legal permanent residents of any of the twenty qualifying countries, should be reviewed and expanded by IRCC, according to one of these proposals. In as few as 20 days, those who qualify for the Student Direct Stream can receive their permit. The report urges the IRCC to broaden the list of nations that qualify and revisit the standards so that they are equitable for everyone. West African nations are specifically mentioned in the study as qualifying countries.
Improved collaboration and increased transparency
The suggestions also demand that the documentation required to prove that an application satisfies the financial requirements be given greater latitude and that IRCC is more open about the processes it uses to choose students. The study also stated that in order to supervise recruiters who go to and seek from overseas and ensure that they’re offering potential students with guidance on how to recognize fraud and scams, IRCC, the provinces, and authorized learning institutions must work more closely together.
Ralickas claims that IRCC considers these suggestions carefully. “The administration does have an obligation to respond when recommendations like that are published in Parliament. It must seriously consider each recommendation and think about how it relates to the work being undertaken and the course we are pursuing inside the department.”
