Canada has a fast-track immigration stream for some international students that help them to secure visas more rapidly. This stream is known as Student Direct Stream and it issues study permit visas at a faster rate.
Recently, IRCC has announced to include seven more countries that are eligible for fast-track visa processing through the SDS. These are:
- Costa Rica
- Peru
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Brazil
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Colombia
- Trinidad and Tobago
The processing for study permit visas varies according to each country. Sometimes, it takes several months to process a single study permit application. Therefore, Canada launched SDS in 2018 through which study visa applications can be processed within 20 calendar days only. Students from India, Pakistan, China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Senegal, and Morocco are eligible for SDS. Now, after the recent announcement by IRCC, international students from a total of 14 countries are included in the fast-track immigration process.
Eligibility requirements for International Students
- Language test requirement: Applicants require at least 6 points in IELTS in all four language abilities. French-speaking candidates need a Canadian Language Benchmark of 7.
- Latest educational transcript
- Letter of Acceptance from a DLI (Designated Learning Institution)
- Proof of investment certificate of a minimum of $10,000 CAD
- Full tuition fee payment for the first year
- Proof of upfront medical examination
In 2019, IRCC welcomed 642,000 international students to study in Canada. India, Morocco, Brazil, China, Colombia, and Vietnam were the top source countries that year. Also, students from these countries are eligible for Student Direct Stream.
Among the newest additions to Canada’s SDS, Peru, Brazil, and Colombia are likely to have a high number of international student admission in Canada. Over the last two decades, Canada is seeing an increasing number of Brazilian, Columbian, and Peru students enrolment.
And in 2019, IRCC issued 16,000 study permits to the residents of newly included SDS countries. Out of these permits, 10,000 went to residents of Brazil and 4,400 to those of Colombia. This shows that the admission intake of international students from these countries is only going to increase in the future. Therefore, Canada took the right step by including the seven countries in the SDS eligibility.
