International students studying in Canada who have off-campus employment authorization on their study permit are permitted to work more than 20 hours per week off-campus while classes are in session from November 15, 2022 to December 31, 2023.
Foreign nationals who have already applied for a study permit as of today are likewise subject to this temporary regulation. If their application is accepted by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, they will also be allowed to take advantage of this program. This significant change was introduced this morning in Ottawa, the nation’s capital, by Immigration Minister Sean Fraser. According to Fraser, this policy intends to address the labor shortages that are now occurring across Canada.
Canada is struggling with historically high labor shortages and a historically low unemployment rate. This morning, Statistics Canada announced that the country’s unemployment rate decreased to 5.2% in September from 5.4% in August.
Currently, international students who apply to study in a Canadian educational program are entitled to receive permission to work off-campus for up to 20 hours per week while they are enrolled in classes. During predetermined periods, such as the summer and winter holidays, this cap is lifted. This approach enables foreign students to support themselves financially while also attempting to keep them concentrated on finishing their studies rather than being concentrated on finding employment in Canada. However, the Canadian government has temporarily relaxed this restriction in response to the almost one million job openings it is currently facing.
Over 500,000 eligible international students who are already in Canada will be able to work extra hours thanks to this policy, according to Fraser. One of the most popular places for overseas students to study is Canada. Over 620,000 international students attended there in 2021, a number that has tripled in the previous 20 years. In only one year, Canada issued approximately 450,000 new study permits. Due to a number of factors, including the high standard of educational institutions, multiculturalism, the accessibility of the Canadian dollar, and the availability of employment and permanent residency chances, there is still a high demand to study in Canada.
In the news made today, Fraser also noted that, compared to the 367,000 study permit applications processed over the same period in 2021, Canada has already processed more than 452,000 applications between January and August of 2022. So far this year, Canada has handled more study permits than it did in any previous year, breaking its own record. According to statistics by the Canadian Bureau for International Education, the majority of foreign students say they plan to become permanent citizens of Canada after completing their studies (CBIE).
