Explained: Changes in Canada’s international work permit system to reduce immigration
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced changes to the country’s international work permit system, aiming to reduce the number of immigrant workers in Canada.
In posts on X on Thursday (September 19), Trudeau said Canada will grant 35% fewer international student permits this year, with the number going down by another 10% next year.
Before applying for the PGWP, students must now pass a language proficiency test called the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB). The required score is 7 for university undergraduates and 5 for college undergraduates for all applications submitted from November 1 onwards. Earlier, the CLB was only needed to apply for Permanent Residency (PR).
Graduates from programmes at public colleges will still be eligible for a PGWP if they graduate from a field of study connected to occupations witnessing long-term labour shortages in the country (as listed by the government).
Students enrolling in master's and doctoral programs need to get a provincial attestation letter (PAL). Earlier, this condition was only for undergraduate students.
Canada issued approximately 4,85,000 student permits in 2024, compared to over 5,00,000 in 2023. The number is expected to further decrease to 4,37,000 in 2025.
This is in line with recent policy changes where the government has cited pressure on cities’ infrastructure, higher rents and a “massive” increase in immigration for imposing restrictions.
It has also been found that some students used the system to apply for asylum after arriving in Canada. Trudeau said in his post, “Immigration is an advantage for our economy — but when bad actors abuse the system and take advantage of students, we crack down.”
The visa-issuance process has been adjusted to detect fraudulent or rejected asylum claims. The proposed reduction in temporary residents, from 6.5 per cent of Canada's population to 5 per cent, will be reflected in the 2025-2027 immigration levels plan to be released by November 1.
The Postgraduate Work Permits (PGWPs) for international graduates, postgraduates, master's and doctoral programme students in Canada are valid for three years.
The Canadian government aims to reduce the number of PGWPs by 1.75 lakh through stricter rules in the next three years. Spouse work permits will be reduced by 50,000, and given only if one’s partner is pursuing a master’s programme for a minimum of 16 months.
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