CANADA (Commonwealth Union)_ The period from November 15, 2022 to December 31, 2023, is when international students studying in Canada who have off-campus employment authorization on their study permit are allowed to work more than 20 hours per week off-campus.
This temporary rule also applies to foreign nationals who have previously applied for a study permit as of today. They will also be permitted to benefit from this programme if their application is approved by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
Sean Fraser, the immigration minister, unveiled this big reform this morning in Ottawa. Fraser claims that this programme is intended to alleviate the current labour shortages that are occurring across Canada.
Both a historically low unemployment rate and historically severe labour shortages are problems for Canada. This morning, Statistics Canada announced that the country’s unemployment rate decreased to 5.2% in September from 5.4% in August.
International applicants to Canadian educational programmes are currently eligible to be granted authorization to work off-campus for up to 20 hours per week while enrolled in school. This cap is raised during set times, such as the summer and winter vacations. This strategy makes it possible for international students to support themselves financially while also making an effort to keep them focused on finishing their coursework rather than on obtaining employment in Canada. However, in response to the almost one million job opportunities it is currently confronting, the Canadian government has temporarily loosened this ban.
According to Fraser, this regulation will allow over 500,000 eligible international students who are already in Canada to work additional hours.
One of the most sought-after destinations for overseas students to study is Canada. Over 620,000 overseas students were enrolled in 2021, a number that has tripled in the previous 20 years. In only one year, Canada issued roughly 450,000 new study permits. Because to a number of factors, such as the high calibre of educational institutions, multiculturalism, the usefulness of the Canadian dollar and the availability of employment and permanent residency opportunities, there is still a sizable desire to study in Canada.
Fraser also mentioned in the report that Canada has already handled more than 452,000 applications between January and August of 2022, which is significantly more than the 367,000 study permit applications that were submitted during the same period in 2021. Canada has processed more study permits so far this year than any other year.
