More Int’l Students Seeking Asylum in Canada, Immigration Minister Warns

Canadian Immigration Minister Marc Miller has recently spoken about an increasing number of international students seeking asylum after entering Canada on student visas, describing it as an “alarming trend.”

During an interview on The West Block, a Canadian television program, Miller discussed the misuse of student visas in order to stay in the country, saying it often happens because of the opportunity to benefit from lower tuition fees.

Miller said the ministry is further investigating the matter, adding that higher education institutions in the country should improve their monitoring practices to prevent bad actors.

Canada decided to reduce the number of temporary residents from 6.2 to 5 percent over the next three years, including the number of international students, Erudera.com reports.

In January, the government announced a two-year cap to slow the increase in the number of international students. Miller initially suggested that numbers reduce by 35 percent in 2024 compared to last year.

The target this year was set at 485,000 study permits. However, considering that about 20 percent of these students submit applications for extensions to stay longer in the country, the government adjusted the 2024 target to 364,000 permits, down from nearly 560,000 permits issued in 2023. This is a 35 percent decrease within these years.

“For 2024, the cap is expected to result in approximately 364,000 approved study permits, a decrease of 35 percent from 2023,” Miller said.

After lowering the cap for 2024, the Canadian authorities have most recently announced a further decrease in new international students, this time including master’s and PhD students.

In 2025, there will be a 10 percent drop in new international study permits from the 2024 target of 485,000, which means 437,000 study permits will be issued next year.

Canada has been facing a housing shortage for which international students and migrants have often been blamed. According to data from Immigration, Citizenship and Refugees Canada (IRCC), there were over one million international students with active study permits in Canada last year, a 29 percent increase from 2022.

China and India accounted for over half of all international students in Canada while the student population from the Philippines and Nigeria also grew over the past year.

Minister Miller previously said that study visas do not guarantee a future residency, pointing out that international students should see Canada as a place to educate themselves and take those skills back home.

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