Study Visas Not a Path to Residency, Canadian Immigration Minister Says

International students should move to Canada to study and then use the skills they have gained to benefit their home countries, Immigration Minister Marc Miller said in a recent phone interview.

He stressed that despite Canada’s efforts to attract global talent through universities and colleges for years, study visas should not mean individuals will have a guaranteed future residency or citizenship.

These comments come amid ongoing discussions on how to align the job market needs with international students. The minister also spoke about the importance of international students working in jobs related to their study programs, Erudera.com reports.

“That should never be the promise. People should be coming here to educate themselves and perhaps go home and bring those skills back to their country,” he told Bloomberg.

Official data indicates that there were 132,000 new post-graduate work permit (PGWP) holders in 2022 when international students contributed about $31 billion to the Canadian economy. The number of PGWP holders increased by 78 percent compared to four years earlier.

The Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE) notes that 70 percent of international students plan to apply for a PGWP, and 57 percent plan to apply for permanent residence in Canada.

Data from Immigration, Citizenship and Refugees Canada (IRCC) show that last year, Canada hosted a record 1,040,985 international students, a 29 percent increase compared to 2022. The figure has surpassed the government’s target of having 950,000 international students in 2023.

The majority of international students in Canada usually hail from India and China. More than 427,000 Indian students were studying in the country in 2023. Indian student enrollment increased by nearly 34 percent between 2022 and 2023.

The table below shows the number of study permits holders in Canada (2022 - 2023):

Canada has seen a notable increase in students from the Philippines and Nigeria, while the number of Nepalese students has nearly tripled within one year.

Ontario, known as Canada’s most populous province, welcomed the largest proportion of students in 2023 - 51 percent of the total, an increase from 49 percent in 2021.

International students are mostly settled in the following provinces:

• Ontario - 526,015 students
• British Columbia - 202,565 students
• Quebec - 117,925 v
• Alberta - 63,425 students
• Manitoba - 28,190 students
• Nova Scotia - 26,610 students
• Saskatchewan - 18,695 students

This year, Canada announced a series of changes in its International Student Program, including a two-year intake cap on study permit applications. Most recently, British Columbia said it will cap the number of international students at 30 percent of the total enrollment.

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