Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.
OTTAWA – The Liberal government will cut the number of international student visas it processes by another 10 per cent, and a group representing Ontario colleges is warning it will lead to program cuts.
The government says the new target for 2025 and 2026 will be 437,000 licences. In 2024 the target was 485,000 licences.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller said on Wednesday that the government expects the changes to “produce around 300,000 fewer study permits” over the next three years.
Ontario Colleges warned of chaos “for international students who were excited to come here for a world-class education, and for the domestic students whose programs are now in jeopardy.”
Ottawa is also placing new restrictions on work permits for spouses of foreign workers and students in master’s degree programs. To be eligible, applicants’ spouses must be in a master’s program of at least 16 months’ duration, or foreign workers in managerial or professional occupations or working in sectors experiencing labor shortages.
Miller said the growth in international students and the corresponding postgraduate work and spousal permits are areas “where we owe it to Canadians, and in the context of an economy where the labor market in some areas is constricting, we need for us to adjust accordingly.”
In January, the Liberal government announced a temporary cap to reduce the number of new student visas by more than a third this year.
Those changes came at a time when the international student program was under significant scrutiny. Experts warned that strong population growth is putting pressure on an already stressed housing market.
Miller said the measures the government has taken so far are working, noting “more than anecdotal evidence that there has been an impact in some rental markets where students are more common.”
He acknowledged that it had been a turbulent year for universities and colleges, which want predictability, but said he expected them to adapt to the new rules.
“I’ve told post-secondary institutions many times that they need to adjust their recruitment practices,” he said. “I have told them that the cost of acquiring international students is bound to increase.”
Universities Canada president Gabriel Miller said Wednesday’s announcement had “ripped off the Band-Aid” after months of uncertainty. He said the government has been making announcements in “dribs and drabs” about changes to details such as students’ right to work in Canada.
“The government has given us clarity about what its objectives are and what the rules will be that govern the system. And that is going to help dispel the cloud of uncertainty that has been hanging over the recruitment of international students and has done so much damage to our international brand.”
He also said the government’s decision to include previously exempt graduate students in the cap “sends a message that Canada is uncertain about its commitment to aggressively recruiting those most talented students to come work and study here. “
The president of Ontario Colleges, Marketa Evans, called the announcement “very concerning” and said in a statement that it shows a bias towards universities.
Evans said the federal government’s restrictions mean the state’s colleges will lose at least $1.7 billion in revenue over the next two years.
“Ontario’s public college system cannot be cut off at the knees like this,” Evans said.
“With international students declining, and the resulting budget crunch, colleges will have to reduce the programs offered or cancel them altogether, meaning that domestic students will not have the opportunity to study in programs needed to address critical labor shortages.”
Rahul Jayan, an international student from India, said the federal government’s move would make it harder for others like him to seek education in Canada.
“It will be very difficult (for those) coming,” the 22-year-old said on a college campus in Toronto on Wednesday. “There are more people dreaming of coming to Canada.”
Jayan said he knew people in India who would be directly affected by the news.
“It will be difficult,” he said.
— With files from Nojoud Al Mallees in Ottawa and Rianna Lim in Toronto
(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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