Canada has announced new cuts to the number of study permits for foreign students and stricter criteria for work permits as part of efforts to limit the number of temporary residents. This decision was made public on Wednesday amid growing discussions about the issue.
Under the new rules, Canada will cap the number of international study permits at 437,000 for 2025. In comparison, the country issued 509,390 permits in 2023 and 175,920 permits in the first seven months of 2024. The changes will also limit work permits for spouses of certain students and temporary foreign workers.
This announcement comes after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government faced a defeat in a recent by-election and is currently trailing in opinion polls. With a federal election set for no later than October 2025, this move is seen as a way to address concerns about the increasing number of international students and foreign workers.
In response to a rise in refugee claims, the government plans to review its visa processes to ensure that immigration officers have better tools to identify fraudulent applications and reduce the number of non-genuine visitors.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller stated, “The reality is that not everyone who wants to come to Canada will be able to, and not everyone who wants to stay in Canada will be able to.”
The government aims to reduce the percentage of temporary residents to 5% of the population, down from 6.8% in April. Issues linked to temporary residents, such as a lack of affordable housing and rising living costs, have been highlighted, despite inflation slowing to 2% in August.
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