International Students Can Now Work Off-Campus Over 20 hours
On October 7, 2022, the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, announced a new temporary measure aimed at alleviating Canada’s labour shortages and providing more opportunities for international students.
From November 15, 2022 until December 31, 2023, international students who are in Canada and have off-campus work authorization on their study permit will be allowed to work over 20 hours per week off-campus while class is in session. There is no limit on maximum number of hours that a student can work. However, the Minister emphasized that study permit holders are still expected to balance their study and work commitments.
This temporary measure will also apply to foreign nationals who have already submitted their study permit application as of October 7, 2022. They will be able to benefit from this policy if Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) approves their application.
“Immigration will be crucial to addressing our labour shortage. By allowing international students to work more while they study, we can help ease pressing needs in many sectors across the country, while providing more opportunities for international students to gain valuable Canadian work experience and continue contributing to our short-term recovery and long-term prosperity.”
The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship
Who can benefit from this policy?
International students can benefit from this change if:
- their study permit has already been issued
- their study permit has been approved but they have not arrived in Canada yet
- their submitted a study permit application before October 7, 2022, and are awaiting approval
Important Facts
- There are more than 500,000 international students already in Canada. Also, employers from all sectors were actively looking to fill nearly one million job vacancies in the second quarter of 2022.
- From January 1, 2022, to the end of August 2022, IRCC processed more than 135,000 study permit extension applications. Moreover, the applications had an approval rate of 96%.
- Today’s announcement is part of a series of initiatives that include:
Upcoming Changes and Announcements
This month, IRCC is also launching a pilot project to automate the processing of study permit extensions. The pilot will involve a small group of applicants who could see their extended study permit processed much faster. If the pilot has successful results, IRCC will expand it to more applications. It is important to mention that in recent years, IRCC has been using advanced analytics (AA), artificial intelligence (AI), and automation to modernize Canada’s immigration system and improve client service.
<<Chinook Usage in IRCC Visa Sections Around the World>>
In late October, IRCC will also announce the process for the Parents and Grandparents Program. In addition, the Immigration Levels Plan 2023-2025 will be announced by November 1. Also, Statistics Canada will publish census data on immigration from 2021, the first time in five years.
Help for International Students!
For Post Graduate Work Permits or other international student or graduate options, fill out the following form. Alternatively, please book a consultation session. If you are not an international student or graduate in Canada, fill out our assessment form.
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