Maple News reports that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has introduced sweeping reforms to its international student program, including a two-year cap on new study permit approvals for 2024. Announced on January 22, the changes aim to stabilize international student intake, setting the approval ceiling at 360,000 permits for the year—representing a 35% reduction from 2023.
One of the key measures includes the introduction of a new provincial attestation letter requirement, which international students must now submit along with their study permit application. While the policy took immediate effect on January 22, provinces and territories have until March 31, 2024, to finalize their own processes for issuing these attestation letters. Until these frameworks are in place, many students may face delays in submitting their study permit applications.
Students already holding a letter of acceptance but who have not submitted their study permit applications before January 22 will still be impacted by the new rules. This means having an acceptance letter from a Designated Learning Institution (DLI) is no longer sufficient for a permit guarantee without complying with the updated requirements.
Uncertainty remains around the exact timeline for when new applications can be fully processed. If provinces can implement the attestation letter system ahead of the March 31 deadline, students may be able to apply sooner. Otherwise, the window for submitting permits is effectively stalled until those regional processes are confirmed.
There are, however, critical exemptions. Study permit applications from minor children entering primary or secondary school (kindergarten to grade 12), students enrolling in master’s or PhD programs, and those applying to extend or renew their existing study permits are not subject to the new cap or attestation letter requirement.
For international students planning to switch institutions within Canada later in 2024, IRCC has not yet clarified how this will be managed under the new policy. Further guidance is expected later this year.
Importantly, IRCC emphasized that these measures are temporary and will be in place for two years while the government reevaluates the structure of its student immigration system. A reassessment of the cap will be conducted at the end of 2024, with potential changes for 2025.
These regulatory updates reflect Canada’s evolving approach to balancing its high global demand as a study destination with managing infrastructure and housing concerns across several provinces.
Maple News will continue to monitor and report on updates from IRCC as more information becomes available.