International Students offer significant benefits to Canadian society and its economy. Understanding the importance of the same, the Immigration Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has brought various measures to support current and prospective International Students.
The Health and safety of everyone have been the top priority amidst the pandemic. Thus, as the Fall semester is approaching, the Immigration Minister announced some additional measures for International Students who’s Canadian learning institution is offering the program online.
The new updates and measures released by Immigration Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) are as follows:
- For students who have submitted their completed application online, IRCC will be prioritizing the processing of their study permits so that it can be processed as soon as possible.
- IRCC will introduce a temporary 2-stage approval process for international students who cannot yet submit a completed study permit application but want to begin their Canadian educational program online. This process is made available for students who wish to start their program in the upcoming fall term and submit their study permit application before September 15, 2020. Once the various services begin to reopen, the applicants will be required to submit their remaining documents and receive an approved study permit before being allowed to travel to Canada.
- IRCC will also allow international students to commence their Canadian post-secondary studies online from their home country and allow for that time to be counted towards the students’ Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) eligibility if they wish to walk down that road in the future. An important thing to be aware of is, to be eligible, students must have submitted a study permit application, and at least 50% of the program must be completed in Canada.
Canada’s approach to creating a balance between safety and ensuring that the immigration sector runs relatively smoothly and does not get impacted, is commendable.
If you would like to apply for a study permit, please contact the expert and licensed Canada immigration consultants at Elaar Immigration. Reserve your consultation spot today.
