International Students Can Now Work Unlimited Hours-Know Eligibility

Last Updated On 26 December 2022, 6:39 PM EST (Toronto Time)

From today, November 15, 2022, until December 31, 2023, International students who are in Canada and have off-campus job authorization on their study permit will not be restricted by the 20-hour-per-week work-hour limit.

On October 7, 2022, Immigration Minister, Sean Fraser, announced the temporary lifting of the 20-hour-per-week limits on the number of hours eligible post-secondary international students are allowed to work off-campus while classes are in session. 

If you are an international student planning to take advantage of this new policy, below are all the rules and regulations you need to know. 

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Rules for international students planning to work full time  

As per IRCC, you can work more than 20 hours per week off campus while class is in session if you

• are a study permit holder and are studying at a DLI full-time (or part-time during your final academic session), OR
• have been approved for a study permit but haven’t arrived in Canada yet

In addition, you must meet all these requirements:

• You must ensure IRCC received your application for this study permit (including extensions) on or before October 7, 2022.
• You must have an off-campus work authorization on your study permit.
• Furthermore, you must be either in Canada or coming to Canada before December 31, 2023.

Will International Students Full Time Work Policy Extend?

How will temporarily lifting the work-hour limit benefit international students and Canada’s economy?

This temporary policy change is because employers have unprecedented problems finding and retaining the required workers due to existing labour shortages and as Canada recovers from the pandemic. 

This initiative will increase the availability of workers to sustain Canada’s post-pandemic growth by providing many international students more opportunities to get significant job experience in Canada. 

With over 500,000 international students already in Canada and potentially available to work more hours, this temporary change reflects the crucial role international students may play in alleviating Canada’s labour need while continuing to pursue their education. 

Most international post-secondary students are permitted to work on and off campus, with their work authorization printed directly on their study permit. Previously, nearly half of post-secondary international students in Canada reported earning money while studying.

In the next section, you can learn about other changes IRCC implemented to support international students and recent graduates.

Simplifying the process of Study permit extension 

Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) have also introduced a pilot project to simplify the processing of study permit extensions. The types of applications covered in this pilot have a consistently high approval rate, as all applicants have previously been allowed to study in Canada. 

In 2021, IRCC approved over 119,000 study permit extension applications with a 97% acceptance rate. In addition, more than 135,000 applications were completed between January 1, 2022, and the end of August 2022, with a 96% approval rate.

To improve client service, the pilot applied to a small group of applicants who received their extended study permit significantly faster. If the pilot proves effective, it will expand to other programs to help reduce processing times and allow officers to focus on more complex applications.

More than 452,000 study permit applications have been processed between January 1, 2022, and August 31, 2022. Additionally, 367,000 applications were processed within the same period in 2021, reaching a record high for the year. It also represents a 23 percent gain.

Applications evaluated as part of the pilot to automate study permit extensions must meet study permit extension criteria. Otherwise, officers manually evaluate applications that do not meet the requirements. 

In addition, the automated process will not reject applications or recommend rejections. Only an officer can make any decision to deny an application.

These changes are part of a series of steps to benefit international students and graduates while assisting Canada’s larger efforts to improve client service and application processing times.

Other recent initiatives aimed toward international students and recent graduates include:

• A transition phase for international students studying online
• An opportunity for those with expired or expiring post-graduate work permits to obtain an additional 18-month open work permit

Source: IRCC

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