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IRCC Minister Sean Fraser -

New Announcement For International Students By IRCC Minister

Last Updated On 7 October 2022, 10:13 AM EDT (Toronto Time)

Today, IRCC Minister Sean Fraser made a new announcement regarding international students and addressing labor shortage in Canada. The announcement happened at 9:00 am EST (Toronto time) in Ottawa.

International students who are in Canada and have off-campus work authorization on their study permit will be able to work more than 20 hours per week off-campus while class is in session from November 15, 2022 to December 31, 2023.

There is “NO” limit on maximum number of hours a student can work. However, minister emphasized that students should not compromise their study schedule. Apart from that they can work as many hours as they are able to.

This interim measure also applies to foreign nationals who have applied for a study permit as of today. They will also be eligible to profit from this policy if their application is approved by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is also beginning a pilot initiative this month to simplify the processing of study permit extensions. Because all candidates have already been allowed to study in Canada, the sorts of applications covered in this pilot have a consistently high acceptance rate.

Applications accepted for inclusion in the pilot to automate study permit extensions must fulfil specific criteria in order to be evaluated. Officers will manually assess applications that do not meet the standards. The automatic method will not reject or suggest applications. Any decision to deny an application will be made by an officer.

The test will feature a select sample of candidates who may have their extended study permit handled much more quickly, with the purpose of enhancing client service. If the trial proves effective, it will be expanded to assist police minimize processing times and focus on more difficult applications.

IRCC estimates that this interim amendment will benefit more than 500,000 international students presently studying in Canada. Additionally, it will help in addressing labour shortage in Canada.

Study Permit Extension Approval Rates

In 2021, IRCC approved over 119,000 study permit extension applications, with a 97% acceptance rate. More than 135,000 applications were handled between January 1, 2022, and August 31, 2022, with a 96% acceptance rate.

More than 452,000 study permit applications were processed between January 1, 2022, and the end of August 2022. 367,000 applications were processed within the same period in 2021, a record year. This is a 23% gain.

IRCC Minister quote – “With the economy growing at a faster rate than employers can hire new workers, Canada needs to look at every option so that we have the skills and workforce needed to fuel our growth. 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.”

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