Unicaus NEWS
Canada lowered the variety of worldwide scholar permits it points for the second yr in a row in early 2025 as a part of a broader effort to cut back the variety of short-term migrants and tackle fraud associated to scholar visas.
About 74% of Indian functions for permits to check at Canadian post-secondary establishments in August — the newest month accessible — had been rejected, in comparison with about 32% in August 2023, in keeping with immigration division information offered to Reuters.
By distinction, about 40% of examine allow functions total in every of these months had been refused. About 24% of Chinese examine permits in August 2025 had been rejected.
The variety of Indian candidates has dropped, as nicely, from 20,900 in August 2023 — when Indians fashioned simply over one quarter of all candidates — to 4,515 in August 2025.
India has been Canada’s prime supply of worldwide college students over the previous decade. In August, it additionally had the very best study-permit refusal price of any nation with greater than 1,000 accepted candidates.
The spike in refusals of would-be college students comes as Canada and India search to fix ties after greater than a yr of rigidity.
Former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused the Indian authorities of involvement within the 2023 homicide of a Canadian in Surrey, British Columbia. India has repeatedly denied the allegations.
An effort to chop down fraud
In 2023, Canadian authorities uncovered practically 1,550 examine allow functions linked to fraudulent letters of acceptance, most of which originated from India, Canada’s immigration division informed Reuters in an e mail.
Last yr its beefed-up verification system detected greater than 14,000 doubtlessly fraudulent letters of acceptance from all candidates, it stated.
Canada has applied enhanced verification for worldwide college students and has elevated its monetary necessities for candidates, the immigration division spokesperson stated.
The Indian embassy in Ottawa stated the rejection of examine allow functions from college students in India had come to its consideration, however that the issuance of examine permits is Canada’s prerogative.
“However, we would like to emphasize that some of the best quality students available in the world are from India, and Canadian institutions have in the past greatly benefited from the talent and academic excellence of these students,” the embassy stated in an announcement.
Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand informed Reuters throughout an October go to to India that Canada’s authorities is worried concerning the integrity of its immigration system however needs to proceed having Indian college students in Canada.
A drop in Indian enrolment
People who work with would-be worldwide college students say they’re seeing a better degree of applicant scrutiny.
Michael Pietrocarlo of Border Pass, which helps individuals apply for Canadian visas, stated his agency prepares candidates to indicate their eligibility past what’s required on paper.
He says, for instance, when college students should reveal they’ve enough funds to assist themselves, “it’s not enough just to say, ‘Here are some bank statements.’ They may have to go the extra mile and say, ‘Here’s where the money came from.'”
The University of Waterloo, house to Canada’s largest engineering faculty, has seen a two-thirds decline within the variety of college students from India getting into its undergraduate and graduate applications over the previous three to 4 years.
Ian VanderBurgh, its affiliate vice chairman of strategic enrolment administration, stated the drop was largely as a result of a authorities cap on overseas scholar visas and had altered the composition of the coed physique.
“We delight ourselves on being a world college,” he stated. The University of Regina and the University of Saskatchewan have additionally reported a decline within the variety of Indian college students enrolled.
When Jaspreet Singh, who based the International Sikh Students Association, got here to Canada from India in 2015 to check mechanical engineering, he remembers authorities posters exhorting newcomers to “Study, work, stay” within the nation. That perspective has soured, he stated.
Mr. Singh shouldn’t be shocked on the greater rejection price for Indian examine allow candidates, saying he is aware of fraud is a priority.
But because it turns into tougher to get everlasting residency or a job in Canada, he says a few of these just lately rejected seem to not thoughts: “They are happy they didn’t come.”
