Great News for Students…! Increase in Working Hours.

Great News for Students…! Increase in Working Hours.

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 labor 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.”
– The Honorable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship.

What does it mean to the students?

On the 7 th of Oct 2023. The Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship announced the temporary lifting of the 20-hour-per-week cap on the number of hours that eligible post-secondary students are allowed to work off-campus while class is in session.

From November 15, 2022, until December 31, 2023, international students who are in Canada and who have off-campus work authorization on their study permit will not be restricted by the 20-hour-per-week rule. Foreign nationals who have already submitted a study permit application as of today will also be able to benefit from this temporary change, provided their application is approved. This measure will provide many international students with a greater opportunity to gain valuable work experience in Canada and will increase the availability of workers to sustain Canada’s post-pandemic growth. With more than 500,000 international students already in Canada available to potentially work additional hours, this temporary change reflects the important role international students can play in addressing our labor shortage while continuing to pursue their studies. Study permit holders are still expected to balance their study and work commitments, as those who stop studying or reduce course loads only to study part-time are not eligible to work off-campus.

This month, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is also launching a pilot project to automate the processing of study permit extensions. The types of applications being included in this pilot have a consistently high approval rate, as all applicants have previously been approved to study in Canada. The pilot will involve a small group of applicants who could see their extended study permit processed much faster to improve client service. Should the pilot be successful, it will be expanded to help reduce processing times and allow officers to focus on more complex applications.

Today’s announcement is part of a series of initiatives that aim to benefit international students and graduates while supporting Canada’s broader efforts to improve client service and application processing times.

To Know more, please contact +1 (604)-597-1119  or info@ideaimmigration.com