The crippling housing and healthcare crisis in Canada has, for now, cast a shadow on the dreams of several international students, including Indians aspiring for higher studies in the country. The Justin Trudeau Government announced on Monday capping the number of study permits for students from outside the country for two years as a way to address pressure on basic infrastructure and amenities.
The decision is to impact students in India, which was the first among the top ten origin countries of study permit holders in 2022 in Canada, with a total of 319,000 students. The limit will result in a decrease of 35 per cent in approved study permits. However, the move will not affect current study permit holders or renewals.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced the cap on Monday, stating that Canada aims to approve around 360,000 undergraduate study permits this year. Each province and territory will be allotted a portion of that total, determined by population and current student intake. Provinces will then decide how to distribute these permits across their universities and colleges.
“Ahead of the September 2024 semester,” stated Miller, “We are prepared to take necessary measures, including limiting visas, to ensure designated learning institutions provide adequate and sufficient student support as part of the academic experience.”
The cap also represents a significant shift in policy for Canada, which has historically relied on open immigration to fill job vacancies and address its rapidly aging workforce.
Over 800,000 foreign students were in Canada in 2022, up from 214,000 a decade earlier. The new measures are also meant to ensure the “integrity” of the system, officials said. However, domestic universities will also suffer a loss, say experts, as tuition paid by international students helps offset costs for some domestic students, and universities struggle with limited Government funding and budgets.
The cap will only apply to students at a diploma or undergraduate programme and will not affect students applying for study permit renewals. As part of the change, the Government will also no longer grant work permits for students graduating from colleges that operate under a public-private partnership model, most commonly found in the province of Ontario.
“It’s unacceptable that some private institutions have taken advantage of international students by operating under-resourced campuses, lacking support for students, and charging high tuition fees, all while significantly increasing their intake of international students,” Miller said.
Some economists have linked housing unaffordability to a spike in immigration, as home construction has not kept up with Canada’s unprecedented population growth, according to reports. The reports also point out that in 2022, the country grew by over a million people in the span of one year for the first time ever, a growth largely driven by newcomers. Last year, Canada’s population hit a record of 40 million people.
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, a national housing agency, estimates that the country needs 3.5 million more housing units by 2030 to restore affordability.
While population growth is part of the problem, experts have also highlighted other pressures such as high-interest rates that make homes less affordable, skyrocketing costs of building materials due to inflation, and Covid-19 pandemic-induced supply chain disruptions.