Every year, numerous international students, including Indians, relocate to Canada for education. In the first half of 2023, Canada granted 96,175 study permits, building on the momentum from 2022, when 226,000 study permits were issued. Unfortunately, amid this increase, some Indian students faced deportation due to fraudulent documents. To address this issue, the Canadian government is intensifying efforts to tackle dishonest consultants who stand in the way of exploiting the immigration system. This approach aims to protect genuine immigrants seeking to study, work, and settle in Canada.
The Canadian High Commission in India stresses the importance of early application submission. Usually, after the biometric stage, study permit processing takes about seven weeks. It’s advisable for students to check the IRCC‘s processing times to estimate approval timelines. A comprehensive review of international student applications is currently underway. This process aims to identify unethical practices by recruitment agents, student vulnerabilities, and non-genuine participants.
To protect students from fraudulent recruiters, the IRCC issued guidelines on its official website. The campaign urges student visa applicants to provide details about representatives who assisted with form submissions, highlighting accuracy’s importance. Failure to be in line may result in denial and a five-year prohibition on applying. Additionally, the campaign emphasises caution when interacting with unauthorised agents, whose involvement can also result in application denial.
Canada’s Immigration Minister recently announced measures to encourage prospective permanent resident applications with specific skills, training, or language proficiency. Notably, industries such as healthcare, STEM, vocations, transportation, agriculture, and agri-food are experiencing particular demand.