In a big crackdown, Canada has identified over 10,000 phony acceptance letters for international students, marking a significant step in the fight against fraud and safeguarding overseas students. This disclosure follows other instances of fraud, especially by unlicensed immigration advisors in India.
When 700 Indian students, primarily from Punjab, were discovered to have forged admission offer letters during the 2023 deportation crisis, the raid was sparked. Fraudulent documents used by unlicensed consultants in India to get study permissions were implicated in the scheme.
Stricter document verification was put in place by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to stop similar incidences. Since then, 1% of the 500,000 acceptance letters examined in the previous year have been connected to colleges that have not responded or to revoked admissions, and 2% of those letters have been identified as fraudulent.
The Widespread Impact of Fraud
Students from China and Vietnam are also involved, demonstrating that the problem is not limited to India. 1,485 applicants used false documents, which resulted in deportations or entrance refusals, according to an investigation into 2,000 suspected cases last year.
Government Reaction and New Regulations To protect international students and uphold the integrity of the program, Canada has implemented more stringent regulations. These actions consist of:
- Verification Portal: Online acceptance letter verification is done by designated learning institutions (DLIs). DLIs are required to report enrollment twice a year, failure to comply will result in the suspension of their ability to admit students.
- Changes to Permits: Students who are moving to another school now need to get a new study permit.
