Toronto: The number of study permits issued to students from India seeking admissions in Canadian higher education institutions last year fell steeply by nearly 33% when compared with the figures for 2023.
According to data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Indians were issued 189,070 study permits in 2024, as against 278,110 the previous year, a decrease of over 32%.
In 2024, they comprised 36% of the total permits issued – 518,125. That overall figure also fell from 681,390 in 2023, when Indians were also the largest country cohort, at nearly 41% of the total.
Of course, the numbers have still risen sharply since the Government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first came into power in 2015, when a total of 219,030 permits were issued, with Indians securing just 31,920 or 14.5% of the total.
These reductions were caused by government measures to stem inflows after immigration became a major political issue hurting the ruling Liberal Party, with the influx of newcomers being blamed, partly, for contributing to a housing affordability crisis as well as pressure on health and transport infrastructure.
These policies have been criticised for their impact on the higher education sector. Pari Johnston, president of CEO of Colleges and Institutes Canada, noted, “Just over a year ago, Ottawa launched a series of overlapping, hasty reforms which have harmed Canada’s public postsecondary training capacity and the communities that colleges and institutes serve. This, at a time when these public assets are needed more than ever, given the major economic shock our country is now experiencing.”
{{/usCountry}}These policies have been criticised for their impact on the higher education sector. Pari Johnston, president of CEO of Colleges and Institutes Canada, noted, “Just over a year ago, Ottawa launched a series of overlapping, hasty reforms which have harmed Canada’s public postsecondary training capacity and the communities that colleges and institutes serve. This, at a time when these public assets are needed more than ever, given the major economic shock our country is now experiencing.”
{{/usCountry}}Writing in Policy Options, published by the Institute for Research, this month, she added that IRCC made more changes to the international student programme in 2024 the past year than in the last decade, with 13 major policy changes over a ten-month period. “In fall 2024, international student college applications were down 54% – far below the 35% target laid out by the federal policy. Projections suggest things will get much worse this year.”
Several institutes have closed programmes or eliminated staff due to the reduced intake of international students. In January, St Lawrence College announced it was cutting 55 programmes beginning in the next semester. Earlier in the month, Centennial College announced it would suspend enrolment for 49 courses, according to the outlet CTV News.
By the end of 2024, Sheridan College said it was suspending 40 programmes and Seneca Polytechnic was looking at temporarily closing its Markham campus in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).
On September 18 last year, IRCC stated the cap for issuing study permits for 2025 will be at 437,000, down from the target of 485,000 for 2024. The “stabilising” 2025 figure will also apply towards the 2026 intake.