Canada is raising the cost-of-living requirement for study permit applicants as of January 1, 2024, to be adjusted every year to ensure international students live better lives in Canada.

The new adjustment which is starting January 1, 2024, means that a single applicant will need to show they have $20,635 in addition to their first year of tuition and travel costs.

This new cost-of-living requirement of $20,635 is twice the previous amount of $10,000 that has been in place for the past 23 years.

The Canadian immigration body also revealed that current international students already in Canada, as well as applicants who have already applied for a study permit as of December 7, 2023, will be able to work off-campus for more than 20 hours per week until April 30, 2024.

Furthermore, International students who start their program on September 1, 2024, can still count online study time towards their post-graduation work permit application.

Lastly, a temporary policy has been introduced for foreign nationals with a post-graduation work permit expiring up to December 31, 2023, to apply for an additional 18-month work permit but not after 2023.

IRCC says the financial requirement has not kept up with the cost of living in Canada and students have been arriving only to learn their funds do not go as far as they hoped.

The reason behind the recent changes

In addition to the January 1st increase, the department says that the cost-of-living requirement will be adjusted each year when Statistics Canada updates the low-income cut-off (LICO).

LICO is considered the minimum necessary income required in Canada to ensure that individuals do not need to spend a higher-than-average portion of their income on necessities.

The department also notes that the new financial guidelines will be applied to the Student Direct Stream (SDS). The SDS is a study permit stream for applications from residents of 14 countries that offers faster processing.

IRCC says adjusting the cost-of-living requirement will help prevent student vulnerability and exploitation, but it recognises that the impact can vary with each potential applicant. It also says that next year it will implement targeted pilots to help underrepresented cohorts of international students pursue their studies in Canada. (Nigerian Tribune)