Canada bans automatic conversion of study permits

As part of it’s latest immigration policies, Canada has banned the automatic conversion of study permits into permanent residency for international students.

This new regulation mandates that international students return to their home countries upon the expiration of their study visas in Canada.

This also marks an end to non-citizens with study permits transitioning into permanent residency.

The development was made public by Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Marc Miller, in an interview on Tuesday.

During the interview, Miller also revealed that Canada is also terminating the Student Direct Stream (SDS) program and ‘halting asylum claims tied to such immigration pathways.’

The new policies is following recent protests by international students across Canada who demanded a streamlined process to transition from study permits to permanent residency or an extension of their stay.

Speaking on their demands, the Immigration Minister said, “When people come here and decide they want to be students, there are no guarantees to become permanent residents. Some students will have to make a difficult decision as to whether they leave the country or not.”

Miller further noted that work permits should align with Canada’s labour market needs, adding that the government will not provide blanket extensions to all students.

The Minister further revealed that permanent residency quotas were recently reduced by 20%, in order to help stabilize the system and balance the long-term needs of the country.

“We had to reduce permanent residency by a little over 20% to address Canada’s aging population and labour shortages while avoiding overburdening housing and public services,” he explained.