Study in Canada

This page is for students and families, many of them in Kerala, who are weighing a Canadian education, and for experienced professionals who see study as a way into Canada. Study can still lead to a career and permanent residence here, but the rules changed sharply in 2024–2026, and the decision now deserves more care than it ever has.

Who should study in Canada now, and who should think twice

Canada is deliberately admitting fewer students. For 2026 the national limit is 408,000 study permits, of which only 155,000 are for newly arriving students, down from 437,000 permits in 2025 and 485,000 in 2024. IRCC refused 59% of new study permit applications in 2025, up from 52% in 2024, and about 115,000 new students arrived that year, 61% fewer than in 2024. The Student Direct Stream, which India used, ended on 8 November 2024, so every Indian applicant now goes through the regular stream.

Study in Canada makes sense when:

• the programme is a genuine next step in your education or career, and you can explain why you chose it;
• your family can show the required funds without strain, and tuition is affordable even if the PR plan takes longer than hoped;
• your English is strong enough for the post-graduation rules described below.

Think twice if the course is chosen only because it is short or cheap, if the family would borrow beyond what it can repay, or if the only reason to go is permanent residence. PR after study is possible, but it is not automatic, and fewer routes are open to graduates than five years ago.

PAL/TAL, and changing schools

Most post-secondary applicants outside Quebec need a provincial or territorial attestation letter (PAL/TAL), which the school arranges within its province's share of the cap. Quebec students need a CAQ instead. From 1 January 2026, master's and doctoral students at public institutions no longer need a PAL/TAL. School-level students and some other groups are also exempt.

Since 8 November 2024 you cannot simply move to another school on the same permit: you must apply to change or extend the permit first, and since 22 January 2025 that usually needs a new PAL/TAL. Choose the institution carefully the first time.

Proof of funds

Outside Quebec, a student must show living funds in addition to first-year tuition and travel:

IRCC now reviews these amounts every year. Quebec sets its own figures. Funds must be genuine and traceable; IRCC links part of the rise in refusals to the higher financial requirement and to its integrity checks.

Working while you study

Full-time students at a designated learning institution, in a post-secondary programme of at least six months that leads to a degree, diploma or certificate, may work up to 24 hours a week off campus during sessions and without a limit during scheduled breaks. You need a study permit that allows work and a Social Insurance Number. Part-time work helps with costs and with Canadian experience in your field, but work done while you are a full-time student does not count toward the Canadian Experience Class.

The Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP)

The PGWP is the bridge between study and permanent residence. The rules that matter most:

• Language: for PGWP applications since 1 November 2024, CLB 7 in all four skills for university graduates and CLB 5 for college graduates.
• Field of study: college and other non-degree graduates must have studied in an eligible field. Bachelor's, master's and doctoral graduates are exempt. IRCC has said it will not add or remove eligible fields during 2026.
• Length: programmes under eight months do not qualify; eight months to under two years gives up to the programme length; two years or more gives up to three years. A master's of at least eight months can give up to three years.
• Once only: you get one PGWP, it cannot run past your passport, and you apply within 180 days of confirmation that you completed the programme. Most public-private partnership college programmes are not eligible.

See Work permits for work permits after graduation.

Spouses and children

Since 21 January 2025, a student's spouse or partner can get an open work permit only if the student is in a master's programme of 16 months or longer, a doctoral programme, or a listed professional degree (such as medicine, law, nursing, education, engineering or pharmacy). Dependent children no longer qualify for open work permits under these measures. Each family member who comes with you also raises the funds you must show. A couple planning to study and work together should check the programme's length and level before applying, not after.

From study to permanent residence in 2026

For most graduates, the main federal route is the Canadian Experience Class in Express Entry: at least one year of paid, skilled (TEER 0–3) work in Canada within the last three years, after your studies, with CLB 7 for TEER 0/1 jobs or CLB 5 for TEER 2/3 jobs. IRCC kept holding CEC draws through 2026 to prioritise people already in Canada, and their cut-offs have stayed high. Category draws (French, health care and social services, trades and others) favour particular occupations. Since 25 March 2025, a job offer earns no Express Entry points. See Express Entry and the latest draws on Immigration data and draws.

Provincial routes have narrowed. Ontario closed its Master's Graduate, PhD Graduate and international-student job-offer streams in its 2026 redesign, and British Columbia's graduate streams are reported closed. Other provinces still select graduates who work in their priority occupations: see Provincial Nominee Programs.

IRCC has also consulted on merging CEC, FSW and FST into one programme and on reducing points for Canadian study. That is a proposal, not law, but it is one more reason not to build a plan on study points alone.

Choosing a programme with PR in mind

Our old pages spoke to two kinds of student. The distinction still matters:

• Fresh students coming from school or a first degree: favour a degree, or a college programme in an eligible PGWP field; plan for CLB 7 English; and aim for skilled work in your field as soon as you graduate, because the PGWP clock starts then.
• Accomplished professionals with years of experience abroad: ask first whether study is your best route at all. Some Express Entry categories, such as health care and STEM, accept experience gained outside Canada, and a provincial or employer-driven route may suit you better. If study is right, a longer master's keeps your spouse's work permit and your PGWP options open.

How Polinsys helps

Before you pay tuition, Joy Stephen, RCIC (CICC licence R419719), gives you an honest written assessment: whether study is the right route for you, which programme levels and fields keep the PGWP and your spouse's options open, and what your funds must show. We then prepare a study permit application that explains your choices clearly, and we stay with you through the PGWP and the step to PR, through SAPR if you want a full plan. Ask your questions first at our free Friday Q&A: FREE Webinars: Resource Guides and AR Q&A.