Canada sets new rules for PG work permit from November 1

NEW DELHI: The Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has made further changes to the post-graduation work permit (PGWP) programme. To be eligible, candidates not graduating from universities must earn degrees in programmes within five broad fields of study “linked to certain occupations in long-term shortage”, the IRCC has said. Plus, they must meet minimum scores on English or French proficiency tests.

The new rules will be applicable from November 1, 2024. Candidates who apply for the Canada work permits before November 1 will need to meet the existing eligibility criteria but still fulfill language requirements.

This announcement follows the September 18 one in which the Justin Trudeau government announced it will cut the Canada student visa count by 10% in 2025. It had already capped the number of international students at 2,92,000 earlier in the year.

Canada PG Work Permit: Fields, subjects allowed

From November 1, 2024, students graduating from a college programme or any non-university programme must complete their studies in an eligible field to qualify for a PGWP.

The PG work permit will be reserved for students graduating from a list of 966 qualifying academic programmes, across five main fields.

The IRCC lists all 966 on its website; the five areas are given below:

• Agriculture and agri-food
• Healthcare
• Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)
• Skilled trades
• Transportation

That said, graduates of degree programmes offered by universities, regardless of the field of study, will be eligible for the PGWP for up to three years with no field of study requirement.

According to the International Consultants for Education and Fairs (ICEF) – a group of study abroad consultants – this change implies that college programmes like tourism, hospitality, and business courses, which attract many international students, will no longer qualify for a PGWP.

Canada Work Permit: Language requirement

Students applying for a PGWP must also provide proof of their language skills. The required assessments are:

• Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) for English
• Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadien (NCLC) for French

The required scores and levels for different categories of students are as per the table below.

Canada Work Permit Visa: Language tests

Canada post-graduation work permits: Impact

As reported by The Toronto Star, 1,05,030 post-graduation work permits were approved in the first half of 2024, with 64% going to college graduates. Of these, business studies graduates made up 42%, while 37% were in STEM fields and 16% in computing and IT. Only 1% of permits were granted to graduates in skilled trades.

This means that over 67,000 college graduates received PGWPs in the first half of the year. Still, nearly half of them would no longer qualify under the new rules, significantly affecting international students in business-related programmes.

Also read Study in Canada: IRCC verification flags 1,813 ‘potentially fraudulent’ acceptance letters

Dennis Johnson, former president of the College of New Caledonia, expressed his concerns on LinkedIn, saying that these changes represent a major shift in Canada's international student programme. He explained that the new rules will reduce a crucial financial support system relied on by many institutions.

Johnson predicted difficult times for colleges, stressing on the need for increased funding from provincial governments.