Officials who run Canada’s universities warn that Ottawa’s crackdown on international student visas threatens the survival of higher education institutions and could leave students with fewer options to live in more remote areas.
In September, the federal government announced a further 10% reduction in the number of visas issued. The new goal for 2025 and 2026 is 437,000 permits. The goal for 2024 was 485,000 permits.
Canadian University Research Institute President Paris Johnston said international students play an important role in making many university programs viable.
“There are not always enough Canadian students to participate in programs, especially high-paying industry programs. [and] Health care,” Johnston told CBC’s The House.
Johnston also said that as universities struggle with budgets, reductions in study permits and “a lack of investment in public education in some provinces” will reduce educational options for students living in remote areas of Canada. He said it would happen.
The federal government has also tightened restrictions on post-graduation work permits for international students.
Higher and secondary education institutions say they expect to lose hundreds of millions of dollars due to new international student caps and have warned that jobs and student programs could be at risk unless the government increases funding.
In September, the federal government announced that graduates of programs at public universities would be eligible for a permit for up to three years if they “graduated in a field of study related to an occupation with a long-term shortage.”
Johnston said limiting work permit eligibility to the needs of the domestic labor market is “more of a blow” and goes against the realities of Canada’s economy, which takes a more regional approach to work.
Western University President Alan Shepherd said Canada also risks losing out on innovation opportunities because international students bring broader perspectives and ideas.
“I want Canadian students to have the opportunity to take classes with people from all over the world, from different economic systems, from different religious systems, from different races,” Shepherd told host Katherine Cullen. I think so,” he said.
International students are leaving Canada
Methi Basili is the co-founder and CEO of ApplyBoard, a website that connects international students, recruiters, and higher education institutions. Canada used to be a student’s first choice, he said. It is currently in third place after the United States and the United Kingdom.
“Students around the world are rethinking their educational journeys in Canada compared to last year in Canada,” Basili said.
According to ApplyBoard analysis published in September, international study permits awarded in 2024 are expected to decline by 47% compared to 2023. When the federal government announced the permit cuts, it predicted a 35% decline.
Apply Board’s analysis attributes this difference to student demand moving away from Canada under the new policy. Basili said the message being sent to prospective students is that “Canada is not as welcoming as it used to be.”
Transfer of responsibility
Before announcing the permit cuts, Immigration Minister Mark Miller named several educational institutions that he described as “the diploma equivalent of a puppy mill churning out diplomas”.
Johnston said Miller’s words were “very harmful” and that the minister was “painting the whole sector with a very broad brush” by grouping private for-profit universities with the public universities she represents. “There is,” he said.
In an interview with the house On Thursday, Miller defended his comments, saying, “When actions change, rhetoric changes.”
Immigration Minister Mark Miller announced new rules for international students that increase the amount of money required to study in Canada.
When asked about the possibility of higher education institutions closing programs, Miller said, “Some programs have had to close, and there has to be a rationalization process, and that was important.”
Miller said post-secondary education is “primarily rural” and singled out Ontario for what he called “a lack of regulation.” He also said state government funding plays an important role in funding universities.
Ontario, home to 40% of Canada’s university system, has frozen tuition fees for domestic students from 2018 to 2019.
“The reason we’re in this situation is because the federal government mismanaged our immigration file,” Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy said when asked about the tuition freeze.
“They open the gates without much thought about the infrastructure needed to accommodate more people, and then use blunt force to shut the gates,” he added.
Shepherd said it’s difficult to lead a public institution and “make it a very high-quality organization and meet the needs of all students” when revenue is “virtually flat.”
“Over time it becomes very difficult and you can squeeze for a while, but eventually there’s not much left to strangle,” he added.
Bethrenfalvy said it is “clear” the state will continue to freeze domestic tuition fees until 2027.
