Recent local reports indicate that many international students have been unable to commence their studies at Canadian colleges this fall due to changes in study permit regulations and ongoing visa delays.

Thousands of international students are absent this semester from colleges in Ontario, including St. Lawrence College in Kingston, Mohawk College, and Conestoga College, according to Global News.

School officials attribute this decline to the recent visa delays that followed Canada’s cap on study permits and modifications to the Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) program. Glenn Vollebregt, President of St. Lawrence College (SLC), noted that while approximately 1,600 new international students were anticipated for this fall, only 775 have officially registered.

Vollebregt emphasized that these numbers reflect the direct impact of government decisions. Earlier this year, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced the introduction of a cap on international student permit applications for the first time.

Similarly, officials from Mohawk College confirmed a 38 percent drop in enrollment, welcoming around 1,500 students this semester compared to last year. At Conestoga College, approximately 1,400 international students have chosen to defer their studies until the winter semester.

In a statement released this month, the Council of Ontario Universities projected financial losses exceeding $300 million for Ontario universities in the 2024/25 academic year compared to the previous year. The statement indicated that if current trends persist, these losses could double to over $600 million in the following year—resulting in nearly a $1 billion financial impact within two years.

Immigration Minister Marc Miller previously stated that Canada plans to reduce the number of international students by 35 percent over two years. On September 18, 2024, he reiterated that this cap is “here to stay.”

Furthermore, the Canadian government has announced an additional 10 percent reduction in international student numbers for 2025 - as well as plans to impose restrictions on eligibility for work permits for international graduates.

Specifically, next year, Canada will issue only 437,000 study permits, a decrease from the 485,000 issued this year—a figure expected to remain unchanged through 2026.

According to IRCC data, the number of international students in Canada surged to 1,040,985 in 2023, a 29 percent increase from the previous year. Notably, students from India and China accounted for just over half of all international students in Canada.