London
\nCanada on Monday announced an immediate, two-year cap on international student permits and said it would also stop giving work permits to some postgraduate students as it seeks to rein in record numbers of newcomers seen aggravating a housing crisis. The cap is expected to result in approximately 360,000 approved study permits in 2024, a decrease of 35% from 2023, according to a statement from the immigration ministry.
\nImmigration Minister Marc Miller said the federal government would work with the provinces, which oversee the educational system, to apply the cap.
\nHe said the main reason for the cap is to protect students who attend colleges, which are often private-public partnerships, that provide inadequate services at high costs, but also to ease pressure on housing and services.
\n\u201cSome private institutions have taken advantage of international students by operating under-resourced campuses, lacking supports for students and charging high tuition fees, all the while significantly increasing their intake of international students,\u201d Miller told reporters.
\n\u201cThis increase is also putting pressure on housing, healthcare and other services,\u201d he said, adding that fewer numbers would primarily help lower prices for rent.
\nRapid population growth fueled by immigration has put pressure on services, like healthcare and education, and has helped drive up housing costs. These issues have weighed on Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau\u2019s support, with polls showing he would lose an election if one were held now.
\nIn the third quarter of last year, the population grew at its fastest pace in more than six decades, with non-permanent residents \u2013 mostly students \u2013 increasing by 312,758, the most in more than five decades.
\nThe Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA), a student advocacy group, criticized the cap.
\n\u201cThe biggest problem is that \u2026 there\u2019s been announced a cap that is a reaction to the housing crisis,\u201d said CASA Director of Advocacy, Mateusz Salmassi, adding that what is needed is more support and housing for international students.
\nThe University of Toronto welcomed the announcement and said it would work with all levels of government on the allocation of study permits.
\nThe changes are \u201cfocused on addressing abuses in the system by particular actors and are not intended to adversely impact universities such as ours,\u201d the university said in a statement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
London Canada on Monday announced an immediate, two-year cap on international student permits and said it would also stop giving work permits to some postgraduate students as it seeks to rein in record numbers of newcomers seen aggravating a housing crisis. The cap is expected to result in approximately 360,000 approved study permits in 2024, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-382668","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n