Till 31 December 2023, international students in Canada will be allowed to take up work outside their campuses for over 20 hours a week. That means, they will now be able to work more hours and earn more while trying to complete their education.
This reform is a temporary step to help fulfil the labour shortage in the country, and will benefit over five lakh students who have come to study in Canada.
Foreign nationals who have applied for study permit will also benefit from this move.
The move was announced by Immigration Minister Sean Fraser.
The country has been in the grip of a labour shortage, with the unemployment rate dipping to historically low levels. In September, reports suggest that the unemployment rate had dipped to 5.2 per cent from the 5.4 per cent in August.
Till now, international students who apply to various courses in Canadian institutions were not allowed to take up more than 20 hours of work per week, outside campus during their studies.
However, this cap was lifted during the holidays and scheduled breaks, so that students could earn a little extra to support their education expenses, without compromising on their studies.
Now, the rule has been relaxed a bit, temporarily, to address the labour shortage.
It is pertinent to mention here that maximum number of students, globally, seek to study in Canada. Last year, Canda witnessed over 6.2 lakh international students entering the country to study, and about 4.5 lakh study permits were issued.
