OTTAWA: Canada announced a significant cut in international student permits for the coming year, along with stricter rules for foreign workers.
This move is part of the government’s strategy to manage record-high immigration levels, which have brought the population past 41 million.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government highlighted the strain on housing, the job market, and social services as key factors behind the decision. Immigration Minister Marc Miller emphasized that “coming to Canada is a privilege, not a right.”
In 2025, the country plans to issue 437,000 study permits, down from 485,000 this year and over 500,000 in 2023.
Additionally, the government will introduce new restrictions on work permits for the spouses of certain international students and foreign workers. Visa checks will also be tightened to combat fraudulent asylum claims.
Ottawa also aims to reduce the percentage of temporary residents to five percent of the population, down from 6.8 percent earlier this year.
I am an experienced writer, analyst, and author. My exposure in English journalism spans more than 28 years. In the past, I have been working with daily The Muslim (Lahore Bureau), daily Business Recorder (Lahore/Islamabad Bureaus), Daily Times, Islamabad, daily The Nation (Lahore and Karachi). With daily The Nation, I have served as Resident Editor, Karachi. Since 2009, I have been working as a Freelance Writer/Editor for American organizations.
