International students in Canada can work more than 20 hours per week starting November 15

HAVANA, CUBA – NOVEMBER 16: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gives a speech during a conference as part of his visit to Cuba on November 16, 2016 in Havana, Cuba. (Photo by Ernesto Mastrascusa/LatinContent/Getty Images)

Potential international students in Canada, we’ve got some good news for you. From November, you can now work more than 20 hours a week.

Yes, that’s right.

The Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship, Sean Fraser, introduced a new temporary solution to address Canada’s “current labour needs”. He said this will allow over 500,000 international students already in Canada to potentially work more hours. This will run from November 15, 2022, until December 31, 2023.

Fraser said;

With the economy growing at a faster rate than employers can hire new workers, Canada needs to look at every option so that we have the skills and workforce needed to fuel our growth. Immigration will be crucial to addressing our labour shortage. By allowing international students to work more while they study, we can help ease pressing needs in many sectors across the country, while providing more opportunities for international students to gain valuable Canadian work experience and continue contributing to our short-term recovery and long-term prosperity.

Prior to the new policy, international students studying in a Canadian school could get permission to work off-campus for up to 20 hours per week. This rule is relaxed during regular breaks, like the summer and winter breaks, so that international students can make money to support themselves.

Starting today, you can benefit from this change if:

• Your study permit has already been issued.
• Your study permit has been approved but you have not arrived in Canada yet.
• You submitted a study permit application before October 7, 2022, and are awaiting approval.

When it comes to studying abroad, Canada is a top location. The demand to study in Canada remains high owing to reasons including the quality of the country’s educational institutions, diversity, and the Canadian currency. According to the statistics provided by the Government of Canada, Canada has already received over 452,000 study permit applications between January and August of 2022, a 23% increase over the 367,000 handled during the same time in 2021.

It also revealed that “IRCC processed nearly 119,000 study permit extension applications in 2021, with an approval rate of 97%. From January 1, 2022, to the end of August 2022, more than 135,000 were processed, with an approval rate of 96%.”

Do you want to work off-campus as an international student in Canada? Learn more about the requirements and how to get started here.