International Student Guide

As of Jan 22, 2024, study permit applications from outside Canada require a Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL). Some students are exempt from the PAL. Find out how to get a PAL, if you need one.

On Jan 17, 2025, IRCC indicated Master’s degree and doctoral degree students can apply for a study permit without a PAL until 11:59 pm PT on Jan 21, 2025. PALs will be required for all graduate students submitting a study permit application through the outside Canada process as of Jan 22, 2025.

If you are a current student, plan ahead if your documents expire soon and you have travel plans. You would need to get a PAL if you apply for a study permit from outside Canada.

As of Feb 15, 2024, graduates of master’s degree programs which are 8 months or longer can apply for a 3-year PGWP if eligible for the PGWP. Graduate certificates and diplomas are not master’s degrees and thus do not qualify. 

As of Jun 21, 2024, PGWP applicants can no longer apply at the Canada-US border through “flagpoling”. Learn about applying for the PGWP online.

As of Nov 1, 2024, all PGWP applications require proof of your English or French language skills. University students require a minimum of Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) 7 in English, or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadien (NCLC) 7 in French. See the equivalency table for different language tests.  

As of Nov 1, 2024, students who apply for a study permit for certificate or diploma programs (including graduate certificates and diplomas) at universities must meet a field of study requirement to be eligible for the PGWP. This does not apply to students in undergraduate degrees, master’s degrees, or doctoral degrees at universities.

As of Dec 23, 2024, it is no longer possible for most students to apply for a co-op work permit at the Canada-US border through “flagpoling”. Most students must apply for a co-op work permit online. If you applied for your co-op work permit and are waiting for it to be processed, you can work based on your on- and off-campus work eligibility. 

US citizens, lawful US permanent residents, as well as some individuals can still apply for a co-op work permit at the border. Students who are exempt from a Temporary Resident Visa can apply for a co-op work permit when entering Canada at the airport or land border. Note this does not include Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) expansion countries. 

As of Mar 19, 2024, only spouses of students in master’s degree, doctoral degree or professional degree programs are eligible for a spousal open work permit while pursuing studies.

As of Dec 23, 2024, it is no longer possible to apply for a spousal work permit at the Canada-US border through “flagpoling”. US citizens, lawful US permanent residents as well as some individuals can still apply for a work permit at the border. Those who are exempt from a Temporary Resident Visa can apply for a work permit when entering Canada at the airport or land border. Note this does not include Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) expansion countries. 

On Jan 14, 2025, IRCC confirmed the policy changes for spousal work permits which are effective Jan 21, 2025. 

For your spouse or common-law partner to be eligible for a spousal work permit during your studies, you must be enrolled in a doctoral program, master’s degree program which is 16 months or longer, or select programs. 

For your spouse or common-law partner to be eligible for a spousal work permit while you are applying for/have a Post-Graduation Work Permit, you must be employed in TEER 0 or 1 occupations, or selected TEER 2 or 3 occupations (the list will be available Jan 21, 2025), and have at least 16 months remaining on your work permit at the time of application. Dependent children are no longer eligible for a work permit.

If your common-law partner or spouse has a spousal work permit under the previous rules, it will remain valid until the expiry date. If they are in Canada it could be extended to match your study or work permit if they are applying under the same criteria as their current work permit. Contact International Student Advising for support. 

The temporary policies allowing some international students to work more than 20 hours a week off-campus were not extended beyond April 30, 2024. From May 1, 2024, the usual off-campus work policies resumed allowing eligible students to work up to 20 hours a week off-campus.

As of Nov 8, 2024, off-campus work hours have been increased from 20 to 24 hours a week during academic sessions. Make sure you are eligible to work off-campus.

As of Nov 8, 2024, you must be enrolled at the Designated Learning Institution (DLI) named on your study permit. If you change institutions, you must apply for a study permit extension for your new institution and most students need to receive the new study permit before beginning studies at your new institution. If you are coming to UBC from a Canadian high school or from another post-secondary institution, be sure to apply for a study permit extension with your UBC letter of acceptance as soon as you receive it. If you previously applied for your study permit with a UBC letter of acceptance then you change programs at UBC, you do not need to update your study permit. 

On Dec 11, 2024, IRCC announced a temporary policy allowing students to begin studies in January 2025 while your study permit extension is being processed if:

• You have been accepted to a DLI for Winter Term 2 (Jan-Apr, 2025) and
• You have applied for a study permit extension and
• Your study permit remains valid and you don’t have a DLI name printed on it and
• You meet all your existing study permit conditions

Contact International Student Advising for support.