Students Studying in Canada POA, PAL, and Deposit Process

Starting in 2024, the Government of Canada introduced the Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL). For more details, visit the Government of Canada website.    

If you are applying to study at one of Northeastern University’s Canadian campuses, you will need to submit a PAL along with your Proof of Acceptance (POA) when applying for a study permit. 

Students who applied for their study permit using an offer from a Northeastern University Canadian campus before January 22, 2025 whose study permit application is still in process, are exempt from the PAL requirement. Students who successfully received their Study Permit for the January 2026 term but have deferred to Fall 2026, are exempt from the PAL requirement. 

Northeastern University is a private, non-profit US institution with campuses located in Canada. We do not fall into the category of a public institution and currently a PAL will be required when applying for a study permit. 

Important Note: You can only use each PAL once. If your study permit application is refused, you cannot reuse the same PAL. You must apply for your study permit before the expiration date on your PAL. 

You will receive updates about your admission and PAL offer at the personal email address you used when applying to Northeastern. If you are selected for a PAL, the deposit instructions will be sent to your Northeastern student email.    

To be considered for a PAL, you must submit your application to Northeastern in its entirety. 

• All updates regarding your admission offer will be sent to your personal email (the one you used to apply) from the NU Admissions/Enrolment team and will be available on your application portal.   

• Once your application is submitted  successfully, your application will be reviewed to determine eligibility for a PAL.   
  • Important! Please ensure that your personal and biographical information entered on your Northeastern program application, especially first name, last name and date of birth is identical to what is on your passport. If there is a discrepancy, the PAL will be issued incorrectly and there is no guarantee that it can be corrected.

• If you are selected for a PAL, you will be advised in your application portal and you will be issued an invoice for the PAL deposit.  

• The PAL confirmation letter in your application portal is not your PAL. The PAL will only be issued after you have paid the deposit and have cleared your Foreign Credential Evaluation (FCE).   

• Please only pay the deposit using the link in the invoice that will be sent to your Northeastern email address. Please do not make any payments using any other payment methods or portals. If you do, your deposit may not be credited correctly to your account and your PAL will not be issued.  
• Your PAL should be available within 10 business days of your deposit being received by the school. Please note that it can take a few days for your payment to be forwarded to the school by the third-party payment company. For international students who reside within Canada, you must confirm your existing permit status with OGS team before a PAL can be issued. Please monitor your email for communications from OGS after you have submitted your application. 

Attend the OGS Canada Study Permit Information Sessions

To help with your study permit application, OGS Canada is hosting a three-part webinar series every month to guide you through the Study Permit application process. Please attend all three sessions before submitting your study permit application: 

• Study Permit Application Series I: Strategies and Best Practices 

• Study Permit Application Series II: Proof of Funds Preparation 

• Study Permit Application Series III: Crafting Your Study Plan 

To register for the sessions, visit the OGS Canada Study Permit Application Information Sessions webpage.   

Apply for your Study Permit

Please ensure you download both your POA and your PAL before applying for your study permit! You need BOTH documents for your application.  

Find further instructions for applying for your study permit on the Applying for a Study Permit page.   

Ensure that you have set up your Northeastern student account and you have your Northeastern Student email set up in Outlook. You will need to monitor this email as all further information from the Office of Global Services will be sent to your Northeastern student email.  

Contact OGS Canada

Questions about your study permit application? Contact OGS Canada using the inquiry form.  

If you were given a PAL and were refused your study permit application with that PAL, you will need to inform OGS Canada of your refusal and we will provide the next steps to initiate your PAL deposit refund.

• Updating us about your refusal is a two step process:
  • Step 1: Complete the Study Permit Application Status e-form
    • Complete this e-form if you have applied for your study permit and you are awaiting a decision.
  • Step 2: Complete the Study Permit Application Outcome e-form
    • Complete this e-form if you have received a decision on your study permit application and you have completed the Step 1 e-form above.
• You will need to provide OGS Canada with a copy of your refusal letter from IRCC along with the Officer Decision Notes (ODN) or Global Case Management System (GCMS) notes that you received from the Immigration Officer.  
• You will need to drop any of your registered courses for a future term at Northeastern before the PAL deposit refund can be processed. If you do not drop your courses, the refund will not be processed. Contact your College for assistance with dropping your courses.
• Your PAL deposit refund request will be forwarded to the Student Accounts Canada (SAC) team for processing upon the approval of your refusal letters submitted to OGS Canada. Once the SAC team has confirmed that your courses have been dropped, the refund will be processed. 
• For next steps, you are advised to connect with the Admissions team regarding switching to a Northeastern U.S. campus, or if you still interested in a Canadian campus, you will be required to reapply for a future intake and you will be reassessed for PAL eligibility.

If you have any questions or technical issues with the e-forms please reach out to OGS Canada through this inquiry form. 

 Check this article for further information.

If you have received an approval of your study permit application using a PAL and POA given to you by Northeastern University, please submit the Study Permit Application Status Update e-forms to let OGS Canada know the decision on your application and get information about next steps. 

• Updating us about your approval is a two step process:
  • Step 1: Complete the Study Permit Application Status e-form
    • Complete this e-form if you have applied for your study permit and you are awaiting a decision.
  • Step 2: Complete the Study Permit Application Outcome e-form
    • Complete this e-form if you have received a decision on your study permit application and you have completed the Step 1 e-form above.

If you have any questions or technical issues please reach out to OGS Canada through this inquiry form. 

 Check this article for further information.

Proof of Acceptance (POA)

POA letters will be generated in your application portal for download once you are eligible for the PAL and you have paid the PAL deposit.

Your admission decision letter is NOT your Proof of Acceptance, and it should NOT be used to apply for your study permit. 

OGS Canada does not directly issue POAs. The are located in your admissions portal. 

The POA contains information you have provided in your application to Northeastern University. If there is an error, such as your name is misspelled, or your date of birth is incorrect, then please connect back to the admissions team to correct this information:

• You can submit an inquiry form from your application portal. To login to your portal click here: http://enroll.northeastern.edu/apply/status
• At the top of the page, you will see a tab called Manage Your Application
• Here you will click on Make a request and then click on the the available link to Submit an Inquiry/Submit a Request. 

Deposits

Deposit instructions are sent via email from the Student Accounts Canada team to your Northeastern student email. All payments should be made through the CIBC portal. You must ensure that you have claimed your Northeastern student account and you’ve proceeded to set up your Northeastern student email and you have access to Outlook to monitor your emails. If you’re not sure about how to claim your account, please find the instructions here.

For more information about deposits and billing, please see the Student Accounts Canada webpage here.

For information about payments, please see here.

Refunds

Northeastern University’s refund policies can be found on the Student Accounts Canada webpage or on the Student Financial Services page.

Other Questions?

For other questions related to payments, deposit and refund policies, submit an inquiry to Student Accounts Canada here.