Maintaining Student Status in Canada
As a study permit holder, there are a number of conditions you need to meet. If you don’t meet these conditions, you may lose your student status and study permit. You may also have to leave Canada.
As a study permit holder, you must:
- be enrolled at a designated learning institution (DLI), unless you’re exempt
- show you’re actively pursuing your studies, unless you’re exempt, by
- being enrolled full-time or part-time during each academic semester (excluding regularly scheduled breaks)
- making progress towards completing your program’s courses, and
- not taking authorized leaves longer than 150 days from your study program
- tell IRCC any time you change post-secondary schools
- end your studies if you no longer meet the requirements of being a student, and
- leave Canada when your permit expires
You may have other conditions listed on your study permit. You must follow these conditions, which could include:
- the level of studies
- if you’re allowed to work on or off campus as a student in Canada
- if you need to report for medical procedures
- if you’re allowed to travel within Canada, and
- the date you must stop studying.
Assessment of Study Permit Conditions
IRCC Officers should exercise their best judgment and take into account all relevant factors when assessing a student’s compliance with their study permit conditions.
Enrollment at a DLI:
A foreign national who applied for a study permit on or after June 1, 2014, must be enrolled in a DLI.
Actively Pursuing Studies:
As of June 1, 2014, all study permit holders must actively pursue their course or program of study, while they are in Canada.