Some international students in Toronto welcome study permit cap, others worry for their future
Federal government to cap international student permits for 2 years, stop giving work permits to some students
Kewal Shah says his plan to work, live and have his wife join him in Canada could be up in the air after the federal government announced changes to the country's international student system on Monday.
Shah, who is from India, is completing a program at a public university this winter. He plans to start a new one in the fall at a private college, which would've made him eligible for a post-graduation work permit he could use to get a job that would help pay off loans he took to study in Canada.
But now all that could be at risk.
On Monday, the federal government announced a two-year cap on internaional student permits. The cap will result in a 35 per cent reduction in approvals from 2023.
The government will also stop giving work permits to some postgraduate students who start a program at a private college that is licensed to teach the curriculum of an associated public college. Plus, spouses of students in private college programs will no longer be eligible for work permits.
"This will bring a lot of financial burden on people like us who have planned things in advance," Shah said. "It will be more chaotic for people who are already under stress."
WATCH: 2-year cap on international students is 'blunt' measure, Miller says
Shah is among many who may be impacted by Monday's announcement. He is already in the country, but countless others with hopes to study here now have less of a chance to do so for at least the next two years.
While Shah is concerned about what the announcement means for him and his spouse, other international students in Toronto are welcoming the cap on admissions.
Several told CBC Toronto that their experience living in Canada has been harder than they expected, mainly due to trouble finding employment and housing.
Some international students welcome cap
International student Abil Shaji says finding work and housing in Toronto was a challenge.
"Students coming to Canada, they become like in a trap," he said. "They get no job, they have to make more than what they expected."
After dropping off countless resumes, he says he only found work through a friend.
Shaji isn't alone. Student Sugam Khatra says the only work he can find is with Uber.
"If I knew that early, I [would] never come here. I [would have] just stayed in my home country," Khatra said.
In a statement, the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation said the province has underfunded post-secondary education, forcing colleges and universities to become overly reliant on international student fees.
International students from India contribute slightly more to Ontario's post secondary education institution than the province, according to a September report by research group Higher Education Strategy Associates.
The province did not directly respond to a question about increasing funding to post secondary education.
Will this help the housing crisis?
Immigration Minister Marc Miller said the cap is taking action against some small private colleges that have taken advantage of students by charging them high tuition and providing inadequate resources. But the news release announcing Monday's changes also said an increase in international students puts pressure on housing.
Speaking to reporters Monday, Housing Minister Sean Fraser said he expected some of that pressure could be alleviated from communities that take in large numbers of students.
Jaspreet Singh, president of the International Sikh Student Association, says international students are victims of the housing crisis, too.
"The student who used to pay $500 or $600 per month for an apartment, they're paying more than $1,000 per month," said Singh, who came to Canada as a student in 2015.
"A thousand dollars for someone who's jobless, who has already spent the lifetime savings of their parents on their education, is a lot of money."
Singh says even though the federal government is not explicitly blaming international students for the lack of housing affordability in Canada, it feels like they're being "thrown under the bus" with this announcement.
But Steve Pomeroy, a professor and member of the independent research organization the Canadian Housing Evidence Collaborative, says the cap on international student permits is a smart temporary policy measure.
"As much as the rhetoric has been: 'We need more supply.' Students get on a plane in September and arrive the next day. We can't build them a house for two years," Pomeroy said.
He also says the country is not doing international students a favour by bringing them in if it can't accommodate them.
A spokesperson for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said international students aren't responsible for the shortage of housing.
"But the growth in the arrival of international students adds significant demand for housing and other services that all Canadians must be able to access," Remi Lariviere said in an email.
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With files from Clara Pasieka and Saloni Bhugra