Temporary status · Students
A study permit is the first move in a longer game.
Provincial attestation letters, financial thresholds that doubled, work-hour rules that keep shifting — the student route is harder than the brochures admit. We plan it as what it really is: the opening of a permanent-residence strategy.
What changed — and what officers now look for
Since 2024, most study-permit applicants need a provincial attestation letter confirming space under Ontario’s allocation, must show substantially higher available funds (over C$20,000 beyond first-year tuition for a single applicant), and face closer scrutiny of the study plan — the narrative explaining why this program, at this school, at this point in your life. The most common refusal reasons remain unchanged for a decade: officer not satisfied you will leave Canada, insufficient funds, and a study plan that reads as an immigration plan wearing a gown.
The honest paradox — that Canada openly courts students as future permanent residents while requiring proof of temporary intent — is navigated with the dual intent doctrine, and we draft study plans that hold both truths without contradiction.
Through to the PGWP
The post-graduation work permit converts eligible study into up to three years of open work authorization — the raw material of Canadian Experience Class eligibility. PGWP rules now turn on program field-of-study for many college credentials; choosing the wrong program can quietly forfeit the permit before the first lecture. We advise before enrolment, not after convocation, and we handle the extensions, status restorations and spousal permits that keep a family lawful through the degree.
FAQ
Study Permits: the questions we hear
Only after reading the officer’s notes (obtained through an access request). A reapplication that does not answer the actual refusal reason usually collects a second refusal — and a record. Sometimes judicial review is the better route; often a rebuilt file is.
Eligible full-time students may work off campus up to 24 hours per week during terms and full-time during scheduled breaks. Breaching work limits is a status violation that follows you into every later application.
Begin properly
Your route to Canada deserves counsel, not guesswork.
A one-hour consultation with a lawyer — C$250, credited against your retainer if we act. You leave with routes, timelines and a written fee quote.