Toronto: In a big relief for thousands of international students, the Canadian government has now withdrawn the 20-hour-a-week limit on the number of hours the international students can work off-campus as it continues to face a labour shortage. The job seekers in Canada were looking for nearly one million jobs as of July when Canada’s job vacancy rate came down to 5.4 percent from a peak of 6 percent in April.Also Read – Canada Issues Guidelines For Indian Students, Asks Them Not to Start Working Before Course Begins. Full Advisory Here
Giving details, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Minister Sean Fraser earlier this week said that more job opportunities are there than workers in almost every community in Canada. Also Read – Vandalism in Canada Park Act of 'Hate Crime': Indian High Commission
He also stated that while some international students will work in service jobs, he expects some to find employment in their field of study. Also Read – Heartwarming! Window Cleaners Dress Up As 'Superheroes’ to Cheer Up Kids at Hospital | See Pics
Speaking to CNBC TV 18, Rohit Sethi, director of overseas study consultancy ESS Global, said that as there is rise in the number of job openings, Canada has been actively making changes in its permanent immigration system giving priority to the people who are already in Canada under the Canadian experience subclass.
Canada lifts restrictions temporarily
It must be noted that Canada has lifted the restriction temporarily from 15 November 2022 until 31 December 2023 to deal with the labour shortage. The new policy of the Canadian government will only apply to students pursuing full-time courses.
How relaxations will benefit Indian students
- Till the time the new guidelines are introduced, international students studying in an eligible Canadian institute will continue to work off-campus for no more than 20 hours per week during their classes. But during scheduled breaks like summer and winter holidays, their working hours could exceed 20. After the new guidelines come into effect, students can do that even when enrolled in an active educational programme.
- As the cost of living in Canada is higher, Indian students and other international students will be able to support themselves better financially now.
- The Indian students, who are more than one-third of all international students studying in Canada, will benefit the most from this decision of the Canadian government.
- Kshitij Purohit, Lead Commodities and Currency, CapitalVia Global Research, told the news portal the longer hours will provide Indian students more opportunities to earn money, which will benefit them to combat the decrease in the Indian Rupee.
- The move from the Canadian government will also expand the chance for many overseas students to get necessary job experience in Canada and increase the workforce pool to support Canada’s post-pandemic growth.
- Giving details, Canadian Immigration minister Fraser said withdrawal of the limit will give students a better choice of employment opportunities, making them less likely to fall victim to “unscrupulous employers.” He said that the move will create a better opportunity for students to not fall victim to an individual employer they may be beholden to. The minister also announced a pilot project to automate some approvals of study permit extension applications to address a backlog.