Market intelligence for international student recruitment from ICEF
28th Oct 2020

Canada shares list of institutions approved to welcome international students

Short on time? Here are the highlights:
  • Canada reopened its borders to international students as of 20 October
  • In order to enter the country, students must have a valid study permit and their institution or school must have had its COVID-19 readiness plan approved by its respective provincial or territorial government

The Government of Canada has published a list of designated learning institutions (DLIs) that have had their COVID-19 readiness plans approved by their respective provincial or territorial government. This approval is a critical factor in an institution or school being able to welcome international students, following the government’s decision to reopen the border to students as of 20 October.

A related statement from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) advises:

"To be able to enter Canada as a student, you must meet 2 requirements:

  1. You must have a valid study permit or a letter of introduction that shows you were approved for a study permit.
  2. You must be attending a designated learning institution (DLI) with a COVID-19 readiness plan approved by its province or territory."

"Your travel to Canada will be considered essential (non-discretionary) if you have all of the required documents and your DLI is on the approved list."

IRCC adds that:

"When the border services officer greets you [at a Canadian port of entry], they look at several factors, including:

  • your reason for travelling to Canada;
  • your ability to complete a 14-day quarantine period as soon as you arrive at your final destination;
  • if you either (i) have time to complete your quarantine before you physically attend classes, or (ii) can study online during your quarantine."

The list

Students are cautioned that they cannot travel to Canada before their DLI is added to the IRCC list of approved institutions: "If your DLI isn’t included below, you can’t travel to Canada to study at this time. If you try to travel to Canada when your DLI isn’t included, you may not be allowed to board your flight or you may be turned away at the port of entry."

Currently included – as of 27 October – on the list are all public and independent primary and secondary schools in British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec. Schools in all other provinces and territories are not approved to receive international students at this time.

Also as of 27 October, there are 558 post-secondary institutions, including colleges, universities, private training institutes, and language schools, on the approved DLI list. Roughly two thirds are in Quebec. There are currently no approved post-secondary DLIs in the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, or Nunavut.

IRCC regularly updates its DLI listing regularly as more institutions have their COVID-19 readiness plans approved by their respective provincial or territorial governments.

For additional background, please see:

Most Recent

  • The surging demand for skills training in a rapidly changing global economy Read More
  • US issues corrected student visa data showing growth for 2024 while current trends point to an enrolment decline for 2025/26 Read More
  • Survey finds US institutions expanding agency engagement and focusing on new student markets Read More

Most Popular

  • Which countries will contribute the most to global student mobility in 2030? Read More
  • Research shows link between study abroad and poverty alleviation  Read More
  • Beyond the Big Four: How demand for study abroad is shifting to destinations in Asia and Europe Read More

Because you found this article interesting

The surging demand for skills training in a rapidly changing global economy With more than 175 million users, Coursera is the largest online learning platform in the world. It currently...
Read more
US issues corrected student visa data showing growth for 2024 while current trends point to an enrolment decline for 2025/26 In April 2025, we reported that foreign enrolments in the US had declined by -11% between March 2024...
Read more
Survey finds US institutions expanding agency engagement and focusing on new student markets AIRC (The Association of International Enrollment Management) and BONARD have just released a second edition of the State...
Read more
Canada’s language sector buffeted by policy changes in 2024 Amid reports of mounting job losses and programme cuts across Canadian education, the country’s language education providers are...
Read more
Language travel sector leaders call for a focus on value amid persistent discount pressure A June 2025 forum convened by ALTO (Association of Language Travel Organisations) confirmed that price discounting in language...
Read more
Canada: List of non-degree college programmes linked to post-study work rights has changed The Canadian government is continuing its policy of linking eligibility for a post-study work permit (PGWP) – at...
Read more
US administration revives proposal to limit terms of student visas The Trump administration has given notice of a proposed rule change that seeks to limit the term for...
Read more
How have changes in policy settings impacted international student recruitment at Australian universities? Over the past couple of years, Australian universities have been operating within a policy framework that makes it...
Read more
What are you looking for?
Quick Links