Market intelligence for international student recruitment from ICEF
8th Jan 2025

Canada: Updated rules for PGWP-eligible college programmes and student transfers

Short on time? Here are the highlights:
  • Canada has expanded the list of college programmes whose graduates will be eligible for Post-Graduation Work Permits to now include dozens of programmes in early childhood education and development service worker training
  • Immigration officials have also clarified the terms of a now-official grace period for current students with respect to new rules around student transfers

Following a flurry of announcements affecting international students throughout past year, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) provided two important updates in the final weeks of December 2024.

The first expands the list of college programmes for which graduates will be eligible to receive a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP). The second provides clarification on how some students will be eligible for a grace period with respect to new rules about transferring from one institution to another within Canada.

Expanding the list of eligible college programmes

In October 2024, IRCC announced a new "field of study" requirement for graduates of college programmes, including degree programmes, explaining to students that, "If you graduated from a college programme, you must graduate in an eligible field of study in order to be eligible for a post-graduation work permit."

The effective date for that new policy was 1 November 2024, meaning that students who had applied on or after that date would be bound by new rules, including the field of study requirement. Students who applied for or held a study permit prior to 1 November 2024 remained eligible for a PGWP under the previous rules.

IRCC also provided an initial listing of PGWP-eligible college programmes at the time. This amounted to 966 eligible academic programmes in five broad areas: agriculture and agri-food; healthcare; science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM); skilled trade; and transportation.

The new development in this area occurred on 17 December 2024, at which point IRCC expanded the list of eligible programmes to include nearly 40 additional options in two new fields: early childhood education and developmental service workers.

A grace period for student transfers

On 15 November 2024, IRCC announced that, with immediate effect, students must apply for a new study permit when transferring to a new institution.

There was some suggestion at the time, however, that students currently enrolled in Canada would benefit from a grace period before the new transfer rule would apply. In late-December, IRCC clarified the terms under which those cases would be handled.

The grace provisions apply to students who had previously been enrolled in Canada and had been accepted to continue their studies via transfer to a new institution for either the Winter (starting from 1 January 2025) or Spring (starting from 1 May 2025) semesters. IRCC otherwise requires that such students:

  • Have already applied for a study permit extension;
  • Have a student permit that doesn't have the DLI name printed on it;
  • Otherwise be in compliance with all existing study permit conditions.

"If you meet these criteria," IRCC concludes, "You can attend the new DLI you wanted to transfer to while your study permit extension is being processed."

For additional background, please see:

Most Recent

  • Australia: With ELICOS under pressure, peak bodies push for reduction in “extortionate” visa fees Read More
  • Mystery shopping study finds broad improvement in student enquiry handling this year Read More
  • South Korea hits its 300,000 student target two years ahead of schedule 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

Australia: With ELICOS under pressure, peak bodies push for reduction in “extortionate” visa fees The latest data from the Department of Education reveals that enrolments in Australia’s ELICOS sector (English Language Intensive...
Read more
South Korea hits its 300,000 student target two years ahead of schedule In 2023, the South Korean government announced a plan to attract 300,000 international students by 2027: 220,000 in...
Read more
Canada: Study permit numbers are in steep decline in 2025 In 2024, the first year under Canada’s current cap on new international student enrolments, the total number of...
Read more
UK confirms levy on international student fees as new analysis argues that government is “drastically underestimating” the impact of the move Updated for 30 September 2025: On 29 September, the Department of Education announced that it would reinstate “means-tested...
Read more
US administration’s new H-1B policies create uncertainty around post-study work rights The H-1B programme is a key policy mechanism for international students in the United States. Aside from the...
Read more
China leverages higher education capacity with expanded TNE partnerships As with most statistics about China, the latest higher education figures are a little dizzying. Enrolment in the...
Read more
France reports more than 443,000 international students in higher education for 2024/25 The latest data release from Campus France reports a record-high foreign enrolment in the country. There were 443,500...
Read more
Foreign enrolment in Canadian K-12 held steady in 2024/25 International student enrolment in public school boards in Canada declined marginally this year. The latest data from the...
Read more
What are you looking for?
Quick Links