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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has confirmed that international students can enter into the country on a Canada study permit to attend short term courses under six months or less.
While international students are unable to come to Canada on a temporary resident visa or electronic travel authorization, they can travel to the country on a study permit.
The Languages Canada has stated that there has been some confusion about whether international students can come into the country on short courses or not. The confusion has occurred because the documentation of study permits does not provide the option for those who wish to study on courses of less than six months. Languages Canada is Canada’s national language education association that provides accredited programs in English and French international students.
In addition to the matter, the official website of the Canadian government (www.cic.gc.ca) said that international students do not require a study permit for a short course of less than six months. However, it recommends getting a study permit anyway, in case students decide to work for part-time or extend their stay in the country.
“IRCC is aware that there is an issue in the [eligibility] questionnaire which does not present applicants the option to apply for a study permit if they plan to study for less than six months and do not require a temporary resident visa. We are currently working to address this issue,” IRCC said.
IRCC further informed that the international students who are interested in applying for a study permit for a short term courses may indicate this during the eligibility questionnaire that they plan to remain in Canada for over six months. It will generate their documentation checklist for applying for a study permit.
When completing the application, the applicant must include his or her actual dates of course, which indicate that he or she intends to study for less than six months.
As per the statement of Mr. Diego Sanchez, international promotion and marketing manager at Languages Canada, there are significant numbers of international students who come to Canada to attend short courses. The association has welcomed 150,000 students last year. Two-thirds of those students came to attend programs of less than six months.
Short term courses in Canada cost between CA$ 5,000 and CA$ 15,000. Certificates are available in the French language, communications, human resources management, business administration and software engineering, among others.
