Citizenship and Immigration

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration met to study the international student program and study permits. Appearing as witnesses were Soyoung Park, Assistant Deputy Minister, Economic Programs; Aiesha Zafar, Assistant Deputy Minister, Migration Integrity; Pemi Gill, Assistant Deputy Minister, Service Delivery; and Bronwyn May, Director General, International Students Branch, all from the Department of Citizenship and Immigration.

Soyoung Park outlined a series of reforms to the international student program, including a cap on study permits that led to a 21% reduction in permit holders and over 98,000 fewer arrivals in 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. She highlighted the introduction of mandatory verification of acceptance letters, which intercepted 14,000 potentially fraudulent letters, raised financial requirements to over $20,000, and tightened postgraduate work permit eligibility with language and field-of-study requirements. Park noted early results showing cooling rental markets in communities with universities, citing a CMHC report, and stated that the department is still assessing the full impact of the reforms.

Aiesha Zafar discussed integrity measures, including a mandatory student compliance regime where designated learning institutions report twice a year on student registration, with spring data showing 91% compliance and 8% potentially non-compliant, representing about 47,175 students. She explained that IRCC conducts 2,000 investigations annually for non-compliance and works with law enforcement partners to update indicator packages for officers. Zafar also addressed Bill C-2, stating it would enable greater information sharing across IRCC business lines and with provinces and federal partners to improve fraud detection, but she could not confirm whether the bill is charter-compliant, deferring to Justice colleagues.

Pemi Gill described digital modernization efforts to improve processing efficiency and client transparency, including the use of advanced analytics for risk triaging, updated processing time publications, and automatic provision of officer decision notes to clients upon refusal. She noted that IRCC does not track the specific reasons for study permit withdrawals, but can provide data on refusals related to criminality.

Bronwyn May confirmed that Global Affairs Canada has commissioned studies on the financial impact of the international student program on GDP and post-secondary institutions, with an update expected soon.

During questioning, witnesses provided data on asylum claims, with Park noting a 48% decrease in claims from study permit holders in July 2025 compared to December 2024, and agreed to table information on nationalities of former students claiming asylum. Zafar clarified that removal orders are under CBSA jurisdiction, with 18,000 total removals in 2024, but no specific data on students. Park stated that 200,000 new postgraduate work permit holders were recorded in 2024, a 15% decrease from the previous year, and agreed to provide data on their geographic mobility. On fraud, Zafar identified India as a top country for identified fraud and noted that the department uses trends to improve processing, citing a 241% increase in fraud detection in the visitor program after similar measures. Witnesses disagreed with the Bloc Québécois member’s assertion that the federal government bears sole responsibility for program abuses, emphasizing shared jurisdiction with provinces over designated learning institutions.

The committee gave verbal notice of a motion to summon Dr. John Tibbits, president of Conestoga College, to testify, citing concerns about the college’s role in student program abuses.