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The Government of Canada wants international students to become permanent residents in the country, said Ahmed Hussen, Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.
Addressing the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration of Parliament, the minister said stress has been given in the new multi-year immigration levels plan of Canada for ensuring more space for international students who would like to live in Canada.
Eligible students can apply for permanent residence in Canada either through Express Entry or through Provincial Nominee programs.
Express Entry
In the changes introduced to the Comprehensive Ranking System of Express Entry in November 2016, the number of points awarded to job offer was brought down from 600 to between 50 and 200. At the same time, additional points were introduced for Canadian study experience. As a result, an international student who has completed a one or two-year post-secondary program in Canada will receive 15 CRS points and those who have completed a post-secondary program of three years or more, or Master’s, Doctoral, or eligible entry-to-practice professional degree, will receive 30 CRS points. Within six years after these changes were introduced, the proportion of international students who received invitations to apply for permanent residence from the Express Entry pool increased by 10 percent.
Provincial Nominee Programs
Many provinces have international graduate streams as part of their nominee programs that allow international graduates to apply for permanent residence. They include the Masters and PhD Graduate Streams of Ontario and the International Post-graduate category of BC PNP’s Express Entry pathway.
Moreover, the former international students can now count the time they spent in Canada on study permit while applying for citizenship.
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