Letter of Attestation needed for International Students

As of January 22, 2024, all post-secondary students who are not enrolled in a Masters or PhD program in Canada, will now need a letter of attestation from the province. Over the past week, this has caused a great deal of confusion, as the original news release wasn't clear about exactly which programs would require this letter, however it has now been clarified, and the current wording is that you are only exempt from this requirement if you are:

• a minor child in a primary or secondary school (kindergarten to grade 12)

• a student in a masters or PhD

• a student applying to extend your study permit

Everyone else cannot submit their application for a study permit without this attestation letter from the province or territory where they plan to study with their study permit application.

This comes as a real blow to tens of thousands of applicants to study in Canada, as the vast majority of international students apply to study a post graduate diploma or certificate program, which are now subject to these new requirements.

The news release came as a huge surprise, as although we had been expecting the cap on international students, there had been no mention of any further restrictions or requirements. The most difficult aspect of this news is that there was no warning, the attestation letter is required as of now. None of the provinces had anything in place to issue these letters, meaning that no study permit applications can be submitted until these letters have been issued.

As a result, everyone is on hold, leaving schools and provinces desperately scrabbling to begin issuing these letters, students left waiting for further news as to when they can submit their applications, and immigration professionals not being able to shed any more light on the situation.

The future for international students in Canada is changing fast, and hopefully the next few months will reveal more clarity and reveal a bit more certainty for those involved. You can keep up to date with the requirements here: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/study-canada/study-permit/get-documents.html#attestation