Nigeria ranks third among the top ten countries with a high number of international students failing to comply with their Canadian study permits. These students either do not report to their designated colleges and universities after obtaining a study permit or fail to meet the requirements of their permits.
Government data from Spring 2024 revealed that nearly 50,000 international students granted study permits to pursue higher education in Canada were listed as “no-shows” by the institutions they were supposed to attend. This figure represents 6.9% of all international students monitored by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). The issue has triggered national debates over the efficiency of Canada’s international student compliance system, according to Immigration News Canada.
In compliance reports submitted to IRCC in March and April 2024, Canadian institutions disclosed that tens of thousands of students failed to adhere to their study permit conditions. Additionally, the status of 23,514 students, or 3.3% of the total, remains unreported, raising concerns about systemic accountability.
International Student Compliance System
Canada introduced the International Student Compliance Regime in 2014 to ensure accountability among international students and institutions. This system requires designated learning institutions to report twice a year on the enrollment and attendance status of international students. The aim is to detect non-compliant students and identify institutions with potentially dubious practices.
Data indicates that students from countries such as India, China, Nigeria, Ghana, Iran, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Rwanda, and the Philippines exhibit higher non-compliance rates.
India tops the list with 19,582 no-shows, followed by China with 4,279, and Nigeria with 3,902. Countries like Rwanda and Ghana recorded alarmingly high non-compliance rates of 48.1% and 31.1%, respectively, raising red flags about the authenticity of some study permit applications from these regions.
Causes and Responses
Experts cite multiple reasons for this trend, including illegal border crossings. Reports suggest some students, particularly from India, use Canadian study permits as a pathway to illegally enter the United States.
In response, IRCC has intensified efforts to monitor non-compliance and ensure institutions meet reporting obligations. RenĂ©e LeBlanc Proctor, spokesperson for Minister Marc Miller, acknowledged the issue, stating, “Canada is aware of increased exploitation of temporary resident visas, including study permits. This has been exacerbated by organized smuggling networks and global migration crises.”
Balancing Reputation and Integrity
While Statistics Canada estimates over one million valid study permit holders in Canada, IRCC records only 644,349 compliant students. This disparity highlights the ongoing challenge of safeguarding Canada’s reputation as a leading global education hub while maintaining the integrity of its immigration system.
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