Universities Canada says international student enrolment now below federal cap

Enrolment by foreign students has fallen below the cap set by the Trudeau Liberals, Universities Canada says. Organization president Gabriel Miller says the change will be greater than the federal government predicted resulting in a financial hit to schools, reports The Canadian Press.

In January, Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced the government would approve approximately 360,000 undergraduate study permits for 2024 — a 35 per cent reduction from 2023.

Immigration Minister Marc Miller warns of a possible recession as the Liberals backtrack on an influx of temporary foreign workers in Canada. "Some of the rhetoric out there is just downright unhelpful," adds Labour Minister Randy Boissonnault.https://t.co/TXq29qhTJo pic.twitter.com/YtpgnsDMd8

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"It's unacceptable that some private institutions have taken advantage of international students by operating under-resourced campuses, lacking supports for students and charging high tuition fees all the while significantly increasing their intake of international students," he said at the time.

The number of international students has added more pressure to an already strained housing supply, the National Post reported in August 2023.

Nearly two-thirds of Canadians say Liberals’ immigration targets are too high: poll

The Liberals are currently planning on bringing in a million newcomers by 2026. https://t.co/15vQRkiT2g

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“Data released earlier this year by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) show 807,750 international students with valid student visas studying at Canadian post-secondary institutions as of the end of 2022. At 30-per-cent higher than the 617,315 students in 2021, it’s now at the highest level it’s ever been.”

International students have played an increasing role in how schools are generating revenue, a researcher told the Post. 

Chrystia Freeland attempts to shift the blame for the effects of mass immigration onto colleges and businesses.

Freeland claims some institutions invite students here to "abuse them" and takes credit for introducing a cap on international students. https://t.co/TXq29qhTJo pic.twitter.com/6gzQrioKO9

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“In Ontario, university tuition fees are frozen, grants are frozen, but the only variable that universities have to generate new revenues is international students, so they naturally go and chase those,” said Steve Pomeroy, a policy research consultant and senior research fellow at Carleton University’s centre for urban research.

The full impact of the Liberals attempts to address the issue won't be known until September when the new semester begins, said Universities Canada president Miller.