Canada unveils immigration plans, cuts intake of students

Canada unveils immigration plans, cuts intake of students 

Lubna Kably | TNN 06.11.2025

Canada unveiled its new Immigration Levels Plan for 2026–2028 early on Wednesday, confirming that the country will hold steady the intake of permanent residents and admit 3.8 lakh annually over the next three years. However, it has sharply curbed the number of temporary residents — especially international students. 

International students face the sharpest reductions in the plan, with admissions capped at 1.55 lakh in 2026 and 1.5 lakh in 2027 and in 2028; almost halving the levels announced last year. The immigration levels plan unveiled last year (for 2025-2027) had projected an an intake of 3.05 lakh students in 2026 and in 2027. The plan, released as part of Budget 2025, reflects what officials call a ‘balanced approach’ to immigration, stabilising permanent resident levels while moderating temporary inflows. 

Canada’s population is around 415 lakh and the strain on infrastructure has led govt to rein in the inflows of immigrants. “We will balance the number of new arrivals with the planned departure of international students and temporary workers as their status expires in 2025 and 2026. 

We have committed to reduce temporary resident volumes through departures, program limits, and lower immigration levels to less than 5% of population by the end of 2027,” said Lena Metlege Diab, minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship. In this context, Lisa Brunner, Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) and postdoctoral research fellow at Centre for Migration Studies, pointed out, “They are also counting on the proposed Bill C-12, also known as ‘Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act,’ being passed into law so they can more forcefully encourage the ‘self-deportation’ of temporary residents with no permanent residency options. Missing from govt’s Levels Plan is the estimated number of undocumented people living in Canada and whether govt expects that number to increase.” Matthew McDonald, RCIC, noted, “The big surprise is a 50% cut to international students — from the earlier projection of 3.05 lakh to 1.5 lakh in 2026. At first glance, the reduction may not seem significant, because we do not anticipate more than 1.5 lakh study permit approvals in 2025. 

However, the lower target will also reduce the number of admission offers that colleges and universities can make, putting pressure on Canada’s international education sector.” Manish Kapoor, RCIC added that this does not bring good news for Indian students aspiring to study in Canada. “The halving of the study-permit targets means it is going to be much harder to get a study permit—especially for Indian applicants, who are already facing a refusal rate of over 50%. If the application volumes remain high, I anticipate refusal rates could be as high as 80%.” 

The Trusted Institutions Framework, announced in mid-2023, aims to tighten quality control in international education. Institutions with strong student-support systems, transparent finances, and compliance records will be recognised as ‘trusted’, receiving streamlined and speedy visa processing. “Indian students should focus on trusted institutions and robust financial documentation to maintain strong profiles, especially for the next step towards permanent residence,” said Naumaan Hameed, lawyer and immigration specialist at Greenberg Hameed PC.” 

The targets for temporary foreign workers (TFWs) is set at 2.30 lakh for 2026, to be sustained at 2.20 lakh in each of the next two years. Kubeir Kamal, RCIC, is optimistic about an announcement to introduce an accelerated pathway for skilled H-1B workers. “This ends a strong message to the global talent pool: Canada is committed to attracting the best innovators and technology leaders to boost our competitiveness and longterm productivity,” he states.