It's hard being an international student. For one, you are in a strange and new environment. Another is that it's pretty expensive studying in Canada. And finally, getting permanent resident status after spending of tens of thousands of dollars on tuition and living expenses and years of living in Canada is not as easy as it used to be (thanks to Chris Alexander and the Express Entry).
The first step in qualifying for eventual permanent residence is Getting a Post Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) and unfortunately this is not as easy as it should be.
First of all, there's a lot of misinformation that international students and graduates are dealing with. There's this news article regarding the fact that 50 international students are being denied the PGWP because of the course content (involving distance learning).
I'm just back from the Federal Court on a judicial review challenging the refusal to grant a PGWP to my client. In short, he completed a 2 year program out east, but failed one course in his last semester. The college was offering the program again the next year, but he thought he would just pick up the program by way of distance learning (he thought this would be faster). He got additional study permits, and finally succeeded in passing the course. He then applied for restoration (his study permit had expired) and the PGWP (within 90 days of completing his program).
He was refused. The decision, ostensibly, was that he was not in continuous studies (one of the apparent requirements under the guidelines, but I note that it states "You must have studied" which to me sounds like past tense). Another aspect of the decision proved to be more problematic, which is that the applicant must have a valid study permit when the application for a PGWP is made (he made an application for restoration, but as a worker).
Let me get this straight. If my client had gotten admission into a program of full time studies, then got restoration for a study permit, and then applied for a PGWP, he would have gotten it (ignoring the issue for the "continuous studies" for the time being. He then drops out of the courses? There is of course a presumption against absurdity, and this seems to be absurd.
There's other concerns as well. If he had failed a course in his first year, he could have made it up in the next. But if he fails a course in his last year, he runs the risk of being out of luck because immigration might think that there's a gap or he's not studying full time when the student tries to pick it up later (it should be noted that CIC kept giving him study permits for that course that he had to take a couple of times). That means that no-one who fails a course in their last year of study and needs to make it up over the summer or later will be eligible for a PGWP? That's another absurd situation. It's approaching a no-win scenario for those that fall slightly short academically in their final year.
I think there's a lacuna in the guidelines here. I don't agree with the Department of Justice's position that the full time studies be ongoing (indeed, their own regulations indicate prospective applicants don't need to be in full time status during their final academic session).
So much shouldn't possibly ride on so little. This inflexibility is at odds with the objectives of the Act, which are: a) to permit Canada to pursue the maximum social, cultural and economic benefits of immigration; b) to enrich and strengthen the social and cultural fabric of Canadian society...; c) to support the development of a strong and prosperous Canadian economy [all of which, our international students bring to the table] and finally (g) to facilitate the entry of visitors, students and temporary workers ...
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