Canada will temporarily cap new international student permits by one-third this year compared to 2023, the country's immigration minister announced Monday.
The measure is aimed in part at easing soaring demand for housing and social services, with the number of international students set to triple from a decade ago.
Under the cap approximately 364,000 international students are expected to receive study permits this year, or a 35 percent net decrease from 2023. The 2025 limit will be assessed at the end of the year.
The cap is meant to "improve program integrity, set international students up for success, (and) to maintain a sustainable level of temporary residence in Canada," Immigration Minister Marc Miller told a news conference in Montreal.
"It would be a disserve to welcome international students in Canada knowing not all of them are getting the resources they need to succeed and having them return home disillusioned and disappointed in Canada's education system," he added.
The cap will not apply to master's and doctoral students, nor elementary and secondary school students.
Miller said the government will also restrict foreign students' eligibility to receive work permits and crack down on private colleges and sham institutions that charge international students high tuition fees but provide poor or no education at all.
This practice, he said, "is unacceptable."
"It is not the intention of this program to have sham commerce degrees and business degrees" that allow people to come into the country "and drive an Uber," he said.
Speaking more broadly about Canada's study permit system, Miller said that "it's a bit of a mess, and it's time to rein it in."
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Musk Trump Interview | Highlights Of Musk-Trump Interview On X
Canada-India Ties "Very Important": Team Trudeau MP Meets S Jaishankar This Man Completed A 9-Day Journey From Canada To Mexico Using Only Public Transport Air Canada Flight Cancelled After Crew Member's Meltdown Over Passenger's Blanket Request 150 mg Semen In Kolkata Doctor's Body, Suspect Gang-Rape: Parents To Court "Reclaim The Night": Women Seek Justice In Kolkata Doctor Rape-Murder Case "Want To Ask Congress...": Mamata Banerjee Snaps At Ally In Rape-Murder Case Mob Vandalises Hospital During Protest Over Kolkata Horror 8 Of Family Hospitalised After Consuming Wild Mushroom In Jharkhand: Cops US' UCLA Must Protect Jewish Students' Access To Campus, Judge Rules Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.