Since the start of 2025, the number of new foreign students arriving in Canada has been declining. There were 214,520 fewer arrivals to Canada between January and June 2025 compared to the same period in 2024.
This is nearly a 57% fall in the total arrivals, including international students and foreign workers, in the first six months of the year, compared to the same period last year.
A total of 245137 work permits and 125034 study permits were issued between January and June of 2024.
The numbers dropped to 119234 for work permits of foreign workers and 36417 study permits, between January and June 2025.
This is an over 70% fall in the number of international students and a 50% decline in foreign work permits.
Study Permits
To study in Canada, 88,617 fewer new students arrived between January and June 2025 compared to January to June 2024.
From a high of 45,806 study permits issued in April 2024, the study permits issued in April 2025 fell to 8,543. The lowest number for this year was recorded in March with just 3,819 permits issued.
In May and June 2025, Canada issued 4,553 and 4,185 study permits, respectively.
Canada’s Immigration Plan
Canada introduced an annual cap on international student study permits in 2024 and announced a further 10% reduction in 2025.
In January 2024, the Government of Canada announced that set an intake cap on international student permit applications for a period of two years. This measure reduced the number of international students coming to Canada by about 40% and also eased pressures in rental markets with high student populations.
For 2025, IRCC planned to issue a total of 437,000 study permits, which represents a 10% decrease from the 2024 cap.
Other measures were also taken to tighten the study permit allocation process. To implement the cap, every study permit application submitted to IRCC also requires an attestation letter from a province or territory.
Also, starting September 1, 2024, international students who begin a study program that is part of a curriculum licensing arrangement are no longer eligible for a postgraduation work permit upon graduation.
Further, open work permits were made available only to spouses of international students in master’s and doctoral programs. The spouses of international students in other levels of study, including undergraduate and college programs, are no longer eligible.