The Canadian Government always welcomes international students. Apart from a famous tourist place, Canada continues to captivate a large number of international students from all over the world. For getting admissions in the top universities, a student should have outstanding academic achievements. But the entry into the country is restricted only to those students who comply with the following requirements.

WHAT IS STUDY PERMIT?

 A study permit is a document issued by Citizen and Immigration Canada (CIC) to international students to study at Designated Learning Institutions (DLI) in Canada. You can apply online for a study permit. It is a document that will permit you to study in Canada.

Documents required to study permit:

1.   A valid passport

2.   Letter of acceptance of university/college/school

3.   Two passport size photos

4.   Proof of financial support (You can show bank statements, receipt of payment of tuition and accommodation fees, documents of Canadian bank account, etc.)

5.   Good health (medical check-up report)

6.   No criminal record (show a police report)

WHAT ARE DESIGNATED LEARNING INSTITUTIONS?

These institutes are the universities or colleges which are authorized by the government to admit international students. Some universities or colleges are not recognized as DLI so beware while applying to those colleges.

STUDENT VISA

 A study permit allows you to study in Canada, not entry in Canada. For entry purposes, you should have a visitor visa or Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA). You can apply for a student visa after you get an acceptance letter from the institute. You should remember that obtaining a Visa takes a lot of time so you should apply for it on time. If you think your college will start in September then you should start the Visa process in May-June.

HOW TO APPLY FOR VISA?

You have to submit your student visa application online on CIC official website. The visa fee will be of CAD150 approximately as you are an international applicant. If you are paying online then you should remember that system only accepts credit cards, not debit cards.

STUDENT DIRECT STREAM

If there is a sudden change of plans and you want to go to Canada for higher studies, then you have the time constraint. So in this case, Indian students can avail themselves of the benefit of fast visa processing. Normally, it takes about 2-3 months to obtain a visa but with the help of SDG, you can attain your visa within 4-6 weeks. However, you may need to submit some more documents but that does not matter nowadays.

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR VISA APPLICATION

1.   Your scanned passport. The validity of the passport should be of that much time for which you have planned to stay in Canada. If your graduation is completed in four years, then the passport should expire after these 4 years.

2.   You have to attach the acceptance letter from the Designated learning institute.

3.   Police certificates should be attached so as to show that you have a clean criminal record.

4.   You have to submit a medical certificate showing that you are fit and fine and recognized by the Immigration Medical Examination. All international students have to undergo this test to be qualified for studies in Canada.

5.   You should submit a letter of Declaration stating why they should issue you a study permit or student visa.

6.   You should also submit a letter of explanation stating that you will always obey the law and you will fulfill your responsibilities as a student.

7.   If the model of your application is offline, then you are required to submit two passport size photographs of dimensions 35mm x 45mm.

8.   You have to show proof of financial support. You have to prove to them that you are in the condition of covering the tuition fee as well as accommodation and travel expenses. According to Canadian Immigration Deem, the minimum requirement for a student to study in Canada would be CAD10,000 per year.

9.   English proficiency is a must for obtaining a Canadian Visa. This can be proved by showing your IELTS score which is recognized worldwide.  The IELTS score for Canada is a minimum of 6 per band.

HOW LONG IS CANADIAN STUDENT VISA VALID?

The Canadian student visa is valid for the time period of your course and 90 days extra. These 90 days are given to you so that you can either apply for a visa extension or pack your belongings to leave Canada.

The Canadian student visa also permits you to leave the country during the holidays. While returning, you have to prove to them that you are enrolled in a college in Canada.