Canada’s decision to sharply reduce foreign student permits has hit Indian students the hardest. The issue matters because Canada has been the largest overseas study destination for Indians, and tighter admissions now affect education mobility, migration pathways, and the wider India–Canada relationship.
What happened
Canada’s 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan will cut the annual cap on new permits for foreign students by 50% compared with the earlier 2025–2027 plan. Canada reduced student-permit numbers from about 2.2 lakh in 2015 to 6.8 lakh in 2023, and then cut them by 44% to 3.8 lakh in 2025.
Background and earlier position
Canada became a major destination for Indian students because of post-study work opportunities, immigration pathways, and a large Indian diaspora. Indians overtook Chinese students to become the largest student immigration group in Canada, with a peak share in 2022.
Canada hosted about 12.54 lakh Indian students abroad in 2025, and Canada accounted for roughly 34% of that total, ahead of the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Indians’ share in Canada’s student inflow fell by 12 percentage points from 2024 to 2025.
Related current affairs
- Chinese incursion / 40 years ago (archival reference block)
- U.S. hikes 9–11 response fee for Hi-B1-B and L1 visa extension from Sept 19
- India expands e-visa entry points, starts allowing 9 landing ports
- E-visa entry points update: E-Visa entry permits at airports/ports now expanded; 9 in 10? (details shown as small box)
- News in Frames: Migrant arrivals in Spain (Ceuta) and Spanish returns to Morocco
- Photograph: Migrants from Morocco cross into Spain’s enclave of Ceuta