A foreign national intending to study in Canada must remember that he/she must obtain a study permit.
Acquiring a study permit is approved at the discretion of the Canadian immigration officer.
In some cases, foreign nationals’ application for a study permit is declined or turned down for various reasons.
Reasons for Refusal of Study Permit
Applying for and obtaining a study permit by a foreign national is very frustrating, involving complicated rules and regulations, subjective interpretation by immigration officers, and a cumbersome and expensive appeal process, including a lack of transparency.
The reasons are as follows:
- Insufficient finances: The Program Delivery Instruction clearly states that the applicant must possess and supply proof of adequate finances just for the primary year of the course. Yet, applications often get rejected because the immigration officer suspects financial insufficiency. Hence, a specialization in the primary year might not suffice. Ideally, you will minimize chances of rejection by showing proof of adequate finances covering you for the first year of study, accommodation, and any other accompanying family.
- Dual Intent: A study permit is a temporary visa with a validity period and expiration date. In your study permit application, you must convince the visa officer that you will leave the country when your permit expires.
That does not mean you cannot apply to extend your study permit or get a permanent residency in Canada.
The government designs programs to help students stay and work in Canada following their studies or transition to permanent residence.
This means that the visa officer has to trust that you will not stay in the country illegally when you are out of status.
This is usually a problem if you don’t demonstrate that you have good reasons to want to return home.
The cursory reading of the states clearly states that temporary residents are permitted to try their utmost to become permanent residents, provided they shall leave if the permit expires before they achieve Permanent Resident (PR) status.
Working towards PR automatically indicates intent to overstay in Canada which is questionable and the Dual Intent doctrine doesn’t permit any such idea.
The application can be rejected for reasons not even stated in the guide, as the applicant intends to seek permanent residence in the country. - Choice of Program: The applicant’s choice of study must be relevant and correspond with his or her intent to study abroad. If the program differs from the intent, the application will be refused.
This is because the applicant’s intentions do not correspond with his/her educational background or work history. - Letter of Acceptance: For an applicant to obtain a study permit to study in Canada, the applicant must obtain a Letter of Acceptance from a Designated Learning Institution(DLI) in Canada.
Your acceptance letter must be submitted to the immigration officer to verify its originality. If the officer doubts the letter’s originality, your application will be refused.
To address this issue, make sure you have your documents reviewed to see if they are clear and understandable. - No Job Prospect in Home Country: A letter from the present employer indicating that the applicant is assured of gaining employment within the home country after completing his or her education abroad needs to be capable of proving employment prospects.
Applicants without employment can submit proof that the study course they shall join will help them qualify for jobs within their home country.
Otherwise, the immigration officer may conclude that the study permit is meant to assist the applicant in settling permanently in Canada. - Travel or Identity Document: If applicants do not have a complete record of travel history or if applicants’ identity documents are unclear, the immigration officer will reject their study permit.
Appealing Against Study Permit Refusal
Once an applicant’s study permit is rejected or refused by the immigration officer, the applicant will have to appeal for reconsideration of the study permit.
- Reconsideration: This involves requesting the immigration officer to reevaluate and reconsider the first decision. The offer is not obligated to entertain such requests, which suggests there’s little or no scope for a reversal of the rejection, even if the request is accepted within the first place.
- Re-Applying: In this case, you’ll reapply again to an equivalent application you were previously refused. This is often only beneficial if your circumstances have changed and you’ve got new information that will improve or clarify your application. it’s important to seek out where you went wrong the previous time to enhance your chances.
- Appealing the Decision: If the applicant believes that his/her application met all the requirements as mandated by the IRRC. In other words, if you feel your study permit was wrongly or unfairly declined, then you can appeal the decision and request to consider your study permit.
- Submitting a new Application: The option of a new application is of least advantage for the applicant. Reapplication causes the refusal to become a neighborhood of the record, which suggests a wrong rejection can become the idea for rejection of future applications too. the new application, they should pay careful attention to address the previous reason for refusal. As well, if any documents need to be updated
