British Columbia’s Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills recently published new measures to improve the integrity of the province’s international student program. However, British Columbia limits international student enrolment. 

The Ministry states that it is introducing new protections and setting higher standards for designated learning institutions in the province. One of these protections is the Education Quality Assurance code of practice. 

There are three main objectives under the EQA. To begin, Designated Learning Institutions in British Columbia will be working on ‘limiting international student enrolment to 30% of an institution’s total enrolment’. 

This limit will only apply to the province’s public DLIs. A Ministry representative stated that many of the province’s 25 public post-secondary educational institutions were already under that percentage of international student enrolment. 

When asked if this 30% cap on international student enrolment was on top of the present provincial limit of international students, as dictated by the number of Provincial Attestation Letters the province will issue this year, the Ministry did not specify but did say that the distribution of attestation letters was based on supporting international student programs at public DLIs. 

They also stated that Ministry staff will work with institutions to provide time to adjust their student recruitment to meet the target and manage any financial implications. The Ministry states that institutions will utilize their international education strategic plans, to discuss their strategies to meet the threshold. 

Moreover, British Columbia obtained an allocation of over 83,000 Provincial Attestation Letters for 2024. These letters verify that a student has been accepted to a DLI in a given province. They are a new step to obtaining a study permit in Canada. IRCC introduced this step following the declaration of a cap on the number of study permits it will process in the next two years. 

The number of Provincial Attestation Letters a province allocates is based on population. British Columbia is Canada’s third-most populated province after Quebec and Ontario. How provinces further distribute letters among DLIs is up to provincial governments. In British Columbia, public post-secondary institutions will receive 53% of PALs in 2024, and private institutions will get 47%.

Transparent Fees For International Students 

British Columbia limits international student enrolment. The province states that DLIs in the province will also post tuition levels for students studying in Canada for the entire time they are studying. This will enable incoming students to know how much their entire education will cost before they begin and will help them budget for life in Canada. 

International students contribute heavily to Canada’s economy. A recent report by Global Affairs Canada found that in 2022, international student spending amounted to $37 billion. Moreover, Statistics Canada data shows that in the 2023/ 2024 academic year, international undergraduate students paid over $38,081 in tuition. The province presently hosts over 111,900 international students in public institutions. 

Meeting Standards   

British Columbia limits international student enrolment. As part of the EQA, the province requires that institutions ‘meet/ exceed the institutional quality standards set by the province. Moreover, all public and private institutions enrolling international students must meet these standards.’ 

These standards include the ‘development of international education strategic plans, better student services, housing supports, and standards to ensure non-displacement of Indigenous and domestic students.’ 

Meeting these standards builds on the International Framework measures the province introduced last January. These measures included pausing the growth of the number of DLIs in the province. This will lead to increasing oversight of private institutions and strengthening and publishing compliant and enforcement actions. The province considers the new measures Phase 2. 

DLIs that follow the code will obtain an EQA designation. Those that do not meet the EQA code of practice will lose their designation. As a result, this will make them unable to accept international students.     

If you seek information on how to begin your Canada immigration application process, you can talk to our NavaImmigration experts at 1800-918-8490. You can also drop us an email at [email protected].