India Tops List Of Countries With Highest Number Of Students Staying Illegally In Canada With Over 47,000 Cases

Canada may currently has over 47,000 foreign students who are residing in Canada illegally and not following the rules of visas, which has created questions of loopholes of monitoring and enforcement. The data was revealed by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) during a recent House of Commons committee meeting, according to a report by the National Post.

Students breaching visa rules

IRCC officials said that as many as 47,175 students are “non-compliant”, which means they are not attending classes as required under the terms of their study permits. Aiesha Zafar, head of migration integrity at IRCC, noted that while several nationalities are involved, India is one of the top countries in these cases.

The figure is based largely on reports filed by Canadian colleges and universities, which are required to notify IRCC when international students stop attending classes. These reports are then passed on to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) for possible enforcement action. However, officials admitted that if institutions fail to report students, there is no direct mechanism to track them.

Monitoring gaps raise concerns

Zafar pointed out that determining the exact number of non-compliant students remains a challenge since CBSA is responsible for conducting investigations inside Canada. Earlier this year, IRCC disclosed that in spring 2024 alone, 50,000 foreign students were reported as “no-shows” by their institutions. Out of these, close to 20,000 were from India, followed by over 4,200 from China.

The disclosures have elicited controversy around Canada's international student tracking system, particularly with Canada relying increasingly on overseas students to maintain its higher education sector and labour market.

Sharp drop in Indian study permits

Meanwhile, Canada is experiencing a sharp decrease in new study permits for Indian students.

According to data from ICEF Monitor, only 52,765 permits were issued between January and July 2025, compared to 188,255 in the same period last year. All projections are that by the end of 2025, the figure may not be more than 90,000 permits, a drop of 67.5% from 2023.

Published on: Monday, October 06, 2025, 06:31 PM IST