Work off campus as an international student

Last fall, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Sean Fraser said he was temporarily lifting the 20-hour-per-week cap on the number of hours eligible post-secondary students can work off-campus while class is in session. This change started last November and is ending December 31, 2023.

The rules impacted full-time students who were authorized on their study permit to work in Canada.

The purpose of the measure was to “provide eligible international students with a greater opportunity to gain valuable work experience in Canada, and to increase the availability of workers to sustain Canada’s post-pandemic economic growth,” a spokesperson for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada told Daily Hive.

As international students will once again be limited to a 20-hour work week in 2024, some may be strained by the change.