HESA: The Contemptible OSAP Cover-Up

2026/10/14 Leave a comment

Yet another example of mismanagement:

….The first part I know for sure – it’s how the federal government got drawn into this mess and also why it eventually cut all private institutions out of the grants systems in last year’s federal budget (something I wrote about back here before I had any of this context). The feds don’t have the power to cut out any single institution from the program (only provinces have that), and so the feds spent most of 2025 asking Ontario “what the hell is going on in those institutions”? And when they were fobbed off with various weak-ass answers (”it’s a post-COVID thing…online education is big now, we shouldn’t try to stifle innovation…”), the feds pulled the plug. So, important data point here: the feds knew there was something bad in a specific few institutions over a year ago and asked the province to do something. The province chose not to act.

The second part, re: the nature of the scam, I don’t know for sure. Details will presumably come out in county at some point: Allison Jones of the Canadian Press published some juicy preliminary tidbits about ten days ago. But just for now, assume that something was happening, something bad enough that Career Colleges Ontario (CCO), the association which represents private post-secondary institutions in Ontario, was moved to tell the government – “we have bad actors in our sector and you need to act”. We know this is the case because the government said so in its press release last week. But again, check the date. CCO did this in January 2025. So why did it take so long for the province to move?
(I assume there are journalists out there looking at political contributions made by the owners of these institutions. This work will be helpful in understanding provincial government motivations).

One might try to excuse the government’s lengthy time-to-get-off-its-ass by saying “oh that’s just the speed of government, it never does anything quickly.” But this is not true. The government may have waited until this summer to move against bad actor private colleges, but it used the crisis to attack students and OSAP itself much earlier….

Source: The Contemptible OSAP Cover-Up

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Canada’s largest private English-language school files for bankruptcy, leaving 1,300 students scrambling

2026/09/21 Leave a comment

Not surprising, given that previous immigration levels were unsustainable, resulting in business models being equally unsustainable. Hard of the students of course:

…According to Languages Canada’s 2025 Annual Survey Report, member institutions welcomed just 81,636 students recently — down nearly half from the 150,112 students enrolled in 2019. The organization attributes the drop to federal study permit caps introduced in January 2024 and unpredictable visa policies, which choked the pipeline of students entering Canadian colleges and universities through preparatory language pathway programs.

In 2019, the language-education sector directly and indirectly generated $6.75 billion in economic activity for Canada and supported 75,000 jobs, Languages Canada reported. Peralta says those revenue figures have now been cut in half.

ILAC’s collapse comes less than a week after another major international chain, EC English, closed its operations around the world, including three campuses in Canada.

Languages Canada told the Star it has found new academic homes for all 471 students impacted by EC English’s closures at its campuses in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. 

Staff at ILAC were given virtually no notice of the closure. One ILAC teacher, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of harming future employment prospects, described receiving an email late Friday morning urging staff to attend an urgent virtual town hall call at 4:15 p.m.

During the brief meeting, ILAC chief executive officer John DeFranco read a prepared statement informing staff the school was closing immediately after failing to secure new investors….

Source: Canada’s largest private English-language school files for bankruptcy, leaving 1,300 students scrambling

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Valizadeh: How Canada’s immigration caps are trapping its own graduate students

2026/09/18 Leave a comment

Hard to argue against greater predictability and stability. And the impact of drastic changes, without some transitional measures, is particularly unsettling, poor policy and unfair to many of those caught by changes:

…Some policymakers may argue that the system is doing what it is supposed to do: admitting only a select group of graduates and expecting the rest to take their skills elsewhere. 

But a system that relies on abrupt rule changes and unstable pathways isn’t really identifying “the best.” What it’s actually rewarding is whoever can most easily absorb uncertainty, financial risk and administrative complexity, rather than those who are most rooted in Canadian communities or best positioned to contribute over the long term.

For students who have already invested years of work, savings and emotional energy into building a life here, that distinction matters. A fair system should offer more. 

If Canada wants to remain credible as a destination for talented international graduates, it needs to back that reputation with something concrete: clear and stable pathways to permanent residence for the people it has already encouraged to stay.

Negar Valizadeh Geography, Environment and Geomatics, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa

Source: How Canada’s immigration caps are trapping its own graduate students

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La chute du nombre d’étudiants internationaux se poursuit dans les universités québécoises

2026/09/11 Leave a comment

As designed and expected:

Le nombre d’étudiants internationaux continue de chuter dans plusieurs universités québécoises, montrent des données compilées par Le Devoir. Une situation qui compromet sérieusement les finances de certains établissements, dans les grands centres urbains comme en région, en plus de miner la recherche universitaire et l’avenir de certains programmes.

Sur la dizaine d’universités contactées, sept ont fourni au Devoir des données préliminaires qui confirment une baisse marquée du nombre d’étudiants internationaux entre leurs murs cet automne, par rapport à la même période l’an dernier. Celle-ci atteint notamment 12 % d’une année à l’autre à l’Université du Québec à Montréal, 25 % à l’Université de Sherbrooke et plus de 30 % à l’Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR). Une situation qui préoccupe le recteur de cette dernière, Christian Blanchette.

« C’est majeur », indique M. Blanchette, qui rappelle que cette baisse des inscriptions s’ajoute à celle, déjà marquée, notée l’an dernier. En somme, « la tendance se maintient », et « elle n’est pas bonne », poursuit celui qui est également président du conseil d’administration du Bureau de coopération interuniversitaire, qui regroupe les 18 universités québécoises.

Cette situation survient dans un contexte où les décisions politiques prises par Québec pour limiter l’accès à la résidence permanente aux étudiants internationaux ont fait chuter les demandes de permis d’études dans la province en deçà des plafonds établis par Québec et Ottawa….

Source: La chute du nombre d’étudiants internationaux se poursuit dans les universités québécoises

The number of international students continues to fall in several Quebec universities, according to data compiled by Le Devoir. A situation that seriously compromises the finances of certain institutions, in large urban centers as well as in the region, in addition to undermining university research and the future of certain programs.

Of the ten universities contacted, seven provided Le Devoir with preliminary data that confirm a sharp decline in the number of international students within their walls this fall, compared to the same period last year. This notably reaches 12% from one year to the next at the Université du Québec à Montréal, 25% at the Université de Sherbrooke and more than 30% at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR). A situation that worries the rector of the latter, Christian Blanchette.

“It’s major,” says Mr. Blanchette, who recalls that this decrease in registrations is in addition to the one, already marked, noted last year. In short, “the trend continues,” and “it is not good,” continues the one who is also chairman of the board of directors of the Interuniversity Cooperation Office, which brings together the 18 Quebec universities.

This situation comes in a context where the political decisions taken by Quebec City to limit access to permanent residence to international students have caused applications for study permits in the province to fall below the ceilings established by Quebec City and Ottawa….

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The private school market serving international secondary students in Ontario has grown

2026/09/04 Leave a comment

Relatively understudied compared to post-secondary, with a range from “puppy mills” to more established:

The private secondary education market for international students in Ontario is growing quickly, yet a lack of regulation raises concern about quality as well as children’s safety.

The number of private schools for international students in Ontario has increased by more than 265 per cent since 2017. 

At that time, research found only 48 private schools for international students. Our 2025 research documented 174 schools explicitly targeting international students in a larger dataset of 370 private secondary schools in Toronto.

While government policy and media critique has focused on international university students in Canada, secondary schools have attracted far less attention. 

Our recent research has found that the private secondary education market for international schools in Ontario is concerning. 

Drawing on a “netnography” approach — a qualitative methodology for adapting ethnography for the online world — we analyzed the 174 school websites, examining and coding data about how they market themselves to families from the Global South. 

Among the larger number of secondary schools in our study, we identified 138 as “schools of concern,” with regard to four themes: exploiting the notion of western superiority; selling the Canadian advantage; potentially over-promising students’ safety and care; as well as dubious-quality offerings.

Source: The private school market serving international secondary students in Ontario has grown

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Classified report reveals how India’s Bishnoi gang uses Canada’s student visa program

2026/08/07 Leave a comment

Another example of policy failure:

…A classified intelligence report obtained by Global News reveals the Bishnoi gang’s Canadian franchise has relied heavily on Indian youths who, like Brar, entered the country on student visas.

Written by the Canada Border Services Agency, the report cites the gang’s “growing operational presence in Canada” and “demonstrated use of Canada’s immigration programs for criminal purposes.”

“Investigations increasingly identify Indian foreign nationals on study permits and work permits as participants in these organized criminal activities,” the CBSA’s Intelligence and Investigations Directorate wrote.

“The sustained expansion of Bishnoi-linked extortions and the involvement of student permit and work permit holders raises significant concerns for CBSA operations.”

The “Tactical Guide,” titled “The Bishnoi Gang: An Emerging Threat in Canada,” was circulated in December 2025 to help immigration officers tackle the crime group as it preyed upon the country’s South Asian communities.

Although classified, a copy made public by the court shows how the government’s controversial foreign student program may have contributed to Canada’s Indian gang problem….

Source: EXCLUSIVE: Classified report reveals how India’s Bishnoi gang uses Canada’s student visa program

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Why hundreds of international students are suddenly being denied Canadian work permits: ‘We have done nothing wrong’

2026/08/04 Leave a comment

Necessary correction and a reminder that governments and stakeholders need to be more mindful of raising expectations and avoid creating situations that require reversals or tightening:

…Government says update was to ‘clarify’ criteria 

In 2024, Ottawa made drastic changes to the international student program amid a public backlash against the soaring temporary resident population, in part by restricting access to the coveted postgraduation work permits. 

International graduates must meet new language proficiency requirements and those completing public college diploma programs will only be eligible for postgraduation work permits if their field of study is linked to labour market shortages in Canada.

According to data obtained recently by Vancouver immigration lawyer Steven Meurrens, the approval rate for postgraduate work permits has dropped by 8 percentage points from 87 per cent in 2023 to 79 per cent as of November 2025.

The Immigration Department said there have been no changes to the eligibility criteria for the post-graduation work permit (PGWP) program, and the website was updated just to “clarify” the existing rules involving non-credit programs.

“To be eligible for a PGWP, applicants must complete a program of study that leads to a degree, diploma, or certificate from a designated learning institution,” it explained in an email. “This long-standing requirement does not include general interest programs, ESL/FSL programs, and other types of non-credit programs.”

The department said it does not track data specific to non-credit study programs and therefore couldn’t provide the number of postgraduation work permit refusals based on this ground.

Source: Why hundreds of international students are suddenly being denied Canadian work permits: ‘We have done nothing wrong’

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Indian students arranged marriages of convenience for spouse work permits to Canada, warned New Delhi migration official

2026/07/29 Leave a comment

The warnings were there:

The number of Indian undergraduate students applying to come to Canada has dropped over the past few years, in part because Ottawa ended a program granting the spouses of international students work permits, an internal government communication shows. 

The communication discloses how marriages of convenience by some Indian students had enabled their spouses to accompany them to this country to work and to help them pay for their studies.

A 2025 e-mail report, obtained under access to information laws, to immigration department officials from Canada’s High Commission in New Delhi discusses a number of integrity issues involving Indian students, including marriages of convenience.

Marriages linked to immigration to Canada were advertised in Indian newspapers and dating apps, according to the report.

But a change in the rules in 2024 by then-immigration minister Marc Miller closed this avenue to Canada for international students’ spouses. …

Richard Kurland, an immigration lawyer who obtained the e-mail through an access to information request, said Canada can pick who it wants to come here to study and “that should mean only the people who can afford to study in Canada without working.”

“Study permits should not be a dating trampoline to Canada,” Mr. Kurland added. 

The number of Indian study permit holders dropped to 93,840 in 2025 from 188,125 in 2024 and 277,950 in 2023, according to IRCC figures, reducing a key revenue stream for many colleges and universities. 

Syed Hussan, executive director at Migrant Workers Alliance for Change, said he thought the drop in numbers was because “people are choosing not to go to countries where they cannot go with their families.”…

Source: Indian students arranged marriages of convenience for spouse work permits to Canada, warned New Delhi migration official

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ICYMI – Urback: Canada does not owe international students a path to residency

2026/07/28 2 Comments

Suspect this represents a majority view even if federal and provincial governments, along with education institutions, were complicit:

…None of this is fair in the very colloquial sense of the word. The Canadian government was explicitly marketing student visas as a path to permanent residency by inviting foreigners to “study, work and stay in Canada,” and prospective students responded in droves. In 2023-24, there were 428,077 student visa-holders in Canada, which was up nearly 50 per cent from just before the pandemic. And the reason why that number exploded was not because people from Punjab were suddenly ecstatic about the opportunity to learn hairdressing at the Eikonic Academy in Mississauga, but because everyone knew it was an easy way to start a new life in Canada. You could even work as much as you wanted while you ostensibly studied for a degree to take back home.

The Canadian government cannot and should not do anything now to placate the international students protesting for PGWP access, even though Ottawa played a major role in setting their expectations in the first place. Canadian residency cannot be for sale, even if the Canadian government dangled the prospect just a few years ago. This is an unfortunate outcome for those who risked everything to start a new life in Canada, but the process was always that: a risk. 

Source: Canada does not owe international students a path to residency

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Canada’s immigration policies are creating new barriers for international students

2026/06/24 Leave a comment

Good example of leanings of immigration scholars, many of whom remain in denial over some of the abuses:

…The International Student Program reflects a deeper contradiction in Canada’s approach to international students. Canada encourages international students to come here and support economic growth. However, those students are now also blamed for abusing the system and exacerbating pressures on social services and housing.

For example, a recent House of Commons report suggested international students misuse asylum claims and recommended a cap on applicants from countries with high student application rates, such as India, Nigeria, and the Republic of Guinea.

There is an urgent need for more equitable policies. The way IRCC connects geopolitics and domestic issues with student recruitment legitimizes discriminatory immigration screening based on students’ race, ethnicity and nationality.

Current caps have led to a reduction of more than 60 per cent in international student enrolment. Yet, the recent Auditor General report showed a significant increase in students from European countries even after the enrolment cap was implemented.

Emma Harden-Wolfson Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education, McGill University

Source: Canada’s immigration policies are creating new barriers for international students

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