Canada: One-year study program and stay back.

Canada: One-year study program and stay back.

The Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE) has said that about 60% of international students plan to apply for permanent residence in Canada. By now, many students will already know that the duration of your study determines the length of your post-graduate work permit (PGWP) in Canada. The PGWP allows international students to work in Canada after their studies and acquire the necessary work experience needed for their career and permanent residence applications. A one-year program will give you a one-year post-graduate work permit (PGWP), and if you do a program of 2 academic years, you will get up to a 3-year PGWP

Now let’s talk about other things!

When you do a one-year program and desire to get a permanent residence status to remain permanently in Canada, you will need to figure out how to become a permanent resident before the expiration of the one-year PGWP. There are several permanent residence pathways in Canada, with different requirements.

However, some students have done this successfully in the past and were able to at least submit a full permanent residence application before the end of the one-year work permit.

But, to do this, you need to plan well!

The Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP) Option

Your planning entails knowing your permanent residence options early and ensuring you submit a complete permanent residence application before the one-year PGWP expires. If you are able to do this, you can then apply for a Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP) that allows you to continue working until a decision is made on your permanent residence application.

Remember that your PGWP is only issued once in a lifetime, but the BOWP will allow you to keep working because you have a permanent residence application being processed. Note that I said you must have submitted a complete permanent residence application (so it is not just expressing interest or setting up a permanent residence profile that makes you eligible for the BOWP

Many students who are able to submit a complete permanent residence application within the one-year duration of their PGWP either got a job early before/after completing their programs, and started working from when they applied for PGWP, or they only needed the Canadian Degree to get more points for other permanent residence programs like Express Entry.

Or they targeted other permanent residence programs such as:

• Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP). More info here
• Atlantic Immigration program. More info here
• Student Provincial Nominee Programs. More info here

With this, they are able to meet the requirements of a permanent residence program early enough and submit an application to become eligible for a Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP) as explained above.

In other instances, students who are already working and have an employer ready to support them can get an LMIA sponsorship for a work permit through their employer, and with this, they can apply for other types of employer-specific work permits to continue living and working in Canada until a decision is made on their permanent residence application.

……to be continued in our next article

Source: Olufemiloye