• October 13, 2022

Canada lifts 20-hours working limit for international students to deal with labour shortage

OTTAWA Oct 13: The Canadian government has lifted the 20-hour-a-week limit on the number of hours international students can work off-campus as it continues to face a labour shortage. Employers in Canada were actively looking to fill nearly one million jobs as of July when the country’s job vacancy rate fell to 5.4 percent from a peak of 6 percent in April.

Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Minister Sean Fraser announced on Friday, “There’s more job opportunities than there are workers in almost every community in Canada.” He added that while some international students will work in service jobs, he expects some to find employment in their field of study.

The restriction, however, has been lifted temporarily from 15 November 2022 until 31 December 2023 to deal with the historic labour shortage. The new policy will only apply to students studying full-time.

Canada has become increasingly dependent on temporary residents, including international students, to fill its labour force needs. Advocates and economists say this creates a precarious workforce and can depress wage and working conditions for all employees.