A new report from Canada's Auditor General has revealed significant gaps in the monitoring and investigation of international student compliance, with only a small fraction of flagged cases receiving proper scrutiny.
Limited Investigations Despite High Volume of Flags
According to the report released on Monday, Canada's immigration department conducted just 4,057 investigations in 2023 and 2024 despite receiving reports of 153,000 potential non-compliance cases under the international student program. The department only has funding to investigate 2,000 cases annually, creating a substantial backlog of unexamined situations.
Nearly 93 percent of 700 Canadian learning institutions submitted reports between 2023 and 2024 that identified these 153,000 cases of potential non-compliance. However, the department took "limited action" in confirming non-compliance beyond contacting students for additional information in the investigations it did conduct.
Challenges in Case Resolution
The report highlighted significant challenges in resolving compliance cases. Approximately 41 percent of investigated cases could not be closed due to lack of response from students. Only 50 cases were identified as non-compliant and requiring further follow-up by the department.
"About 41 per cent of these cases could not be closed because of a lack of response from students," the report stated. "Another 50 cases were identified as non‑compliant and requiring further follow‑up by the department."
Study Permit Approval Rates Plummet
The auditor general's report also examined the implementation of the international student cap announced by former immigration minister Marc Miller in 2024. The findings revealed approval rates for new study permits were substantially lower than initial projections.
In 2024, the department forecasted approval of 348,900 new study permits but only approved 149,559, representing a 67 percent reduction compared to 2023. For 2025, the department projected 255,360 new study permits, but as of September 2025, only 50,370 had been approved.
All provinces experienced larger than expected declines in new study permits, with several provinces seeing a 59 percent or greater decrease in approvals in 2024.
Shift Toward Permit Extensions
The report identified a notable increase in study permit extensions relative to new study permits. Two-thirds of approved study permits were for extensions, totaling 77,295 as of September 2025, with an additional 60,657 extension applications remaining unprocessed.
"This was due in part to the number of international students with post‑secondary study permits who were in Canada, which, according to the department, totalled 675,070 as of September 2025," the report explained.
Tracking Departures and Compliance Issues
A critical finding of the report was the department's failure to adequately monitor which students were expected to leave Canada each year and which had actually departed. The auditor general's office examined 549,000 students whose study permits expired in 2024 and found 93 percent were allowed to remain in Canada.
"It is important for the department to track this information because students are required to leave Canada after permits expire unless they have applied for other immigration programs," the report emphasized.
Of the 39,500 individuals who should no longer be in Canada based on expired permits, the auditor general's office confirmed with the Canada Border Services Agency that only 16,000 had actually left the country.
Government Response and Commitments
In response to the findings, Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab issued a statement welcoming the report and agreeing to implement the recommended changes. "We accept the Auditor General's recommendations to strengthen follow-up where suspected fraud or non-compliance is identified," she stated. "We will act to improve these processes."
The report underscores significant challenges in Canada's international student program management, highlighting both compliance monitoring gaps and substantial reductions in new study permit approvals following policy changes.
