NEWS: IRCC announces the new Student Direct Stream (SDS)

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has made an announcement today concerning international students from certain countries wishing to study in Canada. As Canada continues to be a prime location for international students not only to obtain a quality education but also to settle after their studies, we are pleased to hear that IRCC has pledged to bring faster processing times for study permit applications.

The first countries eligible to the new Student Direct Stream are:

China
India
Vietnam
Philippines

International students from these countries who can demonstrate that they have sufficient funds (financial self-sufficiency) AND language skills will automatically benefit from a faster processing time for their study permit applications.

To be clear, the requirements for the SDS are stricter than the normal study permit requirements, which justifies why those who can meet these language and financial requirements can benefit of faster processing times. Those who are refused for the SDS can still apply for a regular study permit stream.

The SDS is very similar to existing accelerated study permit programs such as the Student Partener's Program (SPP). IRCC has also released that they are working on expanding the SDS to other countries in Africa such as Kenya and Senegal, but no official statements have been confirmed yet.

Eligibility for the Student Direct Stream:

You must first have an acceptance letter from a designated learning institution (High school, College, University) which has a designation to host international students
You must submit proof that your first year tuition is paid upfront
You must purchase a Canadian Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC) of $10,000
You must complete an upfront medical examination
Language requirements -Minimum score of 6.0 in the IELTS english language test OR -Minimum score of 7.0 in the TEF french language test OR -graduction from a high-school with a Canadian curriculum