According to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, it has updated its list of approved Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs) that are currently permitted to welcome international students during the COVID-19 pandemic. A DLI is defined as a school, university, or college allowed to host international students. These include prominent institutions such as Waterloo, Ryerson, Windsor, and others.
Earlier in 2020, Canada had introduced travel restrictions for international students to check the spread of COVID-19. Only those with a study permit or approval issued on or before March 18 were allowed to travel to Canada. However, Canada has now started to relax these restrictions in order to allow more international students to enter its borders. This is great news for international students.

The CIC states that students enrolled in DLIs will likely be allowed to enter Canada by border officials. However, all individuals entering Canada are required by law to self-quarantine for 14 days or pay hefty fines.

International travellers arriving by air must install the ArriveCAN app. They will also be required to submit travel and contact information, quarantine plan, as well as a daily self-assessment of COVID19 symptoms.
The move takes cognizance of the drop in international student enrolment in Canada according to a study by CourseCompare. The study shows a 9% drop in student enrolment across 50 higher education institutions in the country. It is surmised that international students are reluctant to pay hefty fees for online education that is, currently, the most viable medium of education.

Canada is hoping to check this downwards trend in numbers with these new measures.
 

Tags: Canada, COVID19, international students, immigration, news