'No shows': Nearly 20,000 Indian students flew to Canada, but did not join college

During March and April 2024, educational institutions reported to IRCC on students from 144 countries, with non-compliance rates varying widely

Nearly 50,000 international students who received study permits for Canada were marked as “no-shows” at their respective colleges and universities, a report revealed, citing government figures for two months last spring. Of these, almost 20,000 were from India.

In total, non-compliant international students made up 6.9 per cent of the total number of international students recorded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), The Globe and Mail report revealed.

The figures were obtained through the International Student Compliance Regime, a program requiring educational institutions to report on enrolment twice a year to verify adherence to study permit conditions.

During March and April 2024, educational institutions reported to IRCC on students from 144 countries, with non-compliance rates varying widely. As far as India is concerned, 3,27,646 were compliant were 19,852 were not compliant. Moreover, information on 12,553 Indian students was not reported by the institutions.

Henry Lotin, a former federal economist and immigration expert, told The Globe and Mail that most of the Indian students who were no-shows at their institutions likely remained in Canada, working while aiming for permanent residency. He suggested that requiring international students to pay their fees upfront before arriving in Canada could help reduce system abuse.

Last month, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had said that it is investigating the alleged involvement of some Canadian colleges and a few Indian entities in a money laundering case linked to the trafficking of Indians into the US from the Canada border. Instead of pursuing their studies in Canada, the students reportedly crossed into the United States illegally.

The ED probe was precipitated by the death of a four-member Indian family, hailing from Dingucha village in Gujarat. The four died of extreme cold while trying to cross the Canada-US border illegally on January 19, 2022.