Everything You Need To Know About the Post-Graduate Work Permit in Canada
One of the most significant considerations for any student while picking an international learning destination is the possibility and scope of attaining employment in the country. Often, when students head to a foreign country for higher education, they wish to gain some work experience, and this is why they prefer to go for options that allow them to extend their stay after completing their degree and take up employment. This is one of the reasons why Canada is a favoured learning destination for students all over the world. It welcomed over 642,000 international students last year. Indian students have also shown an increasing preference for Canada as a learning destination. In 2019, Canada approved over 4 lakh study permits of which 1.39 lakh or 34.5% went to Indian students (source: TimesOfIndia)
Canada offers a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) that lets students extend their visas and stay in the country for up to 3 years upon graduating from a Canadian post-secondary institution.
While the length of your PGWP would depend on the length of your course, the most advantageous factor of a PGWP is that you do not need a job offer at hand to apply for this permit.
Eligibility Criteria for Attaining a PGWP (source: canada.ca)
- A student must have graduated from a Canadian designated learning institution (DLI). However, students must note that not all DLIs make them eligible for a PGWP.
- They must have taken a program that is longer than eight months.
- Graduates must apply within 180 days of graduating or receiving a written confirmation from their university, stating that they have met the learning requirements of their program.
- Graduates must have a valid study permit when applying for the PGWP.
Validity Of PGWP (source: canada.ca)
As mentioned above, the validity of your PGWP would depend on the duration of your course. However, there are a few guidelines that you must know of.
If your program was longer than eight months and shorter than two years, you may receive a post-graduate work permit as long as the duration of your course. For instance, if your program was for ten months, you may be able to attain a PGWP for ten months.
If the duration of your program was longer than two years, you may receive a PGWP for the duration of 3 years.
Moreover, in case you have taken more than one program, you can attain a PGWP equivalent to the duration of both the courses combined.
Some More Noteworthy Facts around PGWP
If students are awarded a PGWP, they can be exempted from the Labor Market Impact Assessments (LMIA). (Source: cic.gc.ca/)
Applicants are allowed to work full-time in Canada after applying for their PGWP if their application was initiated before the expiration of their study permit. (Source: cicnews.com)
The following infographic will give you a quick recap.
A Post Graduate Work Permit is definitely one of the many advantages of studying in Canada. Through this permit, students can get a chance to attain relevant work experience and build a strong resume by achieving employment in Canada.
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