The end of the Canada SDS Student Visa will greatly affect the process timing of study permit and it will allow all international students to take part in the standard application process equally.
The purpose of the Canadian Government behind this termination can be managing their policies, housing, resources, economy, immigration, etc.
Canada SDS Student Visa
The Canada Student Direct Stream (SDS) was a program which expedited the visa permit processing for many international students. This program was launched in 2018 by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for some countries.
These countries include the Philippines, Senegal, Antigua and Barbuda, Brazil, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Pakistan, India, Morocco, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Vietnam, and Peru.
The SDS program was ended by the country on 8 November 2024 and now the processing of study permits will take longer time to process. This termination allows individuals to apply to international students with a standard process.
It can be due to less space, housing, and other facilities in the country. The other details such as impacts of this termination are discussed in this article.
Why is the Canada SDS Student Visa discontinued?
There can be several reasons for discontinuation of Canada SDS Student Visa and some of them are discussed below.
Balancing Immigration and Infrastructure:
- Canada is a popular country which attracts many international students due to its high-quality education sector and immigration policies. As a large number of students go for Canada’s education, it affects their infrastructure, including public services, transportation, and healthcare. To balance these issues according to their infrastructure, the government has ended the SDS program.
Housing and Resource:
- The main purpose of ending the SDS program is to manage the accommodation rates and space among local and international residents. Due to the large number of students in major cities, people are facing shortage of houses and resources, and increased rental prices. The government is trying to provide an affordable life by ending this program.
Policy Shifts:
- The one reason for discontinuation of the sdc program can be immigration policy shift. As immigration policies have long-term economic impacts but by ending this program, the Canada government aims to make more balanced policies and strategies which meet the needs of international students.
Economic and Social Consideration:
- As you know, the international students greatly improve and contribute to the country’s economy but the end of this program will promote more development. The government’s purpose is to not limit the benefits of international education in a few urban centres because it wants to distribute it in the whole country.
Impacts of Canada SDS Student Visa End
Those who have applied for SDS before the end of Canada SDS Student Visa can avail the facilities of this program but those who have applied after the 2:00 p.m. ET on November 8, 2024, will go through with the regular study permit process.
The end of this program has many negative impacts such as on the economy of the country.
Due to the late processing time, some students might miss or not take their studies on time. Many institutes whose main focus is to educate international students can face financial hardship due to lack of students.
There can also be several positive impacts of SDS termination because it allows country to specifically think about the new policies and apply them to make them more attractive to international students.
What will be the next steps after end of the Canada SDS Student Visa?
The next steps which students have to take is to apply for a Canada study permit through standard application which can take longer time rather than SDC program.
Students have to apply in advance to not miss the opportunity to study at the best place. This change will not affect the countries where SDS was available before.
All the interested international students have to meet the eligibility requirements of Canada’s study permit and they must have to provide the required information as per the guidelines. The international students will be welcomed by Canada from all around the world.
By ending this program, Canada has provided equal rights to all countries to apply for the study permit without any specific facilities.
This ensures fairness and equality for all international students. Canada’s main focus is to improve the academic experience and is to strengthen the program integrity by providing this fair application process.
Now, no special treatment will be provided to any country students because the same application process will be utilised by every international student.
