Number of Hours Eligible to Work Off-Campus (Temporary Policy)

On October 7, 2022, IRCC announced a new temporary measure to address Canada’s labour shortage and temporarily lifted the 20 hours of off-campus work hours to allow some (but not all) international students to work full-time while enrolled in full-time studies.

International students should do a self-assessment to ensure they meet IRCC criteria for this temporary policy based on their study permit application date or study permit status in Canada.

As an international student, you may qualify for this temporary policy if you meet all eligibility requirements for off-campus work AND:

• your study permit was issued on or before October 7, 2022, OR
• you submitted a study permit application (including extensions) on or before October 7, 2022

Your study permit has 1 of the following off-campus work conditions:

• May work 20 hrs. per week off campus, or full time during regular breaks, if meeting criteria outlined in section 186(v) of IRPR.
• May accept employment on or off campus if meeting eligibility criteria as per R186(f), (v) or (w). Must cease working if no longer meeting these criteria.

Note:  If your study permit doesn’t have one of these conditions/remarks, you may request an amendment to your study permit.

Important note: Even though international students may meet the eligibility criteria for the temporary policy, how long they can benefit from it will depend on their study permit expiry date.

This temporary policy is in place from November 15, 2022, until December 31, 2023. However, you may be eligible to work full-time until whichever comes first:

• December 31, 2023
• The completion of your studies (Program Completion letter received)
• The expiry date of your study permit that was valid on October 7, 2022
• The expiry date of your study permit that was issued based on you submitting an IRCC study permit extension or new study permit application on or before October 7, 2022

The VCC International Education team would like to remind all international students that to be eligible for off-campus work authorization, they must maintain full-time academic status for immigration purposes throughout their studies (with the exception of scheduled breaks, authorized leave, and the final academic term).

International students that drop from full-time to part-time academic status or have an authorized or unauthorized gap in studies do not have work eligibility in Canada. VCC programs are designed to ensure that international students maintain full-time academic status throughout their program. Changes to your program schedule can impact your post-graduation work permit (PGWP) eligibility. If you have questions regarding the IRCC announcement, please contact the VCC International Education team at ieservices@vcc.ca.

For more information about working off-campus, please visit the IRCC - Work off campus as an international student page.