Study Permit Conditions Explained

Getting the study permit is the part everyone focuses on. Keeping it is the part that quietly ruins people.

A study permit is not a licence to be in Canada. It is a permit with conditions attached, and breaking them can cost you your status, get you removed, and in some cases bar you from applying again from inside Canada for six months.

Here is exactly what you agreed to.

The conditions, in plain terms

You must be enrolled at a Designated Learning Institution, unless you are exempt.

You must be ACTIVELY PURSUING your studies.

You must enrol in every academic semester, apart from scheduled breaks.

You must make progress toward completing your program.

You must not take authorised leave longer than 150 days.

You must leave Canada, or obtain new status, before your permit expires.

Actively pursuing your studies is the one that has teeth. It is not a formality. IRCC means enrolled, attending, and progressing. A student who is registered on paper but not really studying is in breach, and schools now report enrolment status to IRCC.

The 90 day rule that catches graduates

Your study permit becomes INVALID 90 days after you complete your program. It does not matter what expiry date is printed on the permit.

Completion is dated from when your school FIRST tells you, whether that is by completion letter, transcript, or diploma.

So the printed date on your permit is not your deadline. Your marks are.

This is the single most common way a well behaved student ends up out of status. They see a permit valid for another eight months, relax, and discover three months after graduation that they have been working and living here without status.

Once you finish, you have 90 days. Use them.

Authorised leave, and its limit

You can take an authorised leave from your studies, but not longer than 150 days.

Your DLI has to authorise it, and you need to be able to prove that. A permanent school closure counts. So does a strike.

Two things people get wrong about leave.

You CANNOT WORK during authorised leave. Not on campus, not off campus, regardless of what your permit says about work authorisation.

And unauthorised leave is not a minor slip. If IRCC finds you took leave without authorisation and did not meet your permit conditions, you may lose your eligibility for a Post Graduation Work Permit entirely.

Work limits are permit conditions too

Breaking your work limits is breaking your study permit.

You cannot work at all before your program starts. Not the week before. Not one day.

Off campus, during a regular term, the cap is 24 hours per week ACROSS ALL JOBS COMBINED.

During a scheduled break, off campus work is unlimited, provided you are eligible before and after the break.

If your program has no scheduled break, the 24 hour cap applies.

On campus, there is no IRCC hour limit.

Between schools, while not studying, you cannot work.

The 24 hour figure is current. If your permit still says 20 hours, the 24 hour rule now overrides it, as long as you continue to meet the eligibility requirements.

But note the direction of that override. It raises your limit. It does not excuse having exceeded the old one.

Working more hours than you were allowed does not just risk a fine. It breaks the condition that lets you work full time while your PGWP is being processed, and IRCC checks.

Changing schools is a condition, not a choice

You cannot simply move to a different DLI on your existing permit.

You must apply to extend, get a NEW study permit, and have it approved BEFORE you start at the new school. Since 22 January 2025, that application also needs a new PAL or TAL.

If you move without telling IRCC, here is what IRCC says happens. Your old school reports you as not enrolled. You are in breach of your study permit conditions. Your permit may become invalid, or be cancelled. You may be asked to leave Canada. And you may be prevented from coming to Canada in future.

That is not a warning about a slap on the wrist. That is a description of losing everything.

If you break a condition

IRCC may ask you to leave Canada.

You may also have to wait 6 MONTHS before you can apply for a new study permit.

And a breach can disqualify you from the PGWP, which for most students is the entire point of coming.

The three things that actually protect you

Watch your marks, not your permit expiry. The 90 day clock starts when your school tells you that you finished.

Count your hours honestly. Twenty four a week in term, across every job, including the cash one.

Never move schools before the new permit is approved. Not I have applied. Approved.

Not sure which pathway is right for you? Our RCIC-licensed consultants can advise you on the best strategy based on your immigration goals.

Prepared by Fernando Amaro, KGraph Immigration. Last updated July 2026. General information, not legal advice.

Prepared by Fernando Amaro, KGraph Immigration Consultants. Last updated July 2026. This guide is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or immigration advice.