To stay in Canada as a student, you need to have a study permit or a student visa. Your student visa may also enable you to work while living in Canada as an international student. You can work on-campus, outside campus or as an intern. There are certain eligibility criteria you must satisfy for this. If your study permit includes a special condition, you will not need a separate work visa to work as a student in Canada.
Find out if your eligibility to work on or off-campus or as an intern.
Who can work on-campus?
A study permit implies you can start working as a student only when the program you have applied to study for begins and not before it begins. If you don’t have a work permit, then to work as an international student in Canada, your study permit should list the condition that allows you to work on campus. For this, you must satisfy the given eligibility criteria.
- You must be a post-secondary student for full-time at a public post-secondary educational institution such as a university or a college or Collège d’enseignement général et Professionnel in Quebec.
- You can also be completing your post-secondary education from a private college in Quebec that follows public school guidelines and received 50% of its funds from the federal government of Canada.
- You can also be getting your post-secondary education from a Canadian private school that is legally authorized to award a degree under Provincial Law.
- You must have a valid study Visa.
- A Social Insurance Number is a must-have and your SIN must be active.
Who cannot work on campus
You will be required to stop working under your study permit when the following occurs.
- The day your full-time study is completed, you will be required to stop working as a student.
- When your study permit expires.
- While you’re on authorized leave from your studies, you’re allowed to work.
- You cannot work while switching schools or if you are not currently studying.
Where you can work
Work on campus includes all work available at the buildings present inside your University or college campus. If your University has more than one campus, you are authorized to work on the campus you are currently studying in.
You can be authorized to work at other locations if
you wish to work as a teaching assistant or assist in research. In the case of the latter, your work must be related strictly to a research grant. This permits you to work in a library or a hospital or a research facility that is in association with your college, if not present inside the campus.
Who you can work for
While you’re looking for on-campus work, then your employer can be
- Your college or University.
- A faculty member from your school
- A student organization of your educational institute.
- You are also allowed to work for yourself if you own and manage a business that is located on campus.
- You can also work for a private business or a private contractor that provides their services on campus.
Who can work off-campus
Before you begin your work anywhere, your employer and you must ensure that you are authorized to work off-campus. If you begin working but are not authorized to do so, you may be required to leave Canada. You can only begin working when your program of study for which you applied has begun and not before that. You will know if you are authorized to work off-campus without a work permit as will be stated in the conditions on your study permit. To qualify, you must fulfill the following requirements of the eligibility criteria.
- A full-time student at a Designated Learning Institute is a must.
- Enrollment in a post-secondary vocational, academic or professional training program is a must.
- Enrollment in a secondary level vocational training program is also a positive if you are studying in the province of Quebec.
- Your study program must be a minimum of six months long and your educational institute must be authorized to grant you a diploma or a degree or a certification at the end of the program.
- An active Social Insurance Number is a must-have.
If you satisfy all the criteria above, and you’re also a part-time student, then you are only allowed to work off-campus if you fulfill the following conditions.
- If it’s the last semester of your study program, you’re enrolled in.
- If you don’t require the full course load to finish the program.
- If you have been a student who has been full-time until the last semester in Canada.
- If you are on leave which is authorized.
In the last condition also, you aren’t allowed to work off-campus if you’re switching schools or you’re not studying.