ENROLMENT REQUIREMENTS: STUDYING AND WORKING IN CANADA
On November 6, 2025, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced several changes to the International Student Program for 2026:
- PAL Exemption: Starting January 1, 2026, incoming graduate students (Master’s or PhD) studying/attending at public institutions will be Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) exempt. Further details are available on IRCC's graduate student website. Applications submitted before January 1, 2026, must still include a valid PAL. Learn how to receive your SFU PAL.
- Faster Processing for Doctoral Students: PhD students and their accompanying family members applying from outside of Canada may qualify for expedited study permit processing, if they apply within the same application. Applications may still be subject to background checks, which may delay processing times.
- 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan: IRCC has set a target of 155,000 new international student arrivals for 2026. This target applies to study permit applications made from outside Canada and does not include study permit extensions or in-Canada applications. Learn more about the 2026 provincial and territorial allocations under the international student cap here.
- Life as a Graduate Student: Prepare yourself for life in Canada by learning about housing options, study costs, employment opportunities, and more.
We encourage students to monitor IRCC’s website for the most up-to-date information and will update our News and Updates page as additional details become available.
Each institution determines the minimum course load required for full-time status.
Full-time enrollment is one of the requirements to work on or off campus (see IRCC website). It is your responsibility to ensure that you meet IRCC’s eligibility requirements to work on or off campus.
SFU considers students to be full time for immigration purposes in a given term, if they are:
- Undergraduate Students (including post-baccalaureate programs)
- enrolled in a minimum of 9 units in the Spring, Summer and Fall term.
- enrolled in a minimum of 9 units in the Spring, Summer and Fall term.
- Graduate Students in one of the following scenarios:
- enrolled in per term fee programs
- enrolled in a thesis, project, capstone course or field exams
- enrolled in 6 or more units per term in per unit fee programs
OR any one of the following:
- Undergraduate and Graduate students enrolled in a full-time Formal Exchange Program (“FEP”) or Field School (outbound exchange and field school), or
- Undergraduate and Graduate students enrolled in a full-time co-operative education placement (“Co-op”), approved internship or practicum as per program requirements, or
- Undergraduate students enrolled in a total minimum of 9 units as part of the Dual Degree partnerships between SFU and Langara, Douglas and Kwantlen, or
- Graduate students enrolled full time under the Western Deans Agreement, in any given term, or
- Visiting International Graduate Research Students (see more information) enrolled in “Grad 800”, or
- Visiting International Undergraduate Research Students (see more information) enrolled in "UG 400", or
- Students for whom the Centre for Accessible Learning has approved full-time equivalency, despite their carrying a reduced load