New Student Visa Process to Study in Canada

A student visa, as the name suggests is a special visa that is issued to the people whose purpose of visit to another country is to get enrolled in a qualified educational institution. This special endorsement is added to your passport and is issued by the government to the students enrolled. The visas are non – immigrant meaning they don’t require the holder to obtain the citizenship of the other country.

Needless to mention, obtaining admission within the university is particularly necessary. These legal documents are the means to achieve all of your pursuits. The student must pay special attention to all the documents required and ensure that they are all in order. Consulting other students who have studied or are studying in that country is a good idea. It helps remove some of the fear and helps foster a better understanding of the process.

Almost every country issues the student visa to allow foreign students to attend school in their country. In many cases it is asked to get enrolled at a post-secondary institution initially. Therefore, all the foreign students acquire a temporary residence visa so that they need not face such problems.

In a country like Canada, it is compulsory to get a special Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC) from any of the participating banks for a particular amount of money for the adjustment of the living expenses of your first year of living. Immediately the student receives a specific amount after the arrival in Canada and then each month he gets paid in 12 equal installments as each month’s living expenses. and this investment is non – redeemable.

Types of Student Visa

Student visas are of two types, depending upon the course you choose and upon the time duration of the course.

 

1. Classification based on Program’s Duration

Depending upon the length of the program the individual is going to take, the countries usually divide the visa into short term student visa or semi-permanent student visa. And these short term student visas are often given to students who take a small course of a language or a credential certificate course in Canada. Their entire period is usually restricted to ninety days i.e. 3 months approximately. The long term visas are given to the ones who take up the degree courses which extend for more than three months and further might embrace internships and other certification programs in Canada.

2. Classification based on the Type of Program

Other than the length of the course, Canada classifies the coed visas on the basis of student. It could also be affected by the extent of degree applied for. That is, whether it is as an undergraduate, graduate, or doctoral, exchange student or student applying for a certification course. Generally these visas conjointly depend upon the course one selects, and they are linked somewhere with the tenure. However, in Canada, the classes, the primary purpose of distinction isn’t how long the program would be, if one wishes to go for an associate degree, then he would be going for three month period or whatever the time required and the class would still be supported with the type of student and not the tenure.

 

Documents needed for the Student Visa application in Canada

Canada has a particular list of documents to be filled before giving the student visa. However, the precise necessities are totally different in the actual terms; the list is generic. All the basic requirements include:

• A valid passport

This is the very first requisite when you wish to travel to a different country. Many countries would only need the validity of the course even at the time of applying for the scholar visa. Some may even allow you to apply; however, they may request you to own a validity that is extendible on the far side. You furthermore may have to be compelled to make sure that you’ve got a minimum of two blank pages in your passport for stamping for a visa. The necessary thing is that in case you’ve got any terminated passport, you would still be required to submit a duplicate of all of them.

• The proof of a bonafide student

While applying for a student visa in Canada for, if you’re applying for any class of student visa then you have to be able to prove that you are a bonafide student. This is usually done by giving a confirmation of admission with an academic institute of that country as evidence.

• Financial lucidity

In Canada, you need to prove that you are capable of not only taking care of the school expenses, but also of all the requisite finances to afford your keep in that country for the supposed study time period. Canada also has stipulated the quantity of fund amount that is given to the student before applying for a visa. The student, therefore, is asked to give proof that the same quantity is obtainable with them in cold cash and have to scan the additional document concerning money needed for the study-abroad applications.

• Proficiency in language

Another issue is that in Canada before getting into the university a proof is required that you can communicate effectively within the language which might be your medium of instruction. Since most of the scholars decided to study in English speaking countries, most of them would need to supply evidence that they will just communicate in English – both written and verbal for the case in point. This is often done by a minimum score demand for numerous West Germanic languages tests like TOEFL, IELTS and/or PTE. Canada usually considers the score of the exam IELTS and takes in the student on the basis of that.

Correct time to apply for Student Visa

If one is planning to study in Canada, then meticulous planning is required before starting. Students are always asked to plan their admission process considering the university deadlines in Canada and then planning their whole schedule. All of them are advised to appear for the English eligibility tests as per the university policy in Canada and keep their respective documents arranged for the application process to avoid end moment mistakes. Therefore, students as advised applying 2-3 months earlier. This is so that, if the students require any financial aid, scholarship or educational loan, ‏there is enough time to process all the documents

The process to apply for Student Visa

The process to apply for a student visa in Canada begins when you apply for the university and when it offers you a letter of acceptance. Only the students who receive the letter of acceptance from the university in Canada, you are allowed to go ahead and begin with their visa application process. Candidates can apply for the visa in two ways:

• Online Visa Application – it is more convenient to apply for a student visa through the online mode in which all you need to do is create a student profile and fill the forms online by attaching all the scanned documents to the university in Canada.
• Offline Visa Application – it is a little bit hectic as compared to the online visa application process as you need to first get the printout of all the forms available online from the university page of Canada and then by yourself, you need to go and submit the form to the required authorities in Canada itself.

Once you apply, then only the visa application fee payment part is left. If one is submitting the online form then one has to pay the fees also online, otherwise in the offline mode you submit the fees to the concerned authority in Canada. The final process would include the student submitting the application along with their supporting documents.

For Visa Extension, things required

The specific time period for the visa issued will relate the type of visa you are applying for initially. In case your study permit expires before the completion of your studies in Canada, then you have to apply for the renewal of your study permit and this has to be done before the completion of your visa time period. The renewal application can be submitted through the mail or online.

It is absolutely essential that a student follows all the rules of the application process diligently. When a person travels to another country to pursue a course, the person assumed the role of an informal ambassador of his/her own country. Their actions speak are sometimes all that the natives of the other country will see as the representation of the country they come from. This has the potential to affect the chances of future foreign students. For this purpose, it is essential that from the start of the visa application process, a student behaves takes care of all the rules and regulations of the new country.