How to Apply for Canadian Study Permit Yourself
Congratulations it is good news that you have been offered an admission letter, and you are a step away from achieving your study abroad goal. Now it is important for you to submit a strong, well-prepared, and presented Canada Study Permit visa application, continue reading, this post is for you.
You will possibly need a Canadian study permit visa to study in Canada if your proposed program of study is longer than 6months. However, you can check if you need a study permit, you can do a quick assessment here. And after the assessment, check the documents you need for a Canadian study permit visa here.
Apparently, you need to create an IRCC secure account because it is advisable to submit your application online. You can create this account here provided you have a Canadian Bank account, the “GCkey” account is what you need. Create one and ensure to keep your login details safe.
There are 3 key important things to keep in mind when applying for a Canadian Study Permit
i. Purpose of Study/Program
ii. Availability of Funds/Financial standing
iii. Strong proof of home that can make you leave Canada after study
The success of your visa application is determined by the quality of your documents and how they are presented to show you meet the visa requirements.
– Why do you want to study the course and how it will help you achieve your career goals?
– How will you fund the program/
– Do you have strong ties outside of Canada
Now that you have created your account then you can log in and begin your application. Once you’ve login into your account, you will see a landing page like the one below stating apply to come to Canada”. Click on it.
Once you are able to do things correctly and answered the necessary questionnaires, your visa application portal will come up and you will see the list of application forms and other required documents. These documents are tailored to you based on the answers you provided.
Note that the list of documents is tailored to you based on your answers to the application questionnaire, so this is a list of documents is not generally for everyone. Therefore there are some common documents you will also need
Some of the common documents you will need are:
Application Forms:
– For Study Permit Application Made Outside of Canada. (IMM 1294)
– Family Information Form ( IMM 5645 or IMM 5707)
– Schedule 1- Application for a Temporary Resident Visa made outside Canada option but recommended)
Other Important Documents are:
– Letter of Acceptance for Admission
– Proof of Means of Financial Support/ Financial Standing
– Passport( International Passport)
– Digital Photo
– Proof of Medical Exam
– Letter of Explanation/Statement of Purpose
The Application Forms:
– Make sure you fill the forms accurately
– No false information
– Do not withhold any important information
– You do not need to print the forms to sign, you just need to put your name and/ or the date below
– Before you save and upload the forms back on the placeholder for your document ensure you validate them.
– Schedule 1- Application for a Temporary Resident Visa, Although the form says optional but is a very important form. Fill out and submit it as well.
– Family Information Form, listing all your siblings & required family members, even though you are not on talking terms with them now, there is a reason for this.
ALSO READ: HOW TO USE A 1-YEAR STUDY PROGRAM TO STAY BACK IN CANADA
Proof Of Means of Financial Support
The things you should take note of for the proof of means of financial support is to make you and or all your sponsor have enough funds to support you and still be able to take care of other financial responsibilities they have. Although the idea is to be able to show that you have enough funds for all the costs of your study in Canada.
The total of your study expenses is the total of your tuition usually for the first year only even if your program is more than one year, plus your living expenses in the first year and other additional expenses like flight fees.
* For example, if the total funds you need for tuition + Living expenses + other expenses for yourself or a family member who is a dependent is $40,000 CAD, you need to show that you still have something extra.
* If you have a dependent going with you then you will have to show that you have enough funds to cover their living expenses in the first year including your own tuition, living expenses, and any other fees.
* If you want to know the amount required for your living expenses and documents to show, you can check the IRCC Website here.
After you have proof that you have enough funds to cover your fees like tuition, living expenses, and any other expenses, etc. in the first year, prepare and present any other additional assets and source of income to show where your fees in the second year and other subsequent years will come from without having to work in Canada.
The Visa office is usually concerned about seeing that the funds for your first-year program are actually available in your account, they are also interested to know that you or your sponsor have genuine sources of income to show you will not be stranded in Canada in the following years.
The various ways you can show these sources of income are through your personal and economic assets such as:
* Proof of income and investments from the applicant or sponsor(s)
* Proof of property documents with the property valuation or proof of ownership
* Document of business ownership for the applicant or sponsor(s)
* Then any other sources of income or economic assets that can be easily converted to cash like rental properties, fixed investment, pension funds, etc.
ALSO READ: HOW TO APPLY AND STUDY IN CANADA
Add all these documents to your statement of account or other proof of funds you are presenting and provide them as part of your proof of funds.
Make sure you label and list them accordingly in your proof of funds cover so that the visa officers can clearly see them and know how to identify the additional documents in your proof of funds document.
Sponsors can be:
* Scholarships or Grants
* Self Sponsor or Spouse
* Parents or Partners
* Direct Siblings
* Employers
* Close Relatives( who can proof that they are genuinely ready to support you)
* Study Loans
Your sponsors could also be from multiple sources. For example, you may have
* Partial Scholarship + Support from parents
* Scholarship + Siblings
* Two of your siblings sponsoring you etc.
Your sponsor should have funds in excess of what you need not exactly the amount you need for your tuition and living expenses in their account. This is very important because convincing enough to say all they have is what they are giving to you, they have other financial responsibilities too even if they are your parents.
International Passport
You will scan the data page of your current passport, stamped pages/visas, and stamped pages of your previous passports to show your travel history if you have any.
Digital Photo
Check here for the digital photo specification
Medical Exam
For your Canadian study permit, you will need to do this, although you can wait for the IRRC to request the medical or you may decide to do an upfront medical exam. Although it is advisable you do an upfront medical exam to reduce your application processing time.
The upfront medical exam is compulsory for you if you are a Nigerian applicant and you want to use the Nigerian Student Express(NSE) route.
All other Categories of applicants can also do the upfront medical or wait until they receive the request for the medical from the IRCC. Although doing an upfront medical or NOT, it won’t have any effect on your application. If your application gets to the stage where the medical examination is needed, IRCC will send you a letter instructing you to go and get one.
If eventually, you decided to get an upfront medical after your application has been submitted, you can go and get one and then send in your eMedical sheet to IRCC using the IRCC web form here.
For more information on where to do the medical examination check the IRCC website here.
The Nigerian Student Express
For more information on what the Nigerian Student Express is all about check here
Apparently, NSE doesn’t have a separate application process, but you may be contacted to provide some documents for the NSE after submitting your Canadian study permit application.
If found eligible for the NSE application route, note that using the NSE for application is not compulsory, it is optional.
Client Information/Letter of Explanation/SOP/Study Plan
If it is stated on your application portal that it is optional, please don’t ignore it. This is where you need to provide additional documents. Your letter of explanation/SOP/Study Plan, police report, certificates/transcript/resume/etc should be converted into a single document.
There are some important things you need to address in your Canadian study permit Letter of Explanation/SOP/Study Plan.
Firstly, the Letter of explanation/SOP/Study Plan must be a clear, concise, and precise summary and any additional clarification/information.
Arrange the letter very well and analyze it in the sub-section to make it presentable.
A letter of explanation can also be referred to as a Statement of Purpose (SOP) for Canadian Study Permit Visa applications.
Some of the important things to address in this letter are;
- An introduction about yourself
- Why the program and why the school you apply to?
- How the program you are coming to study will be beneficial to you and your country upon the completion of your program
- Showing proof of financial standing
- Your professional experience, Home ties, Travel experience if any
Keep in mind to make sure you are only presenting relevant documents that will support the success of your visa application because every document placeholder in your application will only be able to accept a doc size of 4MB.
Getting a Canadian study permit is competitive and can be delayed too, also the rate at which Canada visa refusal is high. The quality of the document you are submitting has a big impact on the success of your application. Although, Canada needs people in their country that do not mean they will accept anyhow person.
ALSO READ: 9 Common Mistakes People Make While Writing SOP
Information for Applicants with Previous Canadian Study Permit Refusal
It is not the end of your dream of coming to Canada if you have a previous Canadian study permit visa refusal or a refusal of any type of Canada visa.
Take your time to address every issue raised in your previous refusal. If you need guidance on what you can do after a Canadian study permit Visa Refusal, click here.
More importantly, submitting your Canadian study permit on time must be a very strong, well-prepared, and well-presented Visa application.
Summarily, applying for a Canadian study permit is straightforward if you follow the step-by-step guide. We wish you the best of luck with your Canadian Study permit Visa Application. And if you want us to partake in your Japa success story click here to start your application now.
