As many as 47,000 foreign students in Canada may have violated their visa terms, according to a representative from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Aiesha Zafar, head of migration integrity at the agency, reported that 47,175 individuals who entered Canada as students are potentially non-compliant, meaning they are not attending classes as required by their visas.

Zafar provided this information during a House of Commons committee meeting on September 23. She clarified that the figure is based on reports from post-secondary institutions that have lost track of these international students. "We have not yet determined whether or not they are fully non-compliant; these are initial results that the institutions provide to us," Zafar stated.

Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner questioned IRCC officials about how they would track and remove students who violate their visa terms. Zafar explained that the responsibility for locating and removing non-compliant visa holders falls to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). "Any foreign national in Canada would be under the purview of the Canada Border Services Agency, so they have an inland investigation team," she said.

Zafar also noted that India is a significant source of fraudulent immigration into Canada. When asked by Garner about the countries identified for fraud, Zafar confirmed, "India is one of the top countries."

To monitor compliance, IRCC conducts biannual check-ins with designated learning institutions (DLIs) across Canada. If a school reports that a student is not attending classes, this information is added to the student's file and may affect future immigration applications. The report also states that individuals can be referred to the CBSA for enforcement actions after an IRCC investigation. However, Zafar mentioned that IRCC lacks a mechanism to penalize DLIs that fail to submit compliance updates.

Earlier this year, IRCC data indicated that in the spring of 2024, 50,000 foreign nationals on student visas were reported as "no shows" by their schools. Among these, 19,582 were Indian nationals, while China had the second-highest number of no-shows at 4,279.

The Liberal government, led by Prime Minister Mark Carney, is currently implementing cuts to both temporary and permanent immigration, with student visas facing the most significant reductions. In the first half of 2025, IRCC approved 36,417 study permits, a sharp decline from 125,034 during the same period in 2024.

Opposition members have raised concerns about the student visa program's vulnerability to immigration fraud. Bloc Québécois MP Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe referenced a recent report alleging that gangs from Ivory Coast are exploiting the student visa program to facilitate illegal immigration into Canada. "Criminals are taking advantage of Immigration, Citizenship and Refugees Canada’s negligence to make hundreds of millions of dollars," Brunelle-Duceppe stated.