Work and Study as an International Student in Canada

On This Page, You Will Find:

• The rules for working while you study in Canada
• Working on campus without a work permit
• Working off campus and the 24-hour weekly limit
• Working full-time during scheduled breaks
• Getting a Social Insurance Number
• Co-op placements and internships after the April 2026 change
• Remote work for an employer outside Canada
• Working after your program ends
• Common mistakes that put your status at risk
• Frequently asked questions

International students in Canada can work while they study, but the rules are tightly defined and they have changed twice in recent years. Getting them wrong can cost you your student status.

There are four separate ways to work as a student: on campus, off campus, in a required work placement such as a co-op term or internship, and remotely for an employer located outside Canada. Each has its own conditions.

This guide sets out what each route allows as of August 2026, including the 24-hour weekly off-campus cap and the April 2026 change that removed the co-op work permit requirement for post-secondary students. For the study permit itself, see our Canada study permit guide.

The Basic Rule: Your Study Permit Must Say You Can Work

You cannot work in Canada as a student unless your study permit carries a printed condition authorising it. The permission is not automatic and it is not implied by the permit alone.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) prints one of two conditions on eligible permits:

• “May accept employment on or off campus if meeting eligibility criteria as per R186(f), (v) or (w). Must cease working if no longer meeting these criteria.”
• “This permit does not authorize the holder to engage in off campus employment in Canada. May accept employment only on campus if meeting eligibility criteria as per R186(f). Must cease working if no longer meeting these criteria.”

If you meet the criteria but neither condition appears on your permit, you can ask IRCC to amend it. There is no fee for this. You cannot work, and you cannot get a Social Insurance Number, until the condition is added.

You also cannot start working before your study programme begins. Work that starts even a few days early is unauthorised.

Working On Campus

On-campus work does not require a separate work permit and, importantly, it is not capped by hours.

You can work on campus if all of the following apply:

• You are a full-time student at a designated learning institution (DLI)
• You are enrolled in a post-secondary academic, vocational or professional training programme, or a secondary-level vocational training programme offered in Quebec
• You hold a valid study permit, or you applied to extend it before it expired
• Your initial study permit carries a printed condition allowing on-campus work
• You have a Social Insurance Number

There is no limit on on-campus hours during regular terms or during scheduled breaks. That makes campus jobs the most flexible option available to students.

Who counts as an on-campus employer

• The school itself
• A faculty member
• A student organisation
• Yourself, if you run a business physically located on campus
• A private business operating on campus
• A private contractor providing on-campus services to the school

Where “on campus” ends

“On campus” means the buildings of the campus where you are studying. If your school has several campuses, you can usually only work at the one where you are enrolled.

There is one exception. You may work at a location off the campus if you are a teaching or research assistant, your work is strictly related to a research grant, and the site is a library, hospital or research facility associated with your school.

If you work in a hospital or another setting where public health must be protected, you will need an immigration medical exam unless you have already provided one.

Part-time in your final semester

Students who drop to a part-time course load only in their final semester, after studying full-time in every earlier semester, can keep working on campus without any hour limit.

Working Off Campus and the 24-Hour Limit

Eligible students may work off campus without a work permit for up to 24 hours per week while classes are in session. The cap took effect on 8 November 2024 under paragraph 186(v) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, replacing the temporary policy that had allowed unlimited hours.

To work off campus you must:

• Be a full-time student at a DLI
• Be enrolled in a post-secondary academic, vocational or professional training programme (or a Quebec secondary-level vocational programme) that lasts at least six months and leads to a degree, diploma or certificate
• Have started your programme
• Hold a valid study permit, or have applied to extend it before it expired
• Have the off-campus work condition printed on your permit
• Have a Social Insurance Number

The 24 hours are counted across all jobs. You can hold more than one job, but the combined total during an academic session cannot exceed 24 hours in a week. IRCC counts any time spent earning wages or commission.

Self-employment counts too. If you freelance or run a business, those hours are part of your 24.

Full-time work during scheduled breaks

During a regularly scheduled break in your academic calendar, such as the summer break between school years or the winter break between semesters, the 24-hour cap does not apply and you can work full-time.

The break must be a scheduled part of your programme, and you must have been studying full-time before it and be returning to full-time studies after it. A gap you create yourself by taking a lighter term is not a scheduled break.

Who cannot work off campus

• Students in English or French as a second language programmes
• Students in general interest or preparatory courses
• Students on an authorised leave from their studies
• Students who have stopped studying, including while switching schools

Since November 2024, students must also apply for and be approved for a new study permit before changing designated learning institution. You cannot work off campus during a period when you are not actually studying.

Exceeding 24 hours a week during a session is a breach of your study permit conditions. IRCC has been explicit that it can cost you your student status, lead to refusal of future study or work permits, and require you to leave Canada.

Getting a Social Insurance Number

A Social Insurance Number (SIN) is a nine-digit number required for any paid work in Canada and for access to government benefits.

Service Canada will only issue a SIN if your study permit carries one of the two work conditions quoted above. If the condition is missing, request the amendment from IRCC first, then apply for the SIN.

You can apply online, in person at a Service Canada Centre, or by mail. Online is fastest. If you already hold a SIN with an expiry date tied to an earlier permit, you update the existing number rather than applying for a new one.

Co-op Placements and Internships

This is the area that changed most recently. As of 1 April 2026, post-secondary international students no longer need a separate co-op work permit to take part in a work placement that is required by their programme.

Students who already hold a co-op work permit can continue to use it for its full validity. IRCC has withdrawn pending post-secondary co-op applications rather than processing them.

To take part in a required work placement as a post-secondary student, you must:

• Have the on-campus work condition printed on your initial study permit
• Hold a letter from your DLI confirming the placement is a requirement of your programme
• Hold a valid study permit, or have applied to extend it before it expired
• Be a full-time student at a DLI in a post-secondary academic, vocational or professional training programme
• Have a placement that totals 50 per cent or less of your study programme

There is no weekly hour limit on a required work placement, and placement hours are separate from the 24-hour off-campus cap. Secondary-level students in Canada still need a co-op work permit, which remains free of charge. Our guide to internships and co-op programmes covers the placement rules in detail.

Remote Work for an Employer Outside Canada

You can work remotely for an employer located outside Canada while you study, provided you continue to meet your study permit conditions. This work does not count towards the 24-hour off-campus limit.

Remote work of this kind also does not build the Canadian work experience that programmes such as the Canadian Experience Class require, so treat it as an income source rather than an immigration strategy.

Working After Your Programme Ends

Your authorisation to work as a student stops when your programme ends or your study permit expires, whichever comes first.

Most graduates move on to a post-graduation work permit (PGWP). Key points:

• You have up to 180 days after graduation to apply
• If you apply online before your study permit expires, you can work full-time while the application is processed
• Since 21 June 2024, PGWPs cannot be issued at a port of entry, so applying at the border is not an option
• Graduates of non-degree programmes must meet a field-of-study requirement; graduates with a bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree do not

Our comprehensive PGWP guide sets out eligibility, permit length and the field-of-study list.

If you are starting a new programme rather than leaving, you may be able to keep working while you transition, provided you have completed your current programme, hold an acceptance letter for a new full-time programme, and were already eligible to work off campus.

Common Mistakes That Put Your Status at Risk

• Starting a job before the first day of the programme
• Adding a second job that pushes the weekly total past 24 hours in a session
• Treating a self-created gap term as a scheduled break
• Continuing to work after dropping to part-time studies outside the final semester
• Working after a study permit expires without having applied to extend it in time
• Forgetting that unpaid work counts as work if the role would normally be paid

Budgeting matters too. Student work is meant to supplement your funds, not replace them, and IRCC still expects you to meet the financial requirements for international students at the application stage.

Frequently Asked Questions