Canada’s Designated Learning Institutes must now use the newly launched online portal by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to confirm acceptance letters. As part of the IRCC’s larger campaign against fraud, the new procedure is a digital way for DLIs to make sure the letters of acceptance that students submit are authentic.
“The objective is to safeguard students who are at risk and maintain the credibility of the International Student Program,” the IRCC stated in a statement.
The verification of students’ acceptance letters through the new process needs to be finished within 10 calendar days of a DLI being notified. The application will be canceled and returned to the applicant, along with their processing fees, if a letter of acceptance has not been verified.
According to Universities Canada’s assistant director of international relations, Graham Barber, “We support the government’s endeavour to authenticate all letters of acceptance. We urge the government to investigate integrated software solutions that are compatible with Student Information software at universities, thereby reducing duplication in verification procedures.”
“The establishment of a precise and efficient LOA verification process will be aided by cooperative consultations between the IRCC and universities.” The government’s reforms for the sector included the online portal, which was first announced in October 2023 when immigration minister Marc Miller shared preliminary details.
During a series of events in which over 100 Indian students faced the possibility of deportation after it was discovered that their admission letters to Canadian colleges were fraudulent, many of them were unaware of this, he at the time confirmed that a special government task force was investigating 285 admissions letters.
The details of a “recognised institution framework,” which is anticipated to include “lighter touch processing” for recognized institutions as well as increased trust between the federal government and institutions, are scheduled to be released later this year. Canadian institutions can anticipate more changes to come.