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All study destinations·Canada, Study permit
Study visa check

Check your Canada study permit application before you apply

A study permit is decided under sections 216 and 220 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. This page shows you what they require, in their words, and what IRCC asks you to send.

migration officerImmigration, Refugees and Citizenship CanadaStudy permit

What the officer is deciding

Whether a designated learning institution has accepted you, whether you can pay tuition, living costs and travel without working in Canada, and whether you will leave when your authorized stay ends.

Why applications fail

Funds that cover tuition but not living costs, a study plan that does not explain why this program, or ties at home that the documents do not show.

01
IRPR 216(1)(e)

Letter of acceptance and attestation letter

has been accepted to undertake a course or program of study at a designated learning institution

What the officer assesses: Whether you hold a letter of acceptance from a designated learning institution, which the school confirms, and in most cases a provincial or territorial attestation letter.

Two documents from the school. The letter of acceptance is always required, and for post-secondary study IRCC asks the school to confirm it. The provincial or territorial attestation letter is needed in most cases, and usually only after you accept the offer and pay some or all of the tuition. In Quebec it is the Quebec Acceptance Certificate instead.

Where this comes from 2 official sources
  • (e) has been accepted to undertake a course or program of study at a designated learning institution and, in the case of a designated learning institution that is a post-secondary institution, that designated learning institution has provided the confirmation referred to in paragraph 222.1(1)(a) to the Minister in accordance with that paragraph

    Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, section 216 (study permits), IRPR 216(1)(e)

    checked against the page on 19 October 2026

  • Get a provincial or territorial attestation letter (PAL/TAL) from your school. In most cases, you need to accept your offer and pay your tuition fees, either in part or in full, to get your PAL/TAL.

    Study permit: get the right documents, Apply for a provincial or territorial attestation letter

    checked against the page on 19 October 2026

Evidence that addresses it

  • The letter of acceptance from a designated learning institution
  • The provincial or territorial attestation letter (PAL or TAL), or the CAQ for Quebec
  • Proof of tuition paid, where it was needed for the attestation letter
02
IRPR 220

Financial resources

An officer shall not issue a study permit to a foreign national, other than one described in paragraph 215(1)(d) or (e), unless they have sufficient and available financial resources, without working in Canada

What the officer assesses: Whether you can pay the tuition, your living costs and those of any family coming with you, and the return travel, without working in Canada, from money that is yours or reliably available to you.

Three costs, all at once: tuition, living costs for you and any family coming with you, and travel to and from Canada. The money has to be available without working in Canada, and the officer reads where it came from as well as how much it is.

Where this comes from 1 official source
  • 220 An officer shall not issue a study permit to a foreign national, other than one described in paragraph 215(1)(d) or (e), unless they have sufficient and available financial resources, without working in Canada, to (a) pay the tuition fees for the course or program of studies that they intend to pursue; (b) maintain themself and any family members who are accompanying them during their proposed period of study; and (c) pay the costs of transporting themself and the family members referred to in paragraph (b) to and from Canada.

    Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, section 220 (financial resources), IRPR 220

    checked against the page on 19 October 2026

Evidence that addresses it

  • Bank statements showing the funds and their history, for you or your sponsor
  • Proof of tuition already paid
  • Scholarship, loan or sponsor letters, with the sponsor's own income evidence
  • A short explanation of where any large deposit came from
03
IRPR 216(1)(b)

Leaving Canada at the end of the study period

will leave Canada by the end of the period authorized for their stay under Division 2 of Part 9

What the officer assesses: Whether your ties at home, your study history and your plans make it likely you leave Canada when your permit ends.

The officer must be satisfied you will leave when your authorized stay ends, so your ties at home, your history and your study plan have to show it.

Where this comes from 2 official sources

Evidence that addresses it

  • Evidence of family, property, employment or a business at home
  • Your study and employment history
  • A letter of explanation that sets out your plans after the course
04
IRPR 216(1) and the letter of explanation

Purpose of study and the study plan

You must explain why you want to study in Canada, and that you understand your responsibilities as an international student in Canada.

What the officer assesses: Whether the program makes sense for you, given your education, your work and your plans, and whether the letter of explanation shows it.

The letter of explanation is where the program has to make sense: why this program, why this school, why Canada, and how it fits what you studied or did before. IRCC lists it as recommended, but a refusal for the purpose of study usually means this letter did not answer those questions.

Where this comes from 1 official source
  • You must explain why you want to study in Canada, and that you understand your responsibilities as an international student in Canada.

    Study permit: get the right documents, Write a letter of explanation

    checked against the page on 19 October 2026

Evidence that addresses it

  • A letter of explanation covering why this program, this school and Canada
  • Transcripts and certificates from previous study
  • Evidence of how the program fits your career, such as an employer letter
05
IRPR 216(1)(d), medical examination and police certificates

Medical examination and police certificate

meets the requirements of subsections 30(2) and (3), if they must submit to a medical examination under paragraph 16(2)(b) of the Act

What the officer assesses: Whether a medical examination or police certificate is needed in your case, and whether it is done and valid.

A medical exam is needed in some cases, such as a stay of more than six months or recent time in certain countries, and IRCC may ask for a police certificate. Each takes time, so check early whether you need them.

Where this comes from 2 official sources

Evidence that addresses it

  • The upfront medical exam confirmation, where you need one
  • A police certificate, where one is asked for

Study permits are decided under sections 216 and 220 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. Refusal letters tick reasons from a fixed list; the officer's notes in the Global Case Management System give the fuller reasoning and can be requested.

Free check

Where does your study application stand?

Six questions, read against the requirements above. Nothing you choose leaves this page.

  1. 1 Where are you with your place on the course?

    The school’s confirmation (a CAS, a letter of acceptance or an I-20) comes before the visa, and the visa is checked against it.

  2. 2 Have you paid the course fees?

    Fees paid reduce the money you have to show, and in Ireland and most Canadian cases they must be paid before you apply.

  3. 3 How will you pay for your living costs?

    Every destination checks that the money is there and that its source makes sense.

  4. 4 How will you show your English?

    The UK and Ireland set a level for the visa itself; Canada and the US rely on the school’s own entry requirement.

  5. 5 How does this course follow your last study?

    Officers ask why this course, now, and a gap or a change of subject has to be explained.

  6. 6 What is your visa history?

    A previous refusal for any country has to be declared and answered.

Answer all 6 questions to see the result. Nothing you choose leaves this page.

Study visa reviews

Have your documents read against these requirements

Pre-check £99 £49.50 before you apply, or refusal check £149 £74.50 after a refusal. Each one includes a free re-run within 30 days, once you have fixed what it found.

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