New Public Policy Concerning Students from a One-Year International Business Management Program and a Four-Month Freight Forwarding and Logistics Program at the Same Public College

Summary

Minister Ahmed Hussen established a public policy for a group of international graduates who became ineligible for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP) on October 26, 2018. These students became ineligible for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP) because of misinformation pertaining to their program of study and eligibility for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP). 

The public policy thus helps in:

• Facilitating the issuance of open work permits and,
• Facilitating the restoration of the students’ temporary resident status

In order to be eligible for consideration under the public policy, eligible individuals will need to make applications for open work permits (from within or outside Canada) and applications for restoration of status (if applicable) by 2359 hrs Eastern Time on December 31, 2018.

Issue

This Operational Bulletin (OB) aims to provide operational instructions pertaining to the submission & processing of applications for open work permits and applications for the restoration of status (if applicable). In particular, the instructions given here apply to applications falling within the scope of the Public Policy Concerning Individuals Who Partook in a One-Year International Business Management Program and a Four-Month Freight Forwarding and Logistics Program at the Same Public College.

Background

Because of misinformation regarding their program of study and eligibility for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP), a group of international public college graduates became eligible for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP).

It can be worth mentioning that the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP) requires that a program of study completed at an eligible institution must be at least eight months in length. In addition, applicants will need to submit their applications within 90 days of receiving written confirmations of program completion. The authorities typically calculate the duration of the post-graduation work permit based on the length of the program of study.

However, this method of calculation affected international public college graduates, who completed a one-year international business management program and a separate four-month freight forwarding & logistic program at the same public college. These individuals believed that they would be eligible for a post-graduation work permit. Unfortunately, the length of the freight forwarding and logistics program damaged their chances of being eligible for post-graduation work permits.

The duration of the freight forwarding and logistics program has led to this situation. This program has a span of four months. Hence, the authorities found that it did not meet the prescribed minimum eight-month duration needed for rendering the student eligible for a post-graduation work permit. Moreover, in some cases, the 90-day application eligibility period following the completion of the one-year international business management program had lapsed as well. Hence, based on these credentials, the authorities did not consider these graduates eligible for applying for post-graduation work permits. 

It goes without saying that this situation has negatively affected these international graduates. It has limited their access to the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP). To remedy this, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has taken facilitative action. As a result, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship established a public policy on October 26, 2018. This public policy, established under the provisions specified in section 25.2 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), facilitates the issuance of open work permits and the restoration of temporary resident status for eligible applicants. In particular, it caters to a group of international graduates who became ineligible for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP) because of misinformation pertaining to their program of study and eligibility for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP). Readers will need to note that this public policy came into force on October 26, 2018. In addition, this policy will cease to apply on December 31, 2018.

The Public Policy – The Eligibility Criteria and the Prescribed Conditions

The authorities consider international graduates eligible for consideration in case these individuals meet the following eligibility criteria and conditions under the Public Policy Concerning Individuals Who Partook in a One-Year International Business Management Program and a Four-Month Freight Forwarding and Logistics Program at the Same Public College.

The Guidelines for International Graduates When the Authorities Have Refused their Post-Graduation Work Permit

• The authorities have refused the student’s post-graduation work permit between July 25, 2018 and the date of issue of this public policy i.e. October 29, 2018
• The only reason for the refusal was the fact that more than 90 days had elapsed since the student received confirmation that the student had completed the international business management program at their public college
• The student had received the confirmation of program completion of a one-year international business management program at their public college, following which they received the notification of completion of a four-month fright forwarding and logistics program, offered by the same public college between August 01, 2017, and September 30, 2018
• The student has not previously received a post-graduation work permit and,
• The student applied for facilitation under this public policy by 2359 hrs Eastern Time on December 31, 2018

The Guidelines for International Graduates Who Have Not Yet Applied for a Post-Graduation Work Permit or Have Not Yet Received a Decision on Their Post-Graduation Work Permit Application

• The student will need to have completed a one-year international business management program at a public college between August 01, 2017, and June 01, 2018
• The student will need to have completed a four-month freight forwarding and logistics program on or before August 31, 2018, at the same public college, following the international business management program
• The student will need to have qualified for a post-graduation work permit in case the student had applied for it within 90 days of receiving confirmation that they had completed the international business management program
• The student will need to have applied for a post-graduation work permit within 90 days of having received confirmation of completion of the freight forwarding and logistics program or, the student will need to have applied for facilitation under the purview of this public policy, within 90 days of receiving written confirmation of completion of the freight forwarding and logistics program from their public college
• The authorities must not have issued a post-graduation work permit previously to the student and,
• The student will need to have applied for facilitation under the purview of this public policy by 2359 hrs Eastern Time on December 31, 2018

Note:

• The authorities will require international graduates to self-identify as eligible for consideration, under the provisions of the public policy, based on the eligibility criteria and conditions specified in the public policy by writing ‘Public policy for international graduates ineligible for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP)’ on the first page of the application or correspondence

The Processing Instructions for Post-Graduation Work Permit Applicants Who Have Not Yet Received a Decision on their Applications

The authorities permit international graduates to withdraw their post-graduation work permit applications in case these individuals applied under the public policy and have not yet received a decision on their post-graduation work permit application.

In some cases, the applicant might submit the application under the public policy and not withdraw the post-graduation work permit application by 2359 hrs Eastern Time on December 31, 2018. In this scenario, the officers will need to process the post-graduation work permit application under the post-graduation work permit guidelines.

Note:

• The authorities will not accept applications for this public policy at Ports of Entry (POEs)
• Thus, officers will need to refer all applicants who are applying under this public policy at a Port of Entry (POE) to the Case Processing Centre in Edmonton 
• In case applicants withdraw their applications before the processing of the application commences might receive refunds

The Guidelines for In-Canada Applications

It can be worth highlighting that the public policy authorises officers to exempt eligible applicants from the requirement that these applicants need to make their applications for work permits from outside Canada. Thus, eligible international graduates will be able to apply for the open work permit from within Canada. In addition, the authorities do not require applicants to have a valid study permit at the time of application. This is because this is not a post-graduation work permit. 

The Guidelines for the Restoration of Status

The public policy also authorises officers to waive the requirement that applicants need to make applications to restore their temporary resident status within 90 days of losing their temporary resident status. Thus, eligible international graduates in Canada will still be able to apply for restoration and open work permits under the provisions specified in the public policy. This applies even in case the eligible international graduate in Canada is without status and the 90-day restoration period has elapsed.

The Guidelines Pertaining to the Medical Exams

The authorities require applicants to provide evidence of medical exams in case one of the following two circumstances apply:

• The applicant is requesting an open work permit to enable them to work in a designated occupation or,
• The applicant visited or lived in a designated country for more than six months during the past year

In some cases, the applicants might not provide any evidence of a medical exam at the time of application. They might do so because the above-mentioned circumstances do not apply. In this scenario, the officers will need to issue the open work permit. In addition, the officers will need to specify the condition that the applicant will remain restricted from working in occupations that would necessitate a medical exam in case the applicant met all the other eligibility criteria prescribed.

In case the applicant has a valid medical exam on file, the officers will need to check whether the applicant has visited or lived in a designated country for more than six months since the applicant underwent the medical exam. If the officers find that the applicant has a valid medical exam on file and has not visited or lived in a designated country for more than six months since the date of the medical exam, the officers will need to issue the open work permit. However, the officers will also need to specify the condition that the applicant can work in occupations that would necessitate a medical exam in case the applicant met all the other eligibility criteria prescribed. 

For more information on medical exam requirements for temporary residents, officers will need to go through the section titled ‘Who Must Submit to an Immigration Medical Exam?’ on the website of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

On the website of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the authorities have provided a complete list of panel physicians in the ‘Find a Panel Physician’ tool. It can be worth highlighting that panel physicians are independent from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and thus, set their own fees. The fees levied by these physicians is not exempt under the terms of this public policy.

The Guidelines for Issuing an Open Work Permit Under the Public Policy

When issuing a work permit under the new public policy, officers will need to:

• Confirm that the applicant is eligible for consideration under the provisions specified in the public policy
• Avoid refusing the application in case the applicant has not included a copy of the applicant’s post-graduation work permit refusal letter, dated between July 25, 2018, and October 29, 2018, in the application
  • In this scenario, the officers will need to refer to the refusal letter on file in the previous application in the Global Case Management System (GCMS)
• Avoid refusing the application in case the applicant has not included evidence that the applicant submitted a post-graduation work permit application within 90 days of having received confirmation of completion of the freight forwarding and logistics program from their public college in the application
  • In this scenario, the officers will need to refer to the list of the previous applications in the Global Case Management System (GCMS)
• Enter ‘Public policy for refused Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP) applicants’ on the work permit’s notes, in case the officer is issuing an open work permit outside Canada
  • The presence of this annotation would inform officers at the Port of Entry (POE) that the authorities issued the work permit based on the provisions specified in the public policy
• Assess each application made under this public policy on a case by case basis when they determine the validity of the open work permit
  • In most cases, the validity of the open work permit will be for a span of two years

The Special System Coding

The authorities have placed special system coding in effect for tracking applications and transactions linked to this public policy. It can be worth mentioning that the use of the following special program coding i.e. PP-PGWP is mandatory. Thus, officers will need to use this special program coding for tracking all related applications processed in the Global Case Management System (GCMS).

Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)