Step 1 of 5
Plan your studies and protect your status
Nothing later in this path works if your status has a gap in it. This step is about the conditions printed on your permit, the money you have to show, and the one enrolment decision that quietly determines whether you can get a work permit when you graduate.
The money you have to show
Beyond your first year of tuition and your travel costs, you must show you can cover living expenses. The figures below took effect on September 1, 2026 and apply outside Quebec.
| Family size | Living expenses, first year |
|---|---|
| 1 (just you) | $23,448 |
| 2 | $29,192 |
| 3 | $35,888 |
| 4 | $43,572 |
| 5 | $49,419 |
| 6 | $55,736 |
| 7 | $62,054 |
| Each additional person | +$6,318 |
These amounts exclude tuition and travel
The table is living expenses only. Your total is living expenses plus first-year tuition plus travel. Quebec sets its own figures through the Ministère de l'Immigration, de la Francisation et de l'Intégration and requires a CAQ first.
Source: Proof of financial support — canada.ca · in force Sept 1, 2026 · checked
Add your tuition and travel in the funds calculator →
The conditions you are agreeing to
A study permit is conditional. The conditions are printed on the permit itself, and they are the thing IRCC checks later when you apply for anything else.
- Enrol at a designated learning institution and remain enrolled.
- Actively pursue your studies. Making real progress toward completing your program — not enrolled on paper while working.
- Respect any work condition. If your permit does not carry a work condition, you cannot work off campus at all. See step 2.
- Leave, extend, or change status before the permit expires.
Your permit can never outlast your passport. Permits are issued only for the period your passport is valid. A passport expiring in 14 months means a permit expiring in 14 months, whatever your program length. Renew the passport early.
If your status lapses
You have 90 days to apply for restoration
If your study permit expires and you have not applied to extend, you lose status. You may apply to restore it within 90 days. As a student that costs $396.25 — a $246.25 restoration fee plus $150 for the new study permit. You must stop working and stop studying until it is restored.
Source: Fee list — IRCC · checked
After 90 days, restoration is no longer available. That is a hard line, and it is the point at which most people should be speaking to a licensed representative rather than reading a website.
The decision that matters most, made first
Where you enrol determines whether you can get a post-graduation work permit at all — and you make that choice before you ever think about PR.
Some institutions and program types cannot produce a PGWP. Private career colleges generally cannot. Programs a private college delivers under licence from a public college — public-private partnerships — generally cannot either, depending on when you started. Verify PGWP eligibility for your specific program before you enrol or transfer, not after. The details are in step 3.
What to keep from day one
- Every letter of acceptance, enrolment confirmation and transcript.
- Proof you paid tuition, and the bank records you used for proof of funds.
- A copy of each permit, and the date each one expires — put them in the expiry tracker.
- Any approved leave of absence letter from your institution. This is the document that explains a gap in enrolment later.