International students seeking to study in Canada now have to demonstrate greater financial resources before they can qualify for a study permit, as Ottawa raises its cost-of-living threshold amid persistently high tuition and living expenses.
Beginning Sept. 1, a single applicant planning to study outside Quebec must show at least C$23,448 to cover one year of living expenses, up C$553 from the previous C$22,895 requirement. A family of two must demonstrate C$29,192, while a family of three must show C$35,888, according to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
Those amounts do not include tuition or transportation. IRCC states that applicants must prove they have enough money, “without working in Canada,” to pay tuition, living expenses for themselves and accompanying family members, and transportation to and from the country. For courses lasting longer than one year, applicants must also explain “how you plan to pay for the full duration of your studies.”
The increase is part of an annual adjustment tied to Statistics Canada’s Low-Income Cut-Off. IRCC began substantially raising the threshold in 2024 after it had remained at C$10,000 for a single applicant for roughly two decades. The department’s 2026 transition briefing says financial requirements will continue to be adjusted each Sept. 1 in line with changes to the low-income measure.
Simon Fraser University, in an Aug. 31 notice to international students, said the annual adjustment is intended to “better reflect the cost of living in Canada” and reduce the risk that foreign students arrive without sufficient resources. The university stressed that the new C$23,448 minimum applies in addition to tuition and travel expenses.
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The policy reflects concerns Ottawa has raised for several years about students arriving in Canada with insufficient money to support themselves. When the government first announced that it would begin tying the requirement more closely to actual living costs in 2023, then-immigration minister Marc Miller said the objective was to ensure prospective students understood the “true cost of living here.” He argued that the previous threshold had left some students financially vulnerable after arriving in Canada.
Meeting the dollar threshold alone may also not be enough. IRCC’s current guidance says applicants using bank statements as proof of financial support should provide records covering the previous six months, along with documentation showing the source of income appearing in those accounts. Other accepted evidence can include Canadian bank accounts, Guaranteed Investment Certificates, student or education loans, proof that tuition or housing has already been paid, scholarships, pensions and rental income.
The actual price of studying in Canada can be far higher
The C$23,448 requirement represents only the minimum amount Ottawa expects a single student to have available for living expenses. When tuition is added, the financial hurdle for attending a Canadian university can quickly rise above C$60,000 for a single year.
The latest national figures available from Statistics Canada show that average international undergraduate tuition reached C$41,746 during the 2025-26 academic year. Combined with the new living-expense requirement, that would amount to C$65,194 before transportation and other costs are considered. Ontario was substantially more expensive, with average international undergraduate tuition of C$49,802. Statistics Canada noted that “international students have faced consistent increases in tuition fees,” with international undergraduate tuition reaching its highest inflation-adjusted level in a decade.
Those expenses can vary considerably depending on the school, program and city. The federal government’s EduCanada service advises prospective students to budget not only for tuition and housing but also for food, transportation, health care, books, technology, phone service, clothing and emergency savings. It describes tuition as “usually your largest study-related cost,” while warning students to investigate living expenses in the particular city or region where they intend to study.
The rising costs are already causing concern among student representatives. Brandon University Students’ Union President Tosin Salau warned in June that seemingly modest increases become considerably more significant “when you consider the cost of living and other expenses students face.” Brandon University approved a six percent tuition increase for international students for the 2026-27 school year, while the university projected international enrolment would fall 13.5 percent because of continuing federal study-permit restrictions.
The higher financial threshold also arrives as Canada is already experiencing a steep decline in new international students following a series of federal immigration restrictions. Le Monde reported Sept. 1 that the number of newly admitted foreign students fell from nearly 125,000 during the first half of 2024 to about 22,000 during the same period this year. Imane Chafi, former president of the Polytechnique Montréal Graduate Student Association, said, “A lot of students have seen their futures upended. They’ve been discouraged from coming here.”
That decline has produced a tension between Ottawa’s efforts to control the size and integrity of the international student system and universities that continue to rely on foreign students for talent and tuition revenue. Gabriel Miller, president and CEO of Universities Canada, told Le Monde that Canada still needs international students, telling prospective applicants: “There is room for you. We want you here.”
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